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Reclaimed by Nature
Ta Prohm, the "Tomb Raider" temple. Our favorite of all the temples and exploring it was super cool. Built around 8,000 years ago and simply amazing.Switching Countries
Getting from Vietnam to Cambodia was an easy 2 hour flight from Hanoi to Siem Reap. The airport at Siem Reap is very nice, clean and modern. Apparently, it is run by a French company; this is what we were told by our Cambodian driver. Regardless, it is a great small airport with a quick, easy, stress-free flow to it. You purchase your visa on the spot, before processing through Immigration and then grab your bags and go… easy.
Our hotel driver was waiting for us just outside and 15 minutes later we were at our temporary home for the next 7 days. We stayed at the Golden Banana, a complex divided up into 3 separate levels of comfort. The most basic is the B&B for $25 a night, next to that is the Boutique Hotel for $45 and set further back is the Resort for $53 a night. All came with breakfast and use of the pool. We planned on spending 4 nights in the B&B, and then treat ourselves to 3 nights in the resort. This plan changed quickly after just one night in our B&B room; very small, very old, very dark and one
Banteay Srey
One of the older temples of the many here, it became our second favorite. Built around 960 AD. scary looking shower. The next morning we spoke with the manager of the resort, negotiated a reduced price and changed rooms that afternoon. Glad we did; the resort was 20 times better and came with a much bigger breakfast.
Exploring the Temples
With over 50 temples in the area and temperatures reaching 95 by 10am, we knew we’d have to pace ourselves or we would quickly burn out. We found us a reliable tuk-tuk driver and set out each morning by 6am. We would only do 3 temples max and were usually back at the resort around 9am, enjoying a nice breakfast of fruit, croissants and eggs. The rest of the day was spent relaxing, then we would walk to town (only a 5 minute walk) for dinner. The down-town area is loaded with restaurants, but we found that most of them had low quality dishes with high prices. We both did enjoyed our meals at an Irish pub located at the end of Pub Street, called Molly Malones; pricy like the rest but the food was excellent.
Our favorite of the temples was Ta Prohm (the one featured in the “Tomb Raider” movies) and Banteay
Angkor Thom
Built during the 1200's (yep 8,000 years ago) it is worth the visit. Srey (one of the oldest). Most of the temples are undergoing restoration and full access is limited, plus a lot boards can be seen here and there. This distracts some, but the “wow” factor is still present. On one of our last mornings of temple exploring, our driver took a shortcut through a village, letting us get an up close look of everyday life.
Moving On
We caught a very short flight back to Bangkok at the end of the week and this is where we are at present. We picked up our visas for China today and will finish up our dental work tomorrow. On Sunday it’s a flight to Beijing and the start of a new adventure. The place we are staying at in Bangkok is “Be My Guest” guesthouse. Located far away from everything tourist, it takes a little more effort to get places, but is very new, roomy and feels like you are staying in someone’s home. Another big plus is the great price of only $30 a day. We have full use of the kitchen and the owner has a large DVD collection; our room has a DVD player & TV.
Our Tuk-Tuk driver
Our Tuk-Tuk driver for the week and main mode of transport. That's all for now... next stop China.
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Kelly
non-member comment
Place looks awesome, really cool wished i was there, glad you all having fun, man this place is cool. does the trees really grow into the ground like that with the roots showing?