Did I Happen To Mention, We Were The First Ever

8 dollars each for a 6 hour coach journey to the town named Siem Reap, the reason practically every tourist visits Cambodia for. The name may sound unfamiliar to some, but it is the location of the magnificent temples of ANGKOR WAT, the capital of the ancient Khymer Empire, and the largest group of religious buildings in the world. They were constructed between the 9th and 15th centuries, covering a vast area just north of town.

The bus journey from Phnom Penh was, as ever, eventful. Halfway into the journey, it stopped for lunch. We were literally dropped into mayhem, amongst sellers and child beggers wanting dollars. Wern't hungry so we just kind of wandered about in the heat surrounded by woman and girls selling fruit and big black spiders, presumably fried, whilst small children followed us about tugging at our arms.


It was even more chaotic when we arrived in Siem Reap. Before the bus had even stopped, tuk tuk drivers mobbed the exit, all desperate to land a fare. Couldn't get off the bloody bus for them. It was, as if there was a rush for the last seat, on the last helicopter out of Saigon. The tuk tuk drivers in Cambodia really "take the biscuit". They constantly approach you, "hello, tuk tuk sir, where you go". Don't they know, we like to walk! One even asked me as I was entering a museum. Beware, If you walk a hundred yards you may be asked a dozen times. In Siem Reap there is a little pedestrianised road called Bar Street, full of restaurants and bars. Doesn't stop them, they park their vehicles nearby, then stand and stare into all the establishments, just as people get up to leave, they pounce! Look up from your meal, guaranteed one will be looking straight at you, honest!
Tuk Tuk driver fatigue setting in.


The entrance fee to the Angkor complex is 20 dollars each day or 40 dollars for 3. A day isn't long enough to do it justice so we purchased a 3 day pass, and our hotel arranged a tuk tuk (really do need transport this time) for 12 dollars each day, which worked out great, although I would recommend hiring bicycles on day one to see the nearby temples. Then book a tuk tuk to visit further afield.


We did the "little circuit" 17KM tour on our first day starting with the walled royal city of Anghor Thom dating from the late 12th century. To give you some idea of the size of this former capital, it supported an estimated 1 million inhabitants in it's heyday. The towers of Bayon, each with 4 faces, sits in the centre of the city. there are 5 entrances, one for each cardinal point, and the victory gate leading to the royal palace.
Many temples were built nearby including the famous building overgrown with tree roots. Ta Prohm was even featured in Tomb Raider, an awful hollywood movie.
It's amazing, thousands of tourists are only visiting here because of it, snapping away, asking "Where is the tree from the movie" Have they no sense of history!
Of course, we wanted to see it as well.

Our final stop on our first day was Angkor Wat itself, a Stunning temple surrounded by a moat, 190 metres wide. It looks like the river Thames or the Seine. Tourists flock across the sandstone causeway to reach the entrance. After entering there is an avenue, almost 500 metres long taking you to the central temple complex, which is a magnificent sight. The walls are full of impressive carvings of Apsara Dancers, incidently, we watched an Apsara show the night before in Bar St, upstairs in the Temple Restaurant.
We left Angkor Wat until last, to catch the sunset, which is supposed to be fabulous, alas, it was too cloudy.


Our route on Day two was the 26 KM big circuit, we imagined we had seen all the large sites, not a bit of it. the scale of the Angkor complex set in the jungle is enormous. Started at Ta Som, a huge monastic building with giant tree roots destroying the east entrance. After this you visit other sites, each with their own character, and ending up travelling amongst rice fields to complete this route. Afterwards we decided to try one more time to catch the sunset at Angkor Wat, cloudy again!


Our driver suggested visiting a group of temples further afield on day three, but we felt we had seen plenty, plus we had noticed that a new multi million dollar museum was having a grand opening next day.
The better option, so we decided a visit to see such an important museum would've been more rewarding.
Next day we walked to the museum (ignoring frequent requests from tuk tuks) only to find that it was only open to V I P s, such as the Prime Minister. The security guard told us "come back tomorrow, 9 o,clock. Problem was, we had booked an early morning bus to Phnom Penh.


It was too good an opportunity to miss, so we managed to re-arrange for the 12,30 bus, giving us a couple of hours. So, first thing in the morning, we headed for the museum, arriving just before opening time, and we were first in line. Come 9 oçlock, there was perhaps a dozen people waiting, but i wasn't going to let any of them get to the front.
When the smiling young lady opened the door, we were straight in there, and became the first ever paying members of the public to enter, what i'm sure will be a very important museum in the future.
It is a modern design with circular walkways to each level, water feature, and plenty of space for the exhibits, some of which, still had to be put in their proper positions. You just know that this museum is going to form part of every tourists itinerary when visiting Angkor Wat.



OH! Did We Happen To Mention, That We Where The First Ever!

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