Arrival in Siem Reap

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The aircraft swooped low over Siem Reap, twinkling lights visible in the darkness of night, car lights moving along various roads and tracks, garish lights flickering from various motels lining Airport Road, even party lights shone up from some sort of pool party being held below. We had had a surprisingly short journey, lifting off the runway at Hanoi bang on time (oh the joys of an efficient airport! LHR - take note!) and made good time through the sky, flying over Siem Reap a good half hour earlier than expected, the plane circled the town three times - god only knows why, I doubt there was a single other aircraft waiting to land! - after the third circuit, the aircraft touched down safely. I had arrived in Cambodia.

Siem Reap airport is very pleasing to the eye, built in traditional Khmer style, it's a pleasant one-storey building with thoroughly modern facilities. Going through visa section and immigration was very straightforward and quick. 15 minutes after landing I was inside the car, talking with my guide and on way to the hotel.

Checked in the Royal Crown (fine, good staff, clean room, a big bed, strong shower - suits me!) dumped my bags, ran a brush through my hair and set off to explore the town and more importantly, find some food as I was starving hungry! Literally five minutes walk later, I arrived at Bar Street, which has plenty of errr... Bars lining it. I picked one at random, had some Angkor beer, which was delicious, watched the comings and goings of various groups on Bar Street.

Moved to the Red Piano for food, and it was delicious. I stuffed myself with a traditional Khmer spicy fish dish with steamed rice. Gorgeous! More Angkor beer accompanied the food. At every bar, there are terraces, balconies and great people-watching spots, so I was never bored. Actually despite the fact they are many thousands of miles apart, and the geography of both places couldn't be more different if you tried, Siem Reap reminded me of Aguas Calientes in Peru, right next to Machu Picchu, same atmosphere, plenty of cheap and cheerful watering holes and food places.

Some facts about Siem Reap:

It roughly translates in Khmer as Defeated Siamese, commemorating the Angkor defeat of Siam many centuries ago. However the Siamese had the last laugh, defeating the Angkors and Khmers to control Siem Reap and Angkor between 1794 and 1907 before the French annexed Cambodia as a protectorate.

French rule lasted until 1953, after which nearly 20 years archaeology work was spent on the Temples, continuing the French's obsessions with the temples which dated from 1901. Unfortunately, this came to an abrupt end when the Khmer Rouge stormed into power. All archaeology work stopped, not to start again until the UN arrived in 1991.

Pronunciation - See-em Ree-ep (more or less)

Hope this bit of background helps! It does become relevant later, especially when I visited Angkor Thom, a lot of what happened with the Khmer Rouge had a massive impact on the Angkors which is still felt today.

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