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Published: April 23rd 2009
Rak and his Tuk Tuk
I stole this off his website, as I never had a chance to take a decent picture of him. Day 11 Friday, January 23, 2009
We left our hot and uncomfortable hostel at 3:00 a.m. and arrived promptly at the airport at 4:20 a.m. Darn. Our flight was not until 7 a.m. I know being early is better than being late, but dang. It took less than ten minutes to check in and go through security, which stood in sharp contrast to the day before. Kim was still feeling ill. We managed to secure somewhat of a breakfast with passable coffee at a small café, but most of the shops were still closed. I was fortunate that a shop opened just before we boarded so I was able to get a Kuala Lumpur keychain and magnet. The magnet was for me. The keychain, of course, was for my sister Chelsea. The flight to Siem Reap verged on miserable. A man kneed me in the back for the entire trip and he wasn’t nearly tall enough to excuse it. And the fact that I hadn’t slept at all probably added to my grumpiness about it. But, no matter. By 8 a.m. we had arrived in Siem Reap.
Now I will take a brief pause to say that Cambodia, more
First stop: Molly Malone's
I was excited about the real cheeseburger that was on it's way. Cara is just a dork. specifically Siem Reap and the Angkor Temples, has been in my top five places I want to see for years. I also didn’t think I would ever be able to visit. Until I decided to move to China, I didn’t think I’d ever make to Asia at all. Malaysia was a lot of fun. But I didn’t really have expectations for it. I had no knowledge beforehand of the places we visited and I was pleasantly surprised by it all. But Cambodia was different. I knew what I was about to see and I knew it would be awesome. I had always devoured those Travel Channel and Discovery Channel shows about the temples and I couldn’t believe that in a short time I would see them with my own eyes.
I was in awe of Siem Reap the moment I stepped off the plane. The airport was beautiful! There were finely manicured lawns, lily ponds, gardens, and statues everywhere! If not for the runways, it would have looked like a resort. It took a while to purchase our entry visas. Cara and I were through with no trouble but there was a slight issue with Kim’s passport (they accidentally
Best...Burger...Ever
And I'm not just saying that because it had been six months since I had had a real cheeseburger. discarded her arrival card). Cara and I were left wondering what happened to her for about twenty minutes. Those were anxious minutes.
We had arranged via the Internet for a tuk tuk driver from our hostel to pick us up. A tuk tuk is a two wheeled cart that seat about four people and is attached to a motorbike. It is the main mode of transport for tourists in Siem Reap. We found our driver easily as we exited the airport.
His name is Rak. He is a university student studying travel & tourism and English. As you will see in my subsequent blogs on Siem Reap, I cannot say enough to praise Rak. He was more than just a driver. He was our guide. His knowledge of the sites is extensive and his enthusiasm for it all is infectious. If anyone reading this plans to visit Siem Reap, please do not hesitate to contact Rak. Our visit would not have been half as fun without him. His website is: http://www.taxiservicerak.blogspot.com/.
Rak showed us to his Tuk Tuk, loaded our packs onboard then broke out an ice chest and offered us a choice of sodas and beer.
Potential computer school?
Maybe they're still waiting for the zoning... As it was still around nine in the morning so we passed on the beer but were extremely excited about the Ginger Ale (which is not available in mainland China). He drove us to our hostel in town, The Siem Reap Hostel, and as we were walking inside he offered, or rather, informed us that he would be our driver for the duration of our stay. We were a little wary at first. As foreigners living in China we have become hypersensitive to scams, but our hostel assured us everything was okay. So we agreed, which was probably the best decision we made during our entire trip. Rak waited to take us to lunch while we checked in and dropped off our packs. The Siem Reap Hostel is wonderful. At eight dollars per night for a bed in a six bed dorm room, it’s a little more expensive than other hostels in town but well worth it. There is a reasonably priced in house restaurant, a one dollar buffet breakfast that includes fresh fruit and pancakes, an indoor pool, free use of the internet, free use of board games, dvds, books, and a pool table. The lounge areas are plentiful
I knew it!!!
I always knew that if it was supposed to be Canada, it's people would be called Canadans. and comfortable. The beds are soft and everything is immaculately clean. And the staff is always available and always ready to help.
Before coming to Siem Reap we knew there would be a plethora of western food to choose from and we had a game plan in place. We knew exactly where we wanted Rak to take us for our first lunch: Molly Malone’s, an Irish pub. We read online that they had really good burgers and we were all dying for something that wasn’t from McD’s. Molly did not disappoint. My cheeseburger was perfection. Some travelers may berate us for not diving into local fare. To them I say, “Back off! We’ve been living in China where what you think is vanilla ice cream is really buttered corn flavored ice cream and boneless meat has become the stuff of legends and myths.”
After gorging ourselves shamelessly on red meat and potatoes, we went for a walk around the town. Siem Reap is a shopping Mecca for tourists and it didn’t take me long to find all sorts of goodies to bring home. We met back up with Rak at Molly Malone’s and he drove us over to
Um...
Kim really liked these stuffed crocodiles. Happy Ranch. We had a 3pm date with three Cambodian ponies for an hour long trail ride. On the way there I related to Kim and Cara that I have a propensity to fall off of things and that my friends and family at home would probably be a little worried to hear that I was going horseback riding. I have fallen out of boats into both the Potomac and the Shenandoah rivers. I have flipped rather spectacularly off an ATV in the jungles of Mexico. I have required medical attention after attempting the bunny hill at Ski Roundtop. And the list goes on. I should have kept my mouth shut. Happy Ranch is run by a Cambodian man that spent many years in California raising horses. I always worry about how animals are treated in less developed countries, but the ponies of Happy Ranch did indeed look happy and healthy. We met our guide, a young woman from New Zealand and after signing the ‘you won’t sue us if you break your leg’ papers we went outside to meet our steeds. Cara got a feisty pony called Asterix and Kim got a bit chomper named LA. I was given
a lovely pony named Hobbit. I chuckled. LOTR has been a lifelong favorite of mine and my JRT back home is called Bilbo. Instead of chuckling I should have been more wary, as hobbits can be tricksy. My dog Bilbo is a perfect example.
The ride started out well. The ponies were easy to control, and being much smaller than horses, did not feel as scary. Then, while crossing a field, I could feel that Hobbit’s attitude had altered. My spidey sense was tingling. I called ahead to our guide and voiced my concerns. She turned in her saddle and just as she looked she yelled, “Look out!” And down Hobbit went head first to the ground into a roll, fully prepared to scratch his back whether I was still on it or not. Given my general lack of grace, my brain was instantly flooded with images of my broken and bloodied leg dangling before me while I waited in a less than stellar Cambodian hospital. But felicity was with me as I lightly stepped off of Hobbit just before he went all four hooves in the air. That’s right, folks. I didn’t even fall! Even our guide was
impressed. As I stood there watching my pony take a dirt bath I could hear Kim utter the words, “Wow, Tiffany, you really do fall off of things.” Yes. Yes, I do. When Hobbit’s itch was fully satisfied I hopped back on with assurances from our guide that he probably wouldn’t try that again. Just to be sure, though, she handed me a stick and told me to show it to him if he did. Apparently Hobbit is not fond of sticks. I didn’t ask why. The rest of the trail was fun. We passed through small villages and dozens of children screamed ‘hello!’ as we rode. Our ponies tried to race each other a couple of times, which was interesting. I had trouble relaxing after the incident and I’m sure I missed a lot of the scenery. I was too busy keeping a hawk’s eye on Hobbit. Kim’s pony, LA, insisted several times on veering off the path to eat and Cara’s pony, Asterix, wanted to be the front man and incited more than one of the ‘races’ with Hobbit. By the end of the trail ride I was done, done, done.
After we bid farewell to our
ponies, Rak drove us over to the Apsara Dinner Theatre to book a table for later that night. He went into the restaurant with us and helped us find the closest table still available. He even recommended what local dishes we should try at the buffet. We went back to our hostel for a quick rest and a shower, and then we were back out for dinner. The Apsara Theatre had a decent buffet and the show was fun. It’s one of those things everyone has to do in Siem Reap (see a traditional dance show) and Apsara has the best one. We were all starting to feel the effects of not sleeping the night before and after agreeing to meet Rak at 8 a.m. the next morning to begin our temple tour, we collapsed gratefully into our soft hostel beds.
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