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Published: February 5th 2008
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Since we last updated the blog we have arrived in Cambodia. On our last day on Koh Phayam we got up early to do some snorkelling before breakfast. It was going really well until Allee spotted a sea snake winding it's way between the fish.
After a 2 hour boat ride and a total of 13 hours on the bus we got to the border where every con artist and his dog surrounded us trying to get us to arrange a visa with them, get into their taxi and all sorts of other things. The problem is that the border police are as dodgy as everybody else so there's not really anywhere to turn. Eventually we climbed onto the back of a pick-up truck and tried to settle down for the ride to Siem Reap.
The pick-up was typical of what a builder or roofer would have at home except that in the back were around 25 people in what looked like a big jumble of arms and legs. There wasn't too much space so Allee squeezed onto the back corner and I climbed on top of the luggage hanging off the back of the truck. The people
who were in the truck were lovely and tucked Allee's feet underneath them to try and stop her falling out. They were full of smiles and found us pretty funny, particularly with each pot-hole when I nearly fell off the back. It was made all the more difficult by the fact that Cambodia don't seem to have roads but dirt tracks with huge humps and holes all over them. Occasionally the driver would stop to cram a few more people in until I was perched on a sack of rice on top of a luggage mountain above everyones heads clinging on to Allee to stop her falling out. This was our home for the next four hours. At times it gave me a great sense of adventure, at other times we were fed up and at other times we simply couldn't see or breath through all the dust coming up from the track. Fortunately all was made worthwhile for Allee as a Cambodian woman passed her a baby to hold while she climbed up into the heap of bodies. I wish I could have got some photos but if either of us had let go we'd probably still be laid
on a dirt track in the middle of nowhere waiting for the driver to turn back and pick us up. Speaking of the driver, it appears that he didn't have a license/insurance to carry passengers so he had to bribe three separate police officers to let us carry on the journey. Eventually we arrived in Siem Reap.
The first day in Siem Reap we paid a visit to pretty much every shop which works with the disabled, street kids, etc and bought some really nice things. How we're going to keep fitting our purchases into the backpacks I don't know. We also visited a workshop where underprivileged kids are taught old Cambodian crafts such as lacquerwork and carving. These crafts were almost wiped out by the Khmer Rouge and programs such as this help them to continue as well as providing incomes to those who participate.
In a moment of weakness I spotted Heinz Baked Beans on a menu when we stopped for a drink today and couldn't resist beans on toast. Other than that it's been Khmer food such as curry served in a coconut shell and stir-fries. We also watched an Apsara Dance, performed by local
village children this was again something which almost disappeared under Pol Pot's regime.
The next day at Siem Reap we got up at 05:00 to see the sunrise over Angkor Wat. It was a bit cloudy though and there wasn't really a sunrise as such so we might as well have had a bit longer in bed. The temples of Angkor were very interesting and majestic but I wish I hadn't seen so many pictures of them as they would have been even more impressive if I hadn't known what to expect. We saw Angkor Wat, the carved faces at Bayon and the temples overgrown with giant tree roots at Ta Prohm as well as many smaller or less known temples. I think Ta Prohm was my favourite as many of the walls there felt like they could just collapse at any minute and it all looked so strange. At one of temples it was possible to climb up the steep side using hands and feet so I climbed half way up, froze for a few seconds and climbed back down. At another, even bigger temple, it was again possible to climb to the top. I did the same
again but this time Allee climbed to the top so it gave me that extra push and, after a bit of talking myself around, I kept my eyes forward and made it up.
There were lots of children selling things around the temples and we couldn't help but buy things like postcards, drinks and even a little bamboo flute (which I've been teaching myself Three Blind Mice on, much to Allee's annoyance). The one time I tried to be strong and say no the little girl was trying to make herself cry so we gave in and bought some bracelets. I think she deserved it for knowing the population of Great Britain and for offering us 'peace and quiet' if we bought something.
After the temples there wasn't a great deal left to see and do at Siem Reap so we spent a day or two wandering around and then jumped on a bus to Phnom Penh, the capital. The trip here was really scenic with lots of coconut trees, rice fields and villages of stilt houses. We got here last night and went to have a look at the National Museum today. The plan was to then
go to the Grand Palace but the heat was really getting to me so we're going to leave that for another day.
Tomorrow we're going to head to the Killing Fields at Cheung Ek as well as a museum about the Khmer Rouge years. Having read about some of the events over the last couple of weeks, in books we bought from landmine victims who sell books in the Siem Reap streets, we have a bit of background knowledge which should help things seem a little more real and probably a lot more sobering.
Hope everyone is well. Adam W - there was a statue I really wanted to get you called the 'Hand of Intellectual Argument' but it was made from marble and far too heavy to carry home. Been looking everywhere for a smaller one but there don't seem to be any.
(Pictures to follow shortly)
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Sue
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good blog
really liked this blog can see your sense of humour coming through...by the way the Cambodian police are looking for two backpackers who haven't tried to bribe them yet.....hope you're getting plenty of pics...speak to you soon - take care.