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Published: April 5th 2010
Hotel room in siem reap
$25 buys this with a/c and all trimmings (apart from a lift )18 March - 20th March
We really liked Phnom Penh and wish that we had had longer to spend here, it will be a stunning city very soon as they are building everywhere and improving the river front, the historical/ religious area in the centre is just stunning. But as usual we had to press on and so feeling travel weary and having reached perceptionary overload we were now even more committed to the idea of hitting Sihanoukville for a week's worth of doing nothing. This would mean getting up to Siem Reap seeing the temples and back down by the 20th giving us time to relax and recharge the batteries before heading back to Bangkok for our flight on the 31st. A great deal of bus travel and grief still lay ahead and also the situation in Bkk with red shirt demo's still left a question mark over whether it would be safe to go back there or return to PP for our flight. The FCO advice was sketchy so it was fingers crossed all the way.
Bus from PP to Siem Reap - $11 each with Mekong Express - probably the most professional outfit so far; a
The "essential" pool
Quite hard to say how grateful we were to come back to this after a hard, hot slog around the temples - marvellous !! reasonably safe baggage check in, an informative hostess and ok for comfort if not a little short on leg room and poor air conditioning. 6 hours almost as advertised.
Siem Reap - usual bus station confusion & chaos - hotel collection did not show but we got a free ride by agreeing to take a temple tour for $15. Angkhor Inn Express Hotel, good pool, nice room but long walk up 4 flights of stairs as lift is not installed yet (which in this heat is the equivalent of running a half marathon)- $25 per night.
Siem Reap is relatively but beautifully calm after the craziness of Saigon and Phnom Penh, less traffic and a great set up in the centre with numerous food outlets around the main square. Local food and bbq's delicious and great value - 2 meals, a beer and soft drink $5!! Local food is also cheap but you obviously have the choice of the nicer restaurants serving kangaroo, crocodile etc!
Pub Street - yes its actually called that! An impressive, pedestrianized road lined with great bars and restaurants, live music and cute if not poncey shops- a pitcher of draught beer $2.50. Also
Siem reap menu
Interesting!!! a KFC for those who just can't help themselves........(Dave!)
Angkor Wat etc.
We opted for the sunrise version of this tour and were picked up on time at 5am. Tickets cost $20 for one day though multi - day tickets are available from $30. This is a very professional set up, with a photo on your ticket and multiple checkpoints so if you are tempted to try a fiddle, do not - you will be caught and prosecuted.
As with all attractions of any worth, avoiding the crowds is difficult if not impossible and our early start was shared with many others and the prime spots for “the perfect photo” fiercely contested. (So you'll have to forgive my less than average efforts as I don't do pushing and shoving through banks of tripods and monster lenses !)
The sunrise was pleasant but not spectacular but the appearance of the famous outline itself was deserving of its acclaim. Hauntingly lovely in its vastness and well known lines it challenges constructional logic in a manner akin to that of the Great Pyramids and Macchu Picchu.
Getting ahead of the crowds we wandered unhindered through the silent and beautifully preserved
pub menu
some prices for those budget conscious peeps halls and corridors catching the sun's early rays that cast irresistible shadows and delicious yellow hues through the east facing doors and windows.
I do not have the time or the knowledge to go into the history of this remarkable attraction but suffice to say it spreads over 100s of km2 in total and took over 800 years to build the entire complex which includes numerous temples, royal palaces and entire cities. From the photo's you will get some idea of the whole thing; we visited only 3 of the main sites before getting overwhelmed with heat and bus loads of pilgrims by mid-day.
After this we chickened out and returned to the hotel pool for which I was well and truly glad to have paid slightly more than usual. Although our ticket entitled us to return in the afternoon, we both agreed that we'd seen enough and were “templed out” A great day indeed.
Travel note: even though our tuk tuk driver was a nice chap and an efficient and informative guide, he couldn't resist trying to hike the price to $20 as he dropped us off. Unfortunately for him we had shaken hands on the $15 deal so
pub street
not the best shot in the world but hopefully it'll give you the idea he went away disappointed.
Anna: We were obviously hungry and thirsty after our afternoon by the pool and so headed for the bbq. I had a piece of beef, and a salad in balsamic dressing, amazing and great for a quid. We then inevitably headed for pub street, pushed the fact that we had to be up at 0600 and slurped a couple of whisky buckets (whisky, redbull and lemonade) and made it home at about midnight.
Having seen what we came to see, the only thing left to do was to plan our escape which inevitably would have to involve tracking back through Phnom Penh. Flying is an option but only as far as PP as the airport in Sihanoukville is not open. All agents will tell you anything to get a sale so we ended up paying $12 each at the hotel for tickets right through to S'ville with a company called Ankhor Paramount Express which boasted the most spacious comfortable seats.........????????
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Tee
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Hello
Nice blog! If your planning to go to Sihanokukeville! I suggest you head to Koh Rong Island off the coast for the last paradise Island in all of Asia! Better go now before it's all develop! Don't miss it!