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From Bangkok to Siem Reap
When I decided to travel to Cambodia, I was in Koh Tao, a beautiful Island on the east coast of Thailand. It was turning july, many tourists were entering the island and it was becoming crowdy and touristy. For me that was the sign to leave Koh Tao and even Thailand. What I wanted, was to get out of the big stream of tourists and search for the more remote, the more untouched,... I am especially interested in exploring countries, that are not yet fully adapted to tourists and therefore still hold some challenges and offer something that still feels 'real'. After reading some anthroplogical articles about Cambodia, it seemed the perfect country to me to start that search. And it proved right I can already say.
After doing some research, I booked a flight from Bangkok with Bangkok Airways to Siem Reap for 90 €. This was probably my first and overall biggest sin with respect to my low-budget travelling style. You've got to make decisions and for me this one was worth it because of several reasons.
1) To get out of Thailand and the mass-tourism asap
2) To avoid the huzzle and time-loss at the boarder. This includes the possibility to get ripped of and paying to much for your visa and in extension also to overpay tuk tuk's (and many travellers do so).
3) Considering the total costs of the alternatives, it was not that much more expensive.
At the airport I exchanged some Thai money for American dollars. I exchanged only a minimum, to pay for the Cambodian Tourist Visa ( $ 20) and a tuk tuk to Siem Reap centre (2 - 3 $). At the airport the exchange fees are higher, so you don't want to exchange a lot there. You can exchange more money almost anywere in Cambodia except for the jungle and the more remote villages. The Cambodian currency is the Riel (1 USD = 4044.56226 riel; 1 euro = 5,424.4 riel), however the US dollar is an unofficial second currency that's is actually used more and still preferred over the riel. Once I landed, the application procedure for the Visa was quick and straightforward.
Heads Up: you need 2 passport photos (however it is only 2$ fee if you don't have any) and a passport (still valid for 6 months or more).
It was my first and so far only flight with Bangkok Airways, but it was a positive experience. But it must be said, for the distance flown it is a rather expensive flight. You can definetely consider to go by bus or train. You just need to be prepared for a full day of travelling, bumpy roads and the possibility of being ripped off for the visa and tuk tuk's. Most people cross the border at Aranyaprathet (Thailand)/ Poi Pet (Cambodia), mainly because there is a lot of buses, taxi's and tuk tuk's on those roads, but it's crowdy and it is not unusual to have to wait in line for 2 - 3 hours before you get your visa. Therefore, I would recommend to cross the border more to the south in Pailin (Cambodia):
1) Bus From Bangkok to Chanthaburi: there are buses every hour for 212 Baht and it takes about 5.5 hours. The buses are Aircon and the roads are pretty smooth.
2) Stay a night (or two) in Chanthaburi. In the weekend there is the famous Chanthaburi gemstone market and else there always is the traditional Market with a lot of tropical fruit and great seafood.
There is also a beautiful Cathedral in the old center. And if you stay longer you can consider going to the national parc and dolphine shows, where you can also swim with the doplins.
3) Pick-up truck or mini-van to the border near Pailin
4) Get your stamps, Visa and cross the border by foot
5) Just walk a couple of meters, people will offer you a motorbike ride to Pailin (you should not pay more than 2 $) or taxi ride to Battambang. I paid 10$ for a taxi to Battambang after some bargaining and finding 2 other backpackers to share the taxi with.
SIEM REAP
Obviously, Siem Reaps' greatest pride is Angkor Watt. The ancient building depicted on Cambodia's national flag, is considered the biggest religious building in the world and was built in the first half of the 13th century. With the touristification of Angkor Watt and the other temples, Siem Reap has considerably changed and developped in recent history. Unfortunately this has also lead to a loss of charm, higher prices and the rise of a pub street and touristic restaurants, which are only there for the tourists and have very litlle to do with local culture. While Siem Reap with its great temples is definetely a must-see, it is arguably not the best place to learn about Cambodian culture. I would definetely recommend including Siem Reap in your trip, visit the temples and enjoy it. But don't expect too much besides the greatness of the temples and its history. But why would you want even more than what the temples already offer?
Temples of Siem Reap
Together with 2 friends I stayed at the Jasmine Family Hostel in Siem Reap. It's a 15 minutes walk to the center and 15 minutes tuk tuk to Angkor Watt. The staff is utterly friendly, the rooms are nice and clean and the restaurant is not too expensive compared to most restaurants in Siem Reap. It is 8$ for the dormitory and 15$ for a double room. Honestly, I still find it a bit expensive (most hostels are in Siem Reap), but I really enjoyed my time around the hostel and I must admit the swimming pool was a blessing after visiting the temples in the boiling heat. Our first night in Siem Reap we went to see the sunset at Phnom Bakheng. We arranged a tuk tuk for 3$ in total (some pay 4 $ or 5 $ for it). Although they will try to make more money first, for this prize they will bring you there, wait for you and bring you back. After 10-15 minute drive, we arrived at the bottom of a hill, which we then climbed in another 15 minutes. Make sure you have clothes covering knees and shoulders otherwise you'll have to buy some overprized clothes before they let you climb the mountain. This counts for most religious places in Cambodia. Phnom Bakheng is a temple on top of a mounatin. Although this place is highly recommended and offers indeed nice and wide views over the landscape and the Angkor Watt temple, I would not recommend this place at all. There were already heaps of tourists climbing the mountain only to find more of them, packed on the temple platform on top of the mountain. The temple is just okay, the sunset is overrated and the athmosphere is ruined by the crowd. I would rather recommend to go to the top of Phnom Krom overlooking the Tonle Sap lake. There you can enjoy nice views, without it being spoiled by a mass of tourists.
The next morning we got up at 4:30 am. We agreed on leaving early not necessarily for the sunrise, but rather to avoid the heat and even more important: to avoid the big crowd. When we arrived at Angkor Watt it was around 5:30 am. The density with which people were packed by that lake, gave me the impression it was the only peace of land in this world from where you can see the sunrise. With the monotonous buzzing background sound of the sky-gazing mass and the first sunbeams burning on our forehead skin, the three of us spontaneously and silently kept on walking. Still a bit sleep drunk I entered the mighty Angkor Watt temple. It was only a few moments later that I started to realize were we were. We found ourselves practically alone within the tick reddish sandstone walls of the Khmer kingdom! It is overwelhming. It is too much to fully capture even in a whole day. It is only now, a couple of weeks later, that I seem to fully catch the impression it made on me. It is an experience that lasts and the moment itself / 'being there' is only the beginning of that experience.
The sunrise, like the sunset the night before, was beautiful but far from mind-blowing. It is definetely a good idea to get up this early, but especially because of the heat and the crowd. The grandeur and architectural splendidnes are overwhelming and it needs some time, at least for me it did, to absorb and fully appreciate it. Do not mistake yourself: even at 6 am it is already mind-numbingly hot and you should be prepared for an exhaustive, sweaty and long day. Moreover, withing the walls of the Angkor temple there is barely any wind and the sandstones still radiate a lot of captured heat. When you touch the stones with your hands, you can feel how warm they still feel even at 6 am. However, once you get in the rythm it becomes very bearable and the suffering gets inferior to the magnitude of the experience. I suffered the first hour and really enjoyed the rest of the day. Obviously, getting up at 4:30 am after already a couple of days of travelling didn't ease my initial suffering. A litlle food, a lot of water, headprotection, a sweat cloth and a good mental state helped me well through the day.
Me and my companions rented a tuk tuk for the day. We paid 20$ for the temples and another 15$ for the tuk tuk bringing us from one temple to the other. First, we wanted to do it by bike but in the end we figuered that getting up at 4:30 and biking for a whole day in the open sun might be a litlle too much. Now, after having biked a couple of times in Cambodia, I would do it by bike if I would do it again. It is less exhausting than it looks because of the ventilation you generate when biking. Walking is definetely harder than biking and in my opinion it is heavily underrated as a means of transport and/or sightseeing. If you don't bike around the temples, keep it in mind for your next destinations. Nevertheless a motorbike is a whole lot of fun, biking is something different and will result in a totally different experience. By bike you absorb the surroundings better and you get more in touch with the locals. Moreover, some physical activity gives me more satisfaction at the end of the day and a better night's rest. Of course a tuk tuk can be an easy, relatively cheap and comfortable alternative, especially when tired and lazy.
After sunset, the majority of the tourists have breakfast back in their hotels or somewhere else. This is an opportunity to take advantage of. Postpone your breakfast or have it on the road and you might be surprised by the small amount of tourists and quietness you will encounter the rest of the day. At least, that was our experience in the low-season though (beginning of july).
As we walked out of Angkors' main entrance a lot of people were coming in. We continued to our next destination: The Bayon Khmer Temple. This temple is especially memorable because of the abundance of serene and massive stone faces on the many towers
which stick out out from the upper terrace and cluster around its central peak. On the walls you can find a lot of sculptures that are still breathtakingly detailled, depicting historical events and scenes from the everyday life of the Angkorian Khmer. Examining these bas-reliefs is almost like watching a movie or travelling back in time. In some ways, I liked this temple more than Angkor Watt.
Our third dish for the day was the Baphuon temple. To me this one came to quick after the previous onces and for a few moments I felt saturated. The Baphuon temple is impressive with its thick and big stone walls. For sure this temple is nice and spectacular as well, but it just didn't impress me equally. Maybe the long and exhaustive rennovation works took away too much of the charm or maybe it might have to do with the fact that it was the third religious structure in a row for me. However, we made a nice walk around the temple, we took a litlle break in the shadows of the surrounding woods and recollected some energy for the continuation of our excursion.
After another visit to the East Mebon Temple and walking past the elegant stone elephant trunks we headed to the famous Ta Prohm temple. This is the temple were they made the tomb raider movie. As the tomb raider videogame is one of the few games I played extensively as a kid, I could recognize a lot from the videogame (I never saw the movie). But more importantly the temple - bewildered, green and partly collapsed - struck me as the most special one. Unlike most Angkorian temples, Ta Prohm has been left in much the same
condition in which it was found. I walked around for a long time there and I could have stayed their for days. I could simply not stop examining how the stone structures and the mighty trees and their roothless roots became one breathtaking, adventurous, hyper photogenic and atmospheric whole over time. It is surrounded by the jungle and therefore it lays in the shadow which granted us the opportunity to cool down a bit. Spare some energy and time for this temple. Although it was more crowded, I enjoyed it the most and spent the most time in there. I started by walking around the temple in the jungle, not crossing a single person, before entering the inside of the temple. Exploring the surroundings first definetely added to the magic of this place. As I walked around the building and only later entered the temple, its mysticality and beauty progressively unreaveled to me. I felt like I was walking on a movie scene and I wished this would have been my playground as a kid.
We got back to our hostel in the afternoon. It was the only time in cambodia I had a swimming pool at my disposition, but I could not think of better timing. The rest of the day I relaxed and started writing.
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