Siem Reap, backpackers paradise and center of the Cambodian tourism
December 14th 2013 — Siem Reap, Cambodia
(driving from Phonm Penh to Siem Reap)
… Nice modern small bus was taking me to Siem Reap from Phnom Penh. Mixed passengers inside, travelers, locals and one guided group of tourists that was bragging all the time about the conditions the Khmers are living in, the bad food they had in the capital, how poor looking and not well maintained is the royal palace and so on and on. I used my headphones to mute them, and grabed my Canon to document something interesting that can be seen from the window.
I must say that i am highly recommending to all, go to Siem Reap by bus, you’ll be fascinated by the rural places, the way people are living, the transportations they are using, plus you’ll stop for a snack by the road and you’ll try some fried frogs and you’ll have short period of time to take some shots of the people that are living there.
I arrived in Siem Reap on a parking with 10 more buses, there i was hit by a “tourist” shock. Families, groups, people with suitcases, Indiana Jones wannabes and similar unwanted faces. I found my way trough the crowd and i looked for a Tuk Tuk to drive me to the hotel, while i was uploading my bags in the “cab” a family guy approached me and said “don’t go with him, he will rip you off!” — “Really, i’ll take my chances” — i said to him and thought to my self:
I rather let him rip me off for a dollar or two, than to go with them in a van and listen all the way to the hotel about their everyday jobs and how someones aunt divorced for the third time.
I arrived at the hotel, cheap and decent one, with all the needs of a traveler and a photographer. Hot water, wi fi, packed breakfast and a massage parlor for 5$ :D
Quick shower and i left to explore the city for a little bit, i needed a good night sleep for the next morning so i decided not go wandering to far.
The time was just before sunset so i had approximately half an hour of light to visit the “Wat Preah Prohm Roth”, temple in the center of the city, you can find it easily because it is on the map in the +Lonely Planet guide book. Nice temple, not over crowded, filled with monks, i don’t know if they are there all the time or there was some event going on. I had luck to witness a wedding in the yard, so that was fun for me to see their traditions and customs.
From there i went to Psar Cha and the pub street.
There i met with my guide for the Angkor Wat tour, and after i finished with him i went to a bar to have a beer. 0.50$ for a draft beer!!! I drank few beers, chat with few other travelers from AU, found a Tuk Tuk and i was off to the hotel for a good sleep.
The next few days i was exploring Angkor Wat so everything else that happened in Siem Reap city was getting wasted in the night, going to the markets so i can buy water and snacks for the next day.
One night i was in, ughhh i don’t remember the name of the restaurant … anyway, there is a restaurant on the Pub street with amazing traditional Khmer music, where dancers are performing traditional acts with motives from theKhmer history, that is a must see thing in Siem Reap.
I must say that this city is the Backpackers paradise, there are people like us from every part of the world, and the amazing thing is that they are all traveling solo, so it is very easy to meet people, hang out in the evenings or even join forces and travelCambodia together. For example, i met people from, AU, Canada, South Africa, Italy, UK … i still have a contact with them, i am even meeting a guy from UK in Nepal this september. How cool is that?!
I am still gathering the pages for my Angkor Wat adventure, but i will publish them soon.
