While on the bus in Cambodia we felt a bit “in Africa”. Along the sides of the main, and only, road there are some very simple houses. Behind them, the countryside and lots of white ONU jeeps cruising the road. This is not surprising when you hear the story of Cambodia, which is very similar to many African countries.
A strong and cruel dictatorship (Khmer Rouge) that holding to some ancient traditions decided to have a dormant nation to govern and centralize all the power and economy under his regime. Countryside workers with little access to education and progress was the plan, a farming country but with little to give to farmers... More than 3.000.000 people were killed for this purpose, mainly intellectuals, teachers, professors and professionals. Impressive knowing that today the total population of Cambodia is around 10.000.000 people!
Some 6 hours after Cambodia’s capital (Pnomh Penh) is Siemp Reap, a “bubble” in this country, the getaway to the Angkor Temples complex, the most important Hindu temples in the world. Unlike the rest of the country, this city well maintained, tidy and full of nice cafes and restaurants. It’s highly recommendable to search for a guesthouse close to the “touristic” area, as the rest of the city appears to be in ruins...
There are 3 options for the tickets: 1 day, 3 days and 7 days. We took the 3-days ticket, and we really recommend not taking less than that to really seize the time there.
The main temple of Angkor (“Angkor Wat”) and some others are located about 10 km from Siemp Reap which are easily reached by bicycle. There are some others at about 30 km from the city, so to visit those, the best option is to hire a tuk tuk for the day. We did so the first day and visited 4 temples, starting by the oldest but smallest, to some really impressive ones.
Petrol for sale
Cambodian’s are very superstitious, so told us a Spanish girl that works for a local NGO and has been living in this country for a couple of years. This explains the funny puppets in front of almost every house, to keep the ghosts away. Some put it very clear; puppets with real weapons in their hands do the job.
The tuk tuk driver made a stop on the way so we could see rice fields from closer.
For the remaining 2 days we went for some exercise and rented bicycles. People had recommended us to see Angkor Wat at sunrise and sunset, so the first day we started pedalling at 4 am to reach there before the sun was up. Unfortunately the weather didn’t help, but when all the people where waiting the sun in “sun rise view point” we found a good opportunity to visit Angkor Wat with few people inside. Discover its beauty and history exploring it empty, and even take a meditative nap on one of its towers.
The 2 days by bike were great just to pedal around the Angkor complex, enjoy the sights and stop at different temples to explore them further.
Overall the experience was excellent, despite not having seen any proper sunrise or sunset due to the weather; Angkor Temples are worth the visit and spending some days there.
