Post by: Tony
When we mentioned to our guesthouse employees in Phnom Penh that we were heading up to Siem Reap we quickly got the rundown on the "sister" guesthouse that is located there. They ensured us that it was a cool place and that there were plenty of other places around if we got there and decided that it was not up to our standards. After they mentioned there was free pick up from the bus station the deal was made. We would at least be checking it out. One night and a 6 hour bus ride later we were on the doorstep of Yellow Guesthouse. They were super nice and showed us a room (luxurious by previous standards). The clincher was the $10 a night price tag. They weren't quite as near the "party zone" as we were hoping but they would take us there if we got the urge for libations...no charge...only tips! Can't beat that with a stick!!

We spoke with a few of the guys at the guesthouse about our plans to check out all the temples and they agreed that our plan to do a 3 day pass was probably the best way to go. We could take a tuk-tuk or a bicycle from temple to temple. We decided on the tuk-tuk being that everything in this area was much further than the maps provided made it appear. Man, did we ever thank our lucky stars for that choice. It was extremely humid the first day we went out. It likes to rain in the middle of the day. Then the sun comes out stronger than ever and turns the whole place into an instant sauna. We decided to go to Angkor Thom first. It was a culmination of many different temples and sites. Our favorites were the row of elephants carved into a 10 foot high wall that stretched a good 1/4 mile and the Terrace of the Leper King. The Leper King was a lonely 4 foot figure on a large terrace, called such because the king that he was made in the image of actually had leprosy.

After that we headed to Angkor Wat. Words cannot describe this place. It's HUGE. It is an architectural marvel... it's amazing. Pictures cannot convey how awesome it is. I couldn't walk around without thinking about all the people that lived and died where I might be standing at that moment. We stayed there for a good 2-3 hours just walking around and taking in the amazing sights.

The next day we went to a few of the other temples in the area. There were so many of them in such close proximity to each other! We spent the majority of the day climbing up the steep stairs of temples and trying our best to keep to the shadows. The sun was again, brutal. My favorite temple to visit on the second day was Ta Phrom. For the Angelina Jolie fans reading this... this temple was featured in the first Tomb Raider movie. There is wall after wall with huge banyan tree roots grabbing on to the top of them. It looked like giants were reaching down and trying to pick up all the walls around us. It also helped that I constantly pictured Angelina being right around the next corner... ;) The last day was spent driving out to a temple that was about 45 minutes out of town, Banteay Srey. This temple was a tribute to the goddess Shiva and was more artistic than all the rest (in my opinion). It was said that this temple alone, due to the amount of creativity and detail that went into it, spurred an artistic revolution.

By the third day we were pros at avoiding the onslaught of locals that you ran into as soon as you arrived at a temple. They tried to sell you all kinds of crap: books, bracelets, drinks, guitar-ish things, etc. We had also become great friends with our driver, Ton (pronounced like saying ton and tone at the same time). He is a really nice guy. He showed us a spot to eat on the second day and made the whole experience painless and fun. We even bought him a soda here and there as thanks. At one point he mentioned that he was only paid $60/month and his rent is $60/month (good thing he has roommates). Dom and I were completely floored. We quickly steered the conversation away from salary as both of us felt a small sense of guilt for making in an hour or so what he did in a month. At the end of the three days we were happy to tip him on top of what he was getting paid to drive us around.

After the temples we were pretty worn down. We decided to hang out at our guesthouse and relax for the next few days. They made a decent burger here so we had our fill of those. They also had a large stock of Angkor beer. It's not the best thing in the world to drink. I'd equate it to something along the lines of Coors Light... only not as good. But hey, it's cheap! We've been to one of the bars also. It's called "Angkor What?" They had some great drink specials, and absinthe! I tried a little... but it tastes too much like licorice for me to have more than that. We have a few days to go before our Laos visas come back (we applied for them a few days ago). Once we get them, we'll take a bus north to Laos, specifically Si Phan Don. It's right on the border and is a large grouping of small islands. We're hoping to see some of the indigenous river dolphins! It should be a great start to the tour of "The Darling of Asia".

On a side note, we are completely safe and unaffected by the cylcone that hit Myanmar (Burma). It's really so sad to see all of the destruction on TV every day, and it's infuriating that Myanmar's "government" isn't doing much to help their own people. Our hearts go out to all the victims and their families. -t
Siem Reap Pics