The Most Amazing Thing I've Ever Done

The ancient ruins date from the 9th century and you are able to climb all around them. The Angkor kingdom had its capital her and thrived from about 9th century -12th century. From the high peaks of the crumbling temples, you gaze out into the Cambodian jungle. You pass ancient trees that have retaken parts of the magnificent city that once thrived underneath. I'm not doing it all justice by attempting to describe it all, but it's true. The striking views surround you as you make your way pass monks and ancient Buddhas. While I'm not exactly Lara Croft on a mission here, I still feel like an explorer trekking through the jungle.

Angkor Wat is one of the world's greatest wonders. I am confident of this fact. It was built in the late 12th century, at the height of the Khmer power. It is still an active Buddhist temple to this day. While it is probably not as visited as the pyramids, visiting the temple complex is by far the most amazing thing I've ever done. It only costs $40 USD for a pass to enter for three days. We saw sunset the first afternoon we arrived. We climbed up the hill and while the place is packed with tourists brandishing their cameras for that perfect shot, it was still marvelous.

To enter the temple complex, you also must have transportation. The complex is not only vast, but it is important to stay in "safe"areas since the Khmer Rouge had a strong hold in this area. Thus, the threat of land mines is a very important risk of being solo. We decided to hire a tuk tuk, which is like a little rickshaw on a motoscooter. It makes the "tuk tuk tuk tuk" as you go along. We met our guide & driver on the bus from Phenom Phen to Siem Riep. He was an extremely enthusiastic and friendly guy. He said he was studying English and he spoke it pretty well. He took us for sunset on the first evening, sunrise the 1st morning we were here, and drove us all around the last two days. It's been a bit more money, costing us $15 for the tuk tuk, $40 for the pass, plus our accommodations ($5/night/person) and food (avg. spend of $4/meal). In Vietnam, we were scrapping by at $20/day. Of course, every penny is well spent here. I can't say enough how spectacular and impressive this place has been.

[Side note: Cambodia is a strangely traditional culture in some aspects. Everyone pays more heed and attention to Mike than to myself. I don't know if they assume he's paying or what... but they always speak to him and not to me. It's rather convenient when we're being stalked by the little begging children at the temples. I just walk right by them and they flock to Mike.]

Interestingly enough, we almost exclusively use American dollars here. (I don't think I mentioned this ... if I did already I'm sorry!). The only time we get Riel ~the Cambodian currency~is in amount less than a dollar since they do not use American coins. All prices are listed in USD and that is how everything is paid for. In Vietnam, we could use American dollars but they didn't dispatch them from the ATM and everything like they do here. Craziness.

Tomorrow we're off to Bangkok... the road from Cambodia to Bangkok is notoriously awful and long. It's also through the ruralest part of the area, with higher risk of catching a disease like yellow fever or malaria.