My Mom came to visit us again in October and we had a great time! We spent the first week or so just hanging around in Singapore and going to all the kids different activities. We rode the Flyer, visited the Night Safari, and wandered through a Deepavali market. Then we took a trip to Siem Reap, Cambodia which was amazing. I have wanted to visit Angkor Wat forever and I was so excited but had no idea just how many other unbelievable temples are all around the Angkor Wat area and I think that we actually may have seen every single last one!
There were a few of the temples that stand out among all the others, such as Bayon, which is located in the center of Angkor Thom. It was the very first temple we visited and it is most well known for all of the Buddha faces that are carved into nearly every visible surface. So pretty. It is also much larger than Angkor Wat, but not quite as famous. That same day we also visited Baphoun and Phimeanakas, which is where the Elephant Terrace and the Terrace of the Leper King are located.
After a great lunch at a little local restaurant we continued on to even more temples and saw Bakong, Prasat Olok, Preah Ko, and Lolei. After our very extensive temple tours (and yes, that was only the first day!) we headed back to the hotel for a relaxing dinner. And we found Viva, a great Mexican restaurant right downtown Siem Reap that had great food and $1 margaritas. Perfect.
Up early the next day we headed right out to visit some more temples. We drove a bit further this time and saw Banteay Drei and Banteay Kdei. Both temples were beautiful, Srei is very well known because it was actually constructed of pink sandstone. Off again for a great local lunch, yum! Then we visited the Thommanom temple, Chausay Tevoda, Ta Koe, and Ta Prohm which is where the movie Tomb Raider was filmed and is often seen in photos with the trees that look as thought they are dripping down the walls of the temples. Amazing! Our guide, Tap, was very proud to tell us that he served on the craft services team during filming of Tomb Raider! After another long day of tours we had another great dinner at Viva! We were starting to feel like regulars.
The next day was Saturday and we joined some friends to, oh yes, visit more temples! We took another long drive out to an amazing temple ruin called Beng Mealea. It was so fun because we literally had to crawl through the temples because it was so fallen down - a bit treacherous, I left with a few bruises - but so cool. We spent a lot of time in this temple and then headed out for a great lunch. When we got back to Siem Reap we visited a local Buddhist temple and a Kmer Rouge museum that were both very interesting. After a nice, relaxing afternoon we headed to the Angkor Mondial restaurant for dinner and a great traditional cultural dance performance.
The next day was the day I was waiting for - a sunrise walk through Angkor Wat. We got up very early and headed to the temple and found a great spot with a perfect view. Then we sat and waited for the sunrise to dazzle us. Although the clouds put a slight damper on our expected dazzle, it was still very beautiful to watch the sunrise. Then we wandered around a bit and headed back to the hotel for a rest. That afternoon we returned to Angkor Wat for a more thorough tour. After our tour we headed to Phnom Bakang, a hilltop temple, and watched the sun set. Gorgeous. Then back to Siem Reap for a delicious dinner at the Red Piano.
The next day was our last day in Siem Reap. We visited a man-made lake called West Baray. This was breathtaking, not so much because of the beautiful view but more so because it is a nearly perfect rectangle about 8km x 2km and was built sometime in the 11th century! It is hard to understand just how these wonders were made so long ago without any modern means. Wow. Next we headed to Tonle Sap Lake to visit a local floating village. Another interesting experience. . . this is an entire village of people who live in small boats along the edges of the lake. Some of the houses had small boats that held their pigs or dogs. There was even a small floating gymnasium for some exercise. Seeing how these people live their entire lives on these tiny little boats was unbelievable,. . . something I've never seen before.
On our way back to Siem Reap we stopped by a Silk Farm which is run by local artisans who literally breed and grow the worms, collect the silk, spin it into thread, and create gorgeous fabrics - all right there! It is called Angkor Artisans. As we got back to Siem Reap we bought some food to bring to an orphanage that we visited. The kids were adorable and we learned a lot about how the facility helps the kids.
That night we had a great dinner at Le Grand Cafe, walked through the night market, and then headed to bed for an early trip home the next morning. I am not sure if one trip to Siem Reap is enough. . . there is so much to see and. Cambodia has become one of my favorite places on earth and I am so glad that Mom got to come on this trip.
