...to the ends of the earth.: Cambodia: Part I

After completing my 10-week internship with the IRC, I had one week to travel before I was scheduled to fly back to the States. Based on feedback from friends who've traveled the region, I chose to visit neighboring Cambodia--to see what all the fuss about Angkor Wat was about but also to witness a nation that has suffered much in its recent past.

The Itinerary
Monday morning: Bangkok to Siem Reap by bus and taxi
Tuesday night: Siem Reap to Sihanoukville by overnight bus
Thursday morning: Sihanoukville to Phnom Penh by bus
Friday afternoon: Phnom Penh back to Bangkok by plane

Part I: Siem Reap / Angkor Wat
Getting to Siem Reap
Early Monday morning (8/3), I boarded a bus that would take me from Bangkok to the Thai border town of Aranyaprathet. I went armed with pages of research on how to avoid the many scams targeting unsuspecting tourists on this overland route. Upon arriving in Aranyaprathet, I hired a motorcycle taxi to take me to the border about 6 km away. The driver looked like a decent person, so I felt betrayed when she made a "detour" and pulled into a driveway, where a man came up and told me that I had arrived at the border (even though I had just passed road signs that indicated otherwise). He then told me that this was the "Cambodia Consulate," just as the Internet sites had warned, so I knew that he would proceed to try to sell me a way overpriced visa. I insisted that my driver take me to the real border, and thankfully she complied without much resistance. As soon as I was dropped off, I was accosted by smooth-talking taxi drivers who wanted to take me to Siem Reap after I had walked over the border into the Poipet, the border town on the Cambodian side. I managed to keep them at bay while getting my exit stamp and visa. I wish I had taken a picture when I crossed into Cambodia, but I was so intent on not getting scammed or pickpocketed that I didn't get a chance. Having navigated Cambodian immigration without incident, I sought out fellow tourists who would share a taxi with me for the 2-hour ride to Siem Reap. I was really grateful when I ran into two Americans from Utah, Kerry and Trevor. Under any other circumstances, I probably would not have gotten into a car with two random male strangers--my parents couldn't hide their alarm when I first told them over the phone a couple days later!--but in a seedy casino town like Poipet, which is one big tourist trap, it felt like the safest thing to do! On the way to Siem Reap, I got to know the guys better and decided that they were trustworthy traveling companions. We all had a bit of a scare (and later a laugh) when our taxi driver got pulled over by a cop and it became evident that he didn't have proper documentation, but then he slipped the cop some cash--not entirely discreetly, I might add--and we were on our merry way! Oh, Asia. In Siem Reap, we were transferred to a tuk-tuk. Gosh, I can't believe I've been in Southeast Asia for 11 weeks, and I still haven't explained to you what a tuk-tuk is. Basically, it's a motorbike attached to a canvas-covered cart where 3-4 passengers can sit. These three-wheeled rickshaws are all over Asia, and their drivers are infamous for trying to cheat tourists. We didn't know where we wanted to stay in Siem Reap, but of course, our charming driver had a few places in mind, and while we were wary of the commission he'd be getting from the guesthouse, we were anxious to settle in after our long journey. He was so good, he even secured a job for the following day, driving us all around Angkor Wat for $12.

Our first meal in Siem Reap was, appropriately, fish amok, a popular Khmer dish featuring steamed fish in a thick coconut milk curry and wrapped in banana leaves. *drool. I MUST find a Cambodian restaurant when I return to Cambridge!

Siem Reap is very much a tourist town, so there were plenty of food options, but they were pricier than what we were used to in other parts of Southeast Asia.

Tuesday morning on the way to Angkor Wat in the tuk-tuk. These guys were really chill traveling companions. It was probably annoying at times for them to travel with a prissy, high-maintenance girl like me, but they never once complained or became impatient with me!

Angkor Wat. I read that it's beautiful at sunrise, but because it was the rainy season, chances were that it would be cloudy and not worth the 5am wake-up call. I couldn't get a decent picture, and I was too hot to care--if you want to see Angkor Wat in all of its glory, just Google it!

We were sweating buckets the whole time, so we stopped here for some refreshing coconut milk. This is Trevor. He was always such a gentleman, so considerate. For example, the night before, he stopped by my room with a present: my very own gecko to eat the mosquitoes during the night! He let me touch it before placing it on my wall! It was also nice to see that there are still boys out there who aren't scared of insects or critters! ;P

This was also where I finally gave in to one of the beggar children and bought a pack of postcards that I totally didn't need or want. He was so young and so adorable! I knew that dollar wouldn't go to him, so I decided to buy him a soda, but Trevor swears that he saw the boy return the Coke when my back was turned. That was the end of my feeble attempts at charity.

Climbing around on these ancient ruins was great fun! I felt like an intrepid explorer! It's hard to tell from the picture, but these stairs were really steep! The view at the top was totally worth it though!

While driving around Angkor Wat, we came upon a group of monkeys on the side of the road!

Even before we got out of the tuk-tuk, the beggar children descended upon us, trying to sell us bananas to feed to the monkeys. Kerry posted a great video of it on Facebook.

This little boy forgot all about selling his wares when he saw himself on camera. The way his jaw dropped and his eyes lit up was really special.

More ruins. I couldn't tell you their names if my life depended on it. We didn't do much research before heading to Angkor Wat, and we were too cheap to buy a guidebook or hire a tour guide.

A really cool tree.

Climbing more ruins. Yeah, that's how steep the stairs were. It looks like a vertical drop from above--I had to go down backwards.

Another beggar boy who was selling postcards at the top of the ruin. He impressed us by reciting the capitals of various countries and states (although he didn't know Pennsylania and Utah).

This particular ruin was really cool, because you could witness the formidable, unstoppable force that is Mother Nature.

As I walked through the ruins, I couldn't help humming that song from The Jungle Book, when Mowgli meets King Louie and then ends up destroying his palace!

After a long, hot day, what's better than a melon bubble tea?! Kerry and Trever were really good sports and took a picture with me at this uber-girly cafe!

At night, we explored town a bit and got a fish massage! You've probably heard about this in the news--for $3/15 minutes, you can have these tiny fish eat the dead skin off your feet!