Boats and Horses

Our second day in Siem Reap was just as busy as our first. After having breakfast on one of the hotel's swinging/floating tables, we had Smarty pick us up again and drive us to a floating village! Along the way, as we left the busyness of Siem Reap, we were able to see how a lot of the locals lived and worked on a regular basis. We saw food vendors, moped vendors, and lots of families piled high on one moped going about their everyday lives.

As we got further away from the city, the area turned more rural and the recent flooding was more prominent with fields and roads now underwater. We saw a herds of animals, groups of children riding their bikes to school, and several different types of houses and huts.
















 


We finally arrived at a village to take a boat out to the floating village. Getting our own private boat and driver, we made the hour long ride out to the floating village. The driver even let Travers drive for awhile, probably happy to take a break.



















Arriving at the floating village, it is pretty much what you would expect when you think of a floating village. Several buildings, mostly homes, all on stilts and water everywhere. It was amazing to see the inventive ways the villagers would get from one place to another, and how they would store some of their chickens hanging beneath the house in cages, or to have a floating herb and vegetable garden next to their home. 




























We stopped off at a dock where we enjoyed some coffee before hopping onto a tiny boat, sitting only inches above the water, that reminded me of the log rides at Disneyland, while a woman rowed us through the nearby 'woods', giving us an even closer look at some of the culture and nature surrounding us.



















We eventually decided it was time to head back, so we caught our last few glimpses of the floating village, and got back on our regular boat for the ride back to where Smarty parked his tuktuk.  The drive back was much of the same, and we stopped in town for lunch before going back to the hotel for a bit.

That afternoon, we had plans to go horseback riding so we only rested for an hour, before having Smarty drive us to the ranch. We arrived at The Happy Ranch Horse Farm, met our horses and went on our way! It was just Travers, me and the guide so we were able to get a nice private tour of the area.  Our guide took us through some beautiful rice paddies, past several small villages, and stopped just at the right time to see the sun set.What an adventure!

That evening, we went to a restaurant called Haven, which is known for helping disadvantaged young adults. The majority of the restaurant's staff started out as orphans and at age 18 expected to get jobs but had no training. Haven takes these people in, giving them training in either waiting tables or being in the kitchen and gives them a fair wage as well. It was great to be able to support this cause as well as the circus the evening before, and it didn't hurt that the food was delicious!  We finished a great meal, then walked to pub street for one last drink and to take in the Siem Reap culture.

The next day, we had another breakfast on the floating tables at the hotel, before Smarty picked us up again but this time, to take us to the airport.  It was great to meet Smarty and really have a local we could trust and that was looking out for our best interests throughout our visit to Siem Reap. If you ever go there, I highly recommend trying to hire him for at least a day to take you around.  Once at the airport, we said our goodbyes to Smarty, and got on a plane for a final destination of this Southeast Asia trip: Bangkok!

Smarty and a Circus

We took a small plane to Siem Reap, Cambodia, and took a taxi to our hotel, the Shinta Mani. We were greeted with cool damp cloths that smelled of Jasmine, and a refreshing local drink to cool us down from the hot and humid air. We checked into a beautiful room near the pool then we hopped into a tuktuk for the 2 minute ride to town.

We went first to the Siem Reap Night Market, looking at shops and restaurants and getting our bearings on the area, finally ending up on the well-known Pub Street, which is lined with restaurants and bright lights, and where the majority of tourists go for food and entertainment. We found a really fun looking bar, grabbed two beers and planned what we would do over the next few days in Cambodia.

The next day, we booked a tuktuk driver named Smarty to take us around to all the temples that Siem Reap is known for. We left the hotel and made our way past many different buildings, seeing tons of local Cambodians going about their every day lives, and trying not to stare at the scooters flying past us that often carried 3 or more people. Driving out of the hustle and bustle of the city, we arrived at a more rural part of Siem Reap, stopping quickly at a few small ruins, and eventually getting out of our tuktuk at Ta Prohm, a temple made famous by the movie, Tomb Raider. We walked through the temple for about an hour, taking in the ruins, marveling at the trees that grow out of, on top of, and among all the structures, and the unique carvings in the all the stones. We could have spent several more hours there, looking at each and every detail, but we forced ourselves to leave eventually as we had limited time and much much more to see.

After re-uniting with our driver, he gave us some much needed cold bottled water, and started driving us to our next destination, Angkor Thom. Along the way, Smarty took us to a few lesser known temples, all different in their design and structure, but all similar in their ruinous state with trees growing in and around them. Arriving at Angkor Thom, Smarty drove us to the East side entrance where the terrace of elephants is, and let us out there, telling us he would meet us on the other side. We made our way along the elephant terrace, and into the Angkor, following a path that we hoped would eventually lead us to the main structure in the center and then out the other side. The structures here were very different than the ruins at Ta Prohm. There were still trees throughout the site and ruins everywhere, but the main structures seemed more in tact here and much much larger.

We eventually made it to the center of Angkor Thom and were able to walk all around the main structures, climbing some steep steps at times, but able to see all the intricate detail that went into carving each stone, and pondering how in the world such a structure was built in an era where there were no machines to help.

 After the several hours we had spent walking around temples and in the heat and humidity, we finally decided to take a lunch break to rest our legs, re-hydrate, and get some much needed food. Smarty dropped us at a nearby outdoor restaurant with colorfully decorated tables to eat some delicious pad thai and fried rice! After finishing our meal, we were walking around the shops next to the restaurant and came across a pregnant baboon scrounging for food. She casually walked throughout the area, eventually settling on an open garbage bag and growling at a dog who got too close. What a site!

Feeling rejuvenated, we hopped back in Smarty's tuktuk, taking a few last photos of Angkor Thom, and getting a closer look at the sculptures on the bridge that spans the moat. Some of them were undergoing renovations and we weren't sure we liked the newer version or the original. You could see the details on the newer ones better, but there was just something odd about seeing the newer materials and realizing that one day all the original stone would be replaced by new.












Our next stop was our last stop for the day, Angkor Wat! We saved this for last to avoid some of the crowds, but as one of the most popular temples in this area, there were still lots of people to try to avoid. Smarty dropped us at the main entrance, and we proceeded to walk down the long walkway to the main building that looked, from a distance, like a bunch of bee hives.

We made our way down the path, through the exterior structure, and down the interior pathway leading to the main structure. Once inside, all the walls and ceilings were covered in detailed carvings, it was difficult to know where to look as I didn't want to miss a thing. We made our way as logically as possible through the large temple, trying to get to every layer and see every detail. We ended our tour by walking down some long hallways that were lined on one side with intricate carvings from floor to ceiling. Just amazing!





















































We had Smarty drive us back to Siem Reap after that. Our legs were tired, and we were hot and sweaty from walking around, on and over these old ruins, so we immediately jumped in the pool at the hotel to cool off, and ordered a couple refreshing cocktails before getting ready for our evening. We had a big night planned, so we didn't rest for too long before heading back out to go to Phare, The Cambodian Circus! 

Through a recommendation, we were told this was a must do while in Siem Reap.  Several businesses, hotels, and restaurants throughout Siem Reap run programs for the local people, students, and orphans. The Phare Cambodian Circus is one of those businesses that is an art school that teaches students different ways to express themselves and skills that they can use for their future jobs. So after resting a bit in the pool, we got ready and took a tuktuk to the circus, grabbed a beer before the show, and then settled into our seats and enjoyed an hour or so of watching all the amazing acrobatic performers.
























After the circus, we headed to dinner at a Japanese restaurant called The Hashi. We had read some great things about it and it did not disappoint! With great attentive service, delicious foods presented in unique ways, it was a wonderful way to end such an amazing day.  We called it an early night as we had hired Smarty to take us around again the next day, and knew we would need as much rest as possible!