A bit more on Cambodia
My love affair with Cambodia and its people continued for a second day. This time I had a professional guide. Ta, the same guide that took us on Tonle Sap was mine for most of my second day. We started at Banteay Seay. This small gorgeous temple is about 38K from the main Angkor complex. Couldn't have been better for me. I got to see a huge amount of the countryside and you have already seen pictures of the smiling Cambodians I encountered along the way.
Banteay Seay is most famous for the intricate and detailed carvings. We got there before any of the tourist buses arrived which always a plus. I was able to look in pretty good detail at the carvings in the morning light. On the way back, we stopped at a small village area where palm sugar was made. I watched the sap boiling and tasted the final result. Somewhere in the middle of all this excitement, I managed a few pictures and handed out some penny candy to the local kiddies. Then it was on to a few more temples including the famous Ta Prohm. Ta Prohm shows how the jungle took over the area. Much of the temple would crumble if it were not for the symbiotic relationship with the trees. My guide did an incredible job of finding great photo ops between the tour groups. The one bad thing was that by the time we got to this temple and Preah Khan, the tours were out in full force!
That evening I went to a performance of traditional Khmer dance. It's very similar to Thai dance. In fact it's pretty much indistinguishable. No surprise since the Khmer once ruled much of Thailand. One of my favorite dances was Machanu and Hanuman which I've previously discussed.
In the morning before I returned to Thailand my tuk tuk driver took me to the Old Market in Siem Reap. The Old Market is where most of the locals do their shopping for various food ingredients. Everything from seafood to chickens to meats are sold there. Vegetables, clothing and tourist items are also sold there. That was one of my favorite places in Cambodia.
After the Old Market, I sadly said goodbye to beautiful Cambodia and its gracious smiling people.
Banteay Seay is most famous for the intricate and detailed carvings. We got there before any of the tourist buses arrived which always a plus. I was able to look in pretty good detail at the carvings in the morning light. On the way back, we stopped at a small village area where palm sugar was made. I watched the sap boiling and tasted the final result. Somewhere in the middle of all this excitement, I managed a few pictures and handed out some penny candy to the local kiddies. Then it was on to a few more temples including the famous Ta Prohm. Ta Prohm shows how the jungle took over the area. Much of the temple would crumble if it were not for the symbiotic relationship with the trees. My guide did an incredible job of finding great photo ops between the tour groups. The one bad thing was that by the time we got to this temple and Preah Khan, the tours were out in full force!
That evening I went to a performance of traditional Khmer dance. It's very similar to Thai dance. In fact it's pretty much indistinguishable. No surprise since the Khmer once ruled much of Thailand. One of my favorite dances was Machanu and Hanuman which I've previously discussed.
In the morning before I returned to Thailand my tuk tuk driver took me to the Old Market in Siem Reap. The Old Market is where most of the locals do their shopping for various food ingredients. Everything from seafood to chickens to meats are sold there. Vegetables, clothing and tourist items are also sold there. That was one of my favorite places in Cambodia.
After the Old Market, I sadly said goodbye to beautiful Cambodia and its gracious smiling people.