Siem Reap (Angkor Wat) 7th to 9th July 2006
It's hard to say what i feel about this place after such brutal start, 4am to be precise to catch a 6am flight. even i had to have a nap when i arrived at the hotel. Siem Reap is pretty small and takes 15 min's to walk end to end. beer and food are pretty cheap. you do get hassled as in a lot of asian countries by taxi drivers who even though they see you walking happily along, seem to think you can't walk unaided and need their aid........ although it's nowhere near as bad as some places in asia.
i had to pick up my ticket for the temples for the following day and then i went to see the popular sunset close to Angkor Wat but my curse follows me (Ayers rock 2002) and clouds obscured the sunset.
the currency here is strange. one euro is just over 5000 rial. the unofficial currency is the us dollar. if you buy something you will get dollars back but rials substitute for quarters dimes etc.
day 2
pick up lots of water and head to Angkor Wat a tuk tuk from my guest house cost a very reasonable usd 10 for the day. he just drops you off outside a temple and lets you explore. the steps in some of these temples are very steep and terrifying to come down. most are thin and have no hand rail. the temples are absolutely amazing. they are huge and have an amazing amount of detail. well worth the visit. more signs would be handy too. it's not easy to navigate from temple to temple. the 'tomb raider' temple was the one i liked the most. there was jungle around it and inside it. there were parts too hazardous to wander around.
