Cambodia, Siem Reap - Friday 13th

As we left the Guest House we had friendship bands tied on our wrist and Suz was given a silk scarf.All the staff came out to say goodbye and took our photo.As we arrived in Cambodia we were taken to our hotel which was a big four star hotel; comfortable, but with little charm.Again, people can't be friendly enough. The weather was very hot and humid, with no breeze at all, so we were happy to plunge into the big pool to cool down.Unfortunately what often goes with the bigger hotels is a lot of stuffiness and instrumental versions of crummy love songs groaning through the speakers. We realised we were the youngest in the hotel and wondered why we hadn't gone for one of the smaller family run guesthouses.We had a swift cocktail at the bar and then we headed in to town.Every five seconds someone is shoving something in your face to buy, tuk-tuk men jumping out at every corner and children befriending you, and then begging for food.The town is full of tourist bars and restaurants, all targeted at the many travellers returning from their long days wandering around the ancient Wats

Saturday 14th

Our tuk-tuk driver the previous night had offered to take us around the temples, so we met him out the front and set off for the sites at Angkhor.They are about 4km outside of town and spread over a 24km circuit.The Wat's and Palaces date back to the 10th Century and the first one we stopped at was Angkor Thom, which had huge conical pillars with a face sculpted on each side.This was the King's state temple where he went to meditate and the faces are the divine faces of Avalokiteshvara. There are so many small chambers and statues of Buddha dotted about. A boy gave us an incense stick to burn as an offering to the deceased, and then of course charged us the earth, and then a bit more for his schooling.Suckers!Oh well lets hope it leads to some good karma.After Stephen got attacked by a huge orange and black beetle (good karma?) we got the tuk-tuk on to the Leper Kingtemple, which was closed due to restoration works and then on to the Terrace of Elephants, so called because of the many elephant carvings and statues holding the platform up. Most of the original steps up to the top of the temple are quite worn, so placed above it is a very narrow and almost vertical set of about 200 wooden steps.If going up was bad enough, coming down was even worse and Stephen had the bright idea of coming down backwards - which was a much better idea. After lunch at some dodgy looking restaurant we went to the Ta Prohm temple where you can see nature becoming part of the temple itself.Trees grow through the rock and huge roots can be seen clinging onto the crumbling walls, which make for an amazing sight.Many of the temples are undergoing varying degrees of restoration, but it looks like a slow process and some of it is crude and not in keeping with the original.We passed the amputees band that, rather than openly beg, play traditional tunes for money.Stephen also had a quick game with some children, much to their delight, that involves kicking, punching or heading a large shuttlecock as you stand in a circle. (keepie-uppy in a team basically). Our final stop was at Angkor Wat, which is the largest and finest temple of all and sits majestically beyond a lake.This is a huge temple with so many steep steps up to the chambers and some great Angkorian carvings of dancing ladies and, of course, Buddha everywhere.It is amazing that tourists are still clambering all over the sites and maybe one day the authorities will realise that they need to do a better job of preserving them.It had been so sweltering hot all day that we were glad to get back in the tuk-tuk and feel the cool breeze on the journey back.We found some great bars in the evening and sang along to some good 70's music.

Sunday 15th

We took our driver's advice and agreed to go on a trip on the Tonle SapLake, through the flooded forests and floating villages.The drive there itself was fantastic with views of the flooded rice fields, tall trees and the simple villages, where whole families were waving at us and shouting hello.We felt like royalty constantly waving from our little chariot!It still amazes us how these families live.Their basic bamboo huts have one room for everything; so much of the cooking and daily living is done outside the house.There are also houses built on stilts with the whole dining and lounge area underneath in the open.There was a river that runs the length of the 15km road and there were adults and children with water up to chest height, fishing in the filthy water.We eventually got to the 'port' where we had to bargain and haggle to get a decent price for our trip. We chartered a vessel for ourselves that could have accommodated thirty persons, although there were only life jackets for six. The captain was a boy of about 16 and his 1st mate had about 8 years experience (of breathing, not seamanship).The boats were pretty much crammed in and we had to sit and hope that the skipper didn't take too many chunks out of the helm while he bumped and ground his way out of the space.After a 152-point turn and lots of scraping sounds, we started out across the lake.The lake was covered with plants and trees, with their roots hidden under the deep water.After more close shaves with trees or other boats we found ourselves at the floating village.Again, everyone was waving and they live in tiny huts with huge families, and some with pigs and chickens too.Everything looks so dirty and there is an over-powering whiff of dried fish paste, which is gross (it is made from fish that has been left to go rotten, but is used as a main ingredient in many of their dishes).We stopped off at the local Pagoda on dry land, where most of the families from the village congregate.We went in to the temple and Suz asked the Monk praying there if she could take a photo.He then tied pink bands around our wrists and chanted something, apparently wishing us peace and happiness.As we walked around children were running up and Suz started taking pictures.Not as shy as the school children in Laos, they kept posing and then really giggling when they saw themselves on the camera.Feeling like the Pied Piper, as more and more children were crowding round, they suddenly dispersed and sat cross-legged on the floor near the local sweet stalls. Stephen had brought them a huge bag of sweets (it was either these or pencils, and we chose the former, as we could remember what we would have preferred at their age!).It was a wonderful sight to see them being so orderly and well behaved and all with a huge grin on their eager faces.It is amazing that although they have nothing (as in material stuff), they are so happy. It could be viewed, thatthey have more than some people in the Western world (without the poor manners and attitude of some).On the way back along the road we saw children of about seven who were bringing the cows home, helping in the fields or selling things.Again there were lots of shouts of hello and lots of waving from whole families.The Cambodians have had a recent history from hell and most must have been affected by genocide or starvation in their families, but their smiles beam out nonetheless.It was so moving that there were a few tears in the back of the tuk-tuk!In the evening we went out to eat and then while Stephen chose a book to read in the bookshop, Suz sat next door with her feet in a fish-tank with the fishes eating off any dead skin while drinking a beer and chatting to the locals.To start with it tickled, but then soon you just don't notice anymore and those pinkies were just gleaming!