Arghh! Another failed bus pick up. Managed to tuk tuk it to the bus stop before they left without us. Always great when you get on a bus load of people staring at you and muttering thinking we're just lazy and got there late. Not our fault the promised hotel
Pickup didn't materialise. Oh well, we're here now so we settle into our seats for the 6 hour journey to Siem Reap.

The bus company is actually good in that the buses are new, towel,drink & snack included. Puts national express to shame really when you only paid about £8 for the ticket and the service is a million times better.

We arrive to see a really smiley man standing there with SIMON SMITH written on his sheet of A4. We say hello and aboard his tuk tuk to go to the hostel. The tuk tuks are a bit different here to Thailand & Laos as the seating area is like a horse carriage. The man who collected us is called Mr WhyNot. He & his whole family are great, after upgrading from being a tuk tuk driver for 10 years to starting a hostel he's got it sussed. There's no question he hasn't heard before & he bent over backwards to help us with anything we needed.

Siem Reap centre is really lively and a great mix of restaurants & bars that we were completely spoilt for choice! We decided to go for the 3 day pass to the Angkor temple area so we could do more half days rather than rush it all in a day and get templed out. Starting at 9 we were off to do the big circuit. This had some great temples in but without the crowds of Angkor Wat & Ta Prohm.

We had a great time exploring & truely you feel like an explorer walking through crumbling doorways around tree roots. The actual temples are more ornate than we've seen yet in that the carvings were virtually on every surface & very intricate. We laughed with the hawkers trying to sell us everything from books to bracelets to postcards. One girl followed us solidly for about 10 minutes and refused to take it that we weren't buying any postcards. She was probably only about 7 but she was not going to give up. Her little monotone voice. 10 for 1 dollar, look lady, mister...1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10 - only 1 dollar. We blatantly fell for her plan b trick as in the end it was easier to give her a dollar to go away!!

I'll let the photos speak for themselves in regards to the temples as my words will not do them justice. It was insane that they were built around 900 years ago and for the most part, still standing!!

We noticed the beggars were more frequent up here. From amputees to children all bases were covered. One girl had us in stitches trying to sell us a flower.

Girl: "hey mister, wanna buy a rose for your lady"
Sy: "no I'm allergic to flowers"
Girl: "how about a wristband"
Sy: "no I'm allergic to wristbands"
Girl: "go on buy one from me Mr, only 1 for $2"
Sy: "nah I'm ok thanks"
Girl: "hey Mr, you know rock, paper,scissors? You win, I give bracelet for free, I win, you buy a bracelet and I change it to but one get two free"
Sy: "oh go on then...."

He never can say no to a challenge, suffice to say he lost & we bought a bracelet and she gave us three. But we all had a chuckle and she's a very smart girl!! Later we saw a guy crawling around on his hands and knee stumps begging. I couldn't help think that someone over the years must have offered to get him crutches or a wheelchair. As we watched him night after night it dawned on me that he probably earns more without the help so prefers to crawl as he'll earn more. Sad really.

Sunrise at Angkor Wat was funny, we got out of the tuk tuk after our 5am start and realised torches would have been a great idea as its not like the temples have electricity!! There was enough of a crowd to follow someone else's light. It was so weird, hundreds of people all walking toward a destination, we had no idea where but everyone was heading there and in silence. It was like some weird ritualistic walk through the temple.

The designated place it would appear was by the lily pond in front of the temple. Sunrise was beautiful. As the light grew there was a bit of a mass exodus to go inside the temple so we went the opposite way and saw some other temples. We saw no one, great idea!!

To balance it out a bit we mixed temples with shopping, eating & drinking. The markets were a lot of fun and the locals have really good humour so we joked with them. We enjoyed bartering for our little nik naks to send home. You can't walk anywhere in either city in Cambodia without every tuk tuk driver asking you if you new him. Sy found his favourite new joke was to ask the driver how much to the place he was stood outside. They loved it, fell about laughing. One even turned around an offered a piggy back for a dollar instead. I think that's what we've loved about Cambodians, so friendly and approachable with a great smile @ a love of s*** jokes!!
The ladies also like to go out in their pyjamas. I thought it was a nighttime thing as suddenly around dusk you'd start seeing ladies in long sleeve shirt & trouser pyjamas. Loud colours and prints like yellow with penguins on or bloody angry birds. We later found out its just a comfort thing. It's not confined to just nighttime as some ladies just wear their pyjamas all day but go to the market, do the shopping as usual. I think I'll start rocking the pyjamas and flip flops look at home!!!

One day we spent by the pool of a local hotel and although we don't do it often, infact this is only the second pool of the trip so far, it was great!

The penultimate day and we wanted to head into the temple complex to catch sunset. First stop was Angkor Wat and with the hoards of people we walked through into the middle of it. It was chaos, tour groups everywhere changing direction at a seconds notice like schools of fish. Nothing much happened and we left....................

Ok, so that's not entirely true as those that have seen my Facebook or received a text from us know that something really big happened. Sy asked me to marry him!!

We were walking through the chaotic crowds and spotted a door that it looked like the tour groups weren't interested in. We walked through and it was mad, there was no-one there. It led to a smaller temple at the back of the complex but the groups seemed to be focusing on the middle. It was super hot so I took the opportunity to sit on the stairs and soak it all in. With no people around I was really appreciating the atmosphere of the place.

The next thing I know Sy has turned around, dropped to one knee, holding a ring & asking me to marry him!

For a moment I was speechless then I managed to reply to the question. "Yes, of course!" It was such a lovely moment in such a great place. 12/12/12 will be etched on my memory forever. I didn't come down off that cloud for a long time as we walked hand in hand around the temple. There was still no-one around, I started to wonder if Sy had paid them!

We found a good spot and messed around with the self timer trying to get a good picture.

The rest of the day is a bit of a blur as we went to another place for sunset & then out to dinner. I can safely say I've never been happier.

Only a day before we head back down to Phnom Penh & then onwards to Ho Chi Minh. I can safely say I loved Siem Reap & a little piece of my heart will stay there!

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