Angkor Wat

We left off in Phnom Penh, now off to Siem Reap!

Wednesday morning of my vacation I woke up early, packed my stuff, and went to the reception desk to check out around 6:30. Go figure, there was nobody awake! I put my bag down on a chair and just walked around the hostel until someone who worked there heard me and came out. It only took a few minutes before a guy was behind the desk sleepily getting everything in order.
This was a frustrating process. I had the hostel book my bus ticket and they told me to check out the next morning at 6:30. One would think after getting such instructions that they would have someone awake and ready to get you checked out. When he figured the cost of the room, food, and the bus ticket it came to a total just under $20. Of course, they didn't have any change available. He tried to get me to buy something, but I told him I wouldn't. He had to call his boss in to get me change. Once everything was settled they told me to wait in the lobby and the bus would stop for me outside around 7. It didn't.
At 10 minutes past 7 I asked if they were sure it was coming. The lady impatiently told me to just sit and wait. I asked again at 7:30, and began to voice my frustration at 7:45 asking if they even called the company at all to tell them to get me. They arranged for a tuk-tuk driver to just take me to the bus station and I got there in time to get rushed onto the bus just moments before it left at 8:00.
I guess I would add this as another reason I would NOT recommend the #11 Happy Guesthouse in Phnom Penh.

The bus from Phnom Penh to Siem Riep took about 5 hours, with a rest stop about halfway through. The scenery was pretty much the same as the other buses I had taken on this trip, though more river and field scenes. The rest stop was a bit more interesting than the previous ones I had been to. It was a tiny market area with a bathroom. They had a few tables selling fruit, chips, and water; there were also vendors selling fried tarantula, grasshopper, and cockroach.

 A guy I met on the bus picked up the tarantula for a picture, but I will note he did not eat it.

We continued on our uneventful bus ride to Siem Reap and got dropped off at the bus terminal. Upon exiting, every passenger was harassed by about 50 tuk-tuk and motobike drivers. I even had one guy show me his name badge and said he was from the hotel. When I asked what hotel (being a smartass) he just said "What hotel are you staying at". I kept trying to walk away when he grabbed me by the arm to lead me to his tuk-tuk. Then a very nice guy from behind me politely asked where I would like to go and said he would take me anywhere for $3. I immediately said ok and he got the other guy to leave me alone. This turned out to be a wonderful decision. The driver's name was Taat. He is 25 years old and moved to Siem Reap to become a tuk-tuk driver to earn money for college, which he needs $400 to attend.  He has been working for 2 years and still has not saved enough money. His parents are poor farmers in the country side. He turned out to be great company during my stay.
Anyway, Taat drove me to my hotel, but it turned out to be a lot further from the bus station than either of us had thought. It was about a 20 minute drive from the bus station. When we got there, he didn't charge me any extra money even though it was far. He asked if he could take me around during my stay and we agreed to $12 a day to go wherever I wanted around Siem Reap.

I stayed at the Paradise Eco Resort. It was a really nice place for $10 a night. It had a nice room, a good restaurant, a bar, a pool, bicycles, and a computer for use. I would definitely recommend this place, though its a bit far from the city you can easily hire a tuk-tuk or just take a bike there if you have enough time.

After checking in I had planned on taking a bicycle to find an ATM, which I was told would take about 20 minutes on bike. I'm a bit embarrassed to say that I had run out of money at this point so needed to visit the ATM. Luckily (or creepily, i'm not quite sure) Taat was still at the hotel. He offered to take me to the ATM and back to the hotel for no money. So he did, this was quite nice of him. After he dropped me back at the hotel he left and I had dinner, read by the pool, and got a good night of sleep.

The next morning I woke up and had a delicious breakfast of eggs, toast, baked beans, fruit, and orange juice. Just as I was finishing Taat arrived and we headed out for my first day around the Angkor Wat complex!

Angkor Wat
Angkor Wat, meaning "City Temple", is not one temple, but a huge complex of temples that were built in the early 12th century for King Suryavarman II.  Originally, it started out as a Hindu temple dedicated to Vishnu. 27 years after King Suryavarman II's death, the temple was conquered by the Chams who were traditional enemies of the Khmer. Jayavarman VII restored the empire and the temple was gradually changed to a Buddhist site.

Angkor Wat is the world's largest religious site. It was built as a representation of Mount Meru, center of the world and home to the gods in Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain cosmology. The temple complex is a source of great national pride of Cambodia. It is a beautiful temple of Khmer architecture and intricate reliefs telling religious myths.

While I was in Cambodia, I spent 3 days going around the complex. This is a sufficient amount of time to see most of Angkor Wat. I typically spent 6-7 hours each day. The first day I did the "Small Circuit" which takes you first to Angkor Wat temple and Bayon, then to Banteay Kdei and all the minor temples in the area. The second day I did the "Large Circuit" which I started first at Bayon because I wanted to see it a second time, then we went north to Preah Khan, then east to Ta Som and down to Ta Prohm, and all of the temples along that route. The third day I spent seeing the Rolous Group.

map

There are plenty of vendors around the entire complex selling snacks, food, drinks, and souvenirs at decent prices. I will note that this is probably the best place to buy souvenirs in terms of prices. You can haggle to get lower prices, but I found that even the asking price they give you is a lot lower than in the market.

 Ta Prohm is a temple that was built by Jayavarman VII as a shrine to his mother. The main attraction of this temple are the massive trees growing out of the buildings. It is also famous as being a site where Tomb Raider was filmed, and you will hear tour guides constantly taking pride in this fact.

My favorite temple was Bayon, in the middle of Angkor Thom. Built by Jayavarman VII as a city, it is enclosed by a wall and surrounded by a moat. The roads that lead into and out of the city are lined with statues; 54 gods on the left and 54 devils on the right. Bayon is a temple of 54 towers with the face of Avalokiteshvara (Buddha) on all sides. 54 is a representation of the 54 days of the lunar calendar of the two circle moon and is considered a lucky number. (http://www.kimsoryar.com/DetailleftRight/Details.aspx?id=33)
I have also read that the number 54 was used because 5+4=9 and 9 is a lucky number.

Angkor Wat really is a beautiful complex. I am glad I was able to go and had 3 days to spend going around the complex during the day and just relaxing by the pool in the evenings. On my last day, after seeing the last set of temples, I went to the market, had dinner, and got a massage before going to the airport.

The food I had in Siem Reap was delicious. I mostly ate chicken and rice dishes or curry. I highly recommend the Khmer massage, especially after walking around the temples for 3 days!

All the pictures from the trip can be found on my Picasa site: https://picasaweb.google.com/aeihrig/SiemReapCambodia#

Phnom Penh

Ok, so we will pick up my journey from my hotel in Ho Chi Minh. I woke up and was transported by taxi (courtesy of the hotel) to the bus I would be taking to Phnom Penh. The bus left at 7:30 am. The route was actually more scenic than I thought (though, I really had no idea what to expect).

Roughly 2 hours later we arrived at the border. We had to take all our belongings off the bus and go through security and passport control. The bus driver had taken our passports when we got on the bus and handed them to the officials at the border who processed them then called our names. After returning our passports we could get back on the bus and drive to the Cambodian side of the border where we had to go through passport control again and show our visa.

The process was really simple and didn't take very long at all. We got back on the same bus and continued on. The scenery was pretty much the same the whole way, except when we got to the ferry port. At one point the bus was parked on a ferry and transported across a river, this took only a few minutes then we were back on the road and arrived in Phnom Penh around 1pm. (Don't remember the time, but it was somewhere around there).

My phone, which had worked in Vietnam, decided it wanted a vacation too. So, I wasn't able to contact my hostel which provided free pick up service. Instead, I took my first tuk-tuk! hehe, I must say I kinda enjoy travelling by tuk-tuk.

After attempting to convince me the hostel I had booked was no good, he finally agreed to take me to my hostel for $3. I stayed at the #11 Happy Guesthouse. Actually, to be quite honest, I'm not sure if that is where I slept. I'll explain. When I arrived I walked under this sign to see a bunch of Cambodian people just sitting around, but nothing that looked hostel-like. A guy came up and asked me if I wanted a room here and took me to an area next door. They had a sign with both the #11 Happy Guesthouse and another name. Maybe they have 2 names? I was slightly confused but still took the $5 room.

I must say, I was not impressed with this $5 room. I took it because I was tired and it was only 2 nights. The other places in the area were about the same. I didn't enjoy this place because the room was really dirty. I'm pretty sure the sheets were not clean, I KNOW the bathroom wasn't cleaned, and the second night I woke up to a cockroach running around the room. This little bug kept me up for a few hours, being paranoid about it getting onto the bed or into my bag, or even worse having some friends.

Oh well, it was $5 and only 2 nights. Oh, and the shower was freezing!!
So my first night in Phnom Penh I just ate dinner at the hostel and went to sleep early (I'm on vacation too after all!)
Wednesday morning I woke up and decided to see the Choeung Ek Killing Fields first.  A guy who worked at the hostel took me to the fields by moto bike for $15.
Also, I highly suggest getting a tour guide for this site. A guide will be able to tell you the history and more details that you would get by going yourself. I tried walking around myself, and quickly realized I was missing out on a lot, so I got a guide for myself, and was really glad I did. The guides can be hired "by donation", they suggest $5, and I thought it was worth it.

Choeung Ek
Choeung Ek had been a Chinese graveyard until 1975 when the Khmer Rouge began to use it as an execution site. Between 1975 and 1979, about 18000 people were tortured and killed there. This was not the only killing field used by the Pol Pot regime, there were thousands more like it, but Choeung Ek was the largest site, killing the most amount of people.

The first thing you see and Choeung Ek is the memorial stupa where bones of the victims are kept. The bottom layer is filled with clothes that have been found, the next few layers with around 8,000 skulls, and the higher levels have the remaining bones.

Let's move onto the killing process. Prisoners were brought from the S-21 prison (more on this site later) in trucks. Two or three trucks were sent monthly with 20-30 prisoners. This was always done at night to hide the operation from the surrounding farmers. People who were killed at Choeung Ek tended to be people of higher status (doctors, teachers, politicians). They would be separated into 2 groups, one of men and the other of women and Children. Prisoners were led to a ditch and ordered to kneel down. They were then clubbed on the neck or stabbed and thrown into the ditch. After all prisoners were in the ditch, the executioners would scatter chemical substances over the body to both kill any prisoners still alive and cover the stench of the decaying bodies. They were then buried whether all the prisoners were dead or alive.

Sometimes, kids and their mothers would be taken to the "killing tree". Here, executioners would hold children by their ankles and beat them against the tree while their mothers would watch and then the mothers would be raped then killed.

Going there now is a really moving experience. Again, I really suggest getting a tour guide as it will be more meaningful and you will get more out of the experience. Walking around you will see bits of bones, clothing, and hair sticking up from the ground. 

They also have plastic cases where they put bones as they are discovered or uncovered after it rains.

The last thing you really see is the last grave they made. When the operation was about to be shut down, due to Vietnam finding out about the killing field and moving in on the Pol Pot regime, they did a mass killing of 450 victims.

I was really moved by the killing fields and the terrible history of Cambodia, but it by no means ends here. 

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum

Next the motobike driver took me to S-21, also known as the Tuol Sleng Genocide museum.S-21 was formerly a High School until the Khmer regime turned it into a prison and interrogation center. About 17,000 people were kept here from 1975-79, with 1,000-1,500 at any given time.

Prisoners were interrogated then arrested, often under false charges, and forced to sign a confession. They were kept in cells; some in small cells, and some in larger communal cells.

They were beaten harshly if they disobeyed any of the rules, which were displayed on a big sign..

Prisoners were kept here for 2-3 months until the were killed and buried near the prison or taken to Choeung Ek. 

To get prisoners to confess to the bogus charges made up by their captors, they were tortured by various means, including pulling out their fingernails while pouring alcohol on their wounds, electric shock, and waterboarding.

Of the estimated 17,000 prisoners at S-21, there are only 7 known survivors and 4 are still alive today.

There are many books, websites, and documentaries out there for anybody interested in more information.

Now onto more cheerful aspects of my trip. After leaving the Tuol Sleng museum I took a tuk-tuk to the area of the Royal Palace. The palace was closed between 11 and 2:30, so I took this opportunity to walk over to the Friends restaurant. Friends Restaurant is run by an NGO that helps train Cambodia's street children in hospitality service. I ordered Khmer chicken curry and a raspberry shake. 

It was delicious and the students and teachers there provided great service and spoke English well enough that I had no problem communicating. I highly recommend this restaurant for both the food and service as well as to support its work.    http://www.friends-international.org/

After lunch, I walked along the Mekong River. I stopped in one of the massage parlors and got a 60 minute massage for $12. ^_^

Royal Palace

My last stop of the day was the Royal Palace. It was built in 1866 and has been occupied by the Kings of Cambodia since. It costs $6 to get into the Palace, and if your legs or shoulders are not properly covered you can rent appropriate clothing for a small deposit. I was wearing shorts so I had to rent a sarong to cover my legs.

The Khmer architecture was beautiful and everything was elaborately decorated. I will just show you through pictures about the palace. 

^ The Silver pagoda, aka Wat Preah Keo. If you go to my pictures on Picasa and look closely, you can see Buddha's head near the top of the tallest spire. 

http://picasaweb.google.com/aeihrig/PhnomPenh#5557497819219979010

 ^ wall painting

 ^ resident of the King

 ^Kantha Bopha Stupa

After ambling around the Palace grounds, I walked back to my hostel, stopping by one of the markets, and got to sleep early for my bus to Siem Riep. That is where we will pick up next time! Would love some feedback from any readers out there!

pictures can be found here

http://picasaweb.google.com/aeihrig/PhnomPenh#

Ho Chi Minh City

So, being the slacker that I am, it has taken me a week to get around to starting my posts from my vacation. Sorry!!
Ok, so this  year for Christmas, since I was yet again not able to spend it with my loved ones, I decided to go to Vietnam and Cambodia! Such a great decision! Though I probably should have picked just one country since there was so much to see!

So Christmas morning I woke up early to get to the airport. I hate the bus to the airport. It takes 5 hours and it was freezing cold! What is it with Koreans NOT using the heaters properly?!? I finally got to the airport and ran into Blake and Cecile who were on the same flight. The first leg of the flight was to Guangzhou airport, which is probably the worst airport I've ever been to! It was so inefficient. To transfer flights we had to go through Passport Control. So they took our passports and waved  us through to wait. They would take our passports back into this little room to be processed then brought out again to the desks to be processed again. They were done randomly so some people who had gotten waved through early were waiting longer than others. I met a girl who is also a teacher in Korea and we complained and waited together. Go figure Cassie and I were actually the last 2 people waiting for our passports. Luckily, we had plenty of time before our flights left so we were in no hurry. So we went through security and grabbed food at one of the airport cafes that was still open. It was expensive. I only got a pineapple pastry and it was $4. Cassie got an actual meal of noodles and a fruity drink and it was about $20! geeze...So, we spent the rest of the time just walking around the terminal talking, then it was finally time for me to board my flight, leaving Cassie tired and bored until hers left.
Luckily, I slept the whole flight! Got into Vietnam with no problem (despite having left my passport photos at home for the visa application, apparently they don't actually need those?). Since it was so late and I was tired, I wasn't good at bargaining and ended up spending more than I should have on a taxi to the city, oh well. Went to a few overpriced hotels then finally found one for a decent price, though again, probably more expensive than it should have been, but I didnt have the energy or patience to keep going around. I ended up staying at the Hotel Hong Vy 2. It cost me $75 for 2 nights and a bus ticket to Phnom Penh which the hotel booked for me. It was actually a nice place. The room was comfy with a nice bathroom, air con, and a tv. I'm pretty sure the tv had more English channels than i've seen in a long time.
When I woke up Sunday morning, I got to enjoy a lovely breakfast of fried rice and fruit on the roof overlooking the city. It was a spectacular view!

After breakfast I headed to the Unification Palace aka Independence Palace. This was formerly Norodom Palace, then was replaced and became the home of the President of South Vietnam during the Vietnam war, then was the place where the Vietnam war ended during the Fall of Saigon in 1975.

So I spent some time walking around. Most of the areas are roped off but you can look into the rooms, such as the Banquet room, bedrooms, Cabinet meeting rooms, Conference hall, dining room, gambling room, map room, movie room, private garden, and so many more. My favorite was the library (above). On two of the walls not shown, it had ceiling high glass cases filled with books. The one thing I want in my home when I'm all settled down? A library very similar to this! Enough about libraries...

After walking around the upper floors and the roof, you then head down to the basement where you can see all the war command rooms, map rooms, and telephone rooms.

After visiting all of the rooms, the final thing to see is the movie room where they show (in Vietnamese and English) a movie about the "War of Aggression". The movie spent a lot of time talking about how the Americans should have never gone to war there....yea. Anyway, while I was in there 2 Vietnam guys about my age came into the room and started talking to me. After the movie they continued to practice their English, and were also very curious about what Americans think about the Vietnam war. It was a fairly short, though interesting conversation.

After leaving my new friends, I headed to the War Remnants Museum, previously known as the "Museum of American War Crimes". (You can tell how they feel about the war...)

Here are some of the pictures I took. They aren't very pleasant, but what do you expect from a War Remnants Museum? Read the captions, that's what made the photos so moving.

Outside of the museum they have a walled off area you can go to to see the "Tiger Cages" where prisoners were tortured and killed during the war.

Also...

yea. Before I entered this part of the museum, an American family was about to enter but the mother said to her two sons not to go in, so they stayed outside while the father went in. Smart move on the part of the mother, definitely wouldn't want kids seeing some of this stuff!
Though this is all disturbing, I got a bit of a laugh when I got the shit scared out of me by this next image, it's not that the picture is terribly frightening, but you view it through a small square hole in a door. I was expecting just to see an empty cell, but no...

I immediately jumped back in surprise not expecting to see a dummy in there! Creepy when you're not expecting it!
So, enough about war and torture and on to a more enjoyable trip! After leaving the museum I was walking down the road to find some food and a lost Korean man came up and asked me for directions. We started talking and decided to go to lunch together. We found this nice Vietnamese restaurant where I got chicken and vegetable noodles. yummy!

After lunch we walked to Notre Dame. Yes, there is one in Saigon! However, it wasn't opened when we went.

Then I walked across the street to the impressive Gothic style post office which was built while Saigon was a part of French Indochina. Pretty convenient having the post office as a tourist attraction, you can see it and send post cards at the same time!

After the post office I left my new Korean friend and went by myself to the Ben Thanh market.  A crowded market where you can bargain your way to cheap souvenirs, such as $2 sandals or a $3 bag, just for example haha.

And my last stop in Ho Chi Minh...dinner! You really can't leave Vietnam without eating Pho, so I found a restaurant called Pho 24 and got beef pho soup and a pineapple drink. Shortly after I ambled back to my hotel and got a good night sleep before moving on to Cambodia.

More entries to come soon about the rest of the trip, in the meantime enjoy all the pictures!
http://picasaweb.google.com/aeihrig/HoChiMinh#