Angkor, Siem Reap, Cambodia

I have always been intrigued by Cambodia and been wanting to see the temples of Angkor for a long time. I found a nice deal to Siem Reap with flight on Silk Air and accommodation in a five star hotel for a reasonable price. And after working out the travel dates and picking out a well located hotel, I started planning out the itinerary. We went for a 4 day trip from Singapore in the month of June.

Visa

Cambodia requires you to have a Visa if you are not a citizen of the following countries - Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Laos, Vietnam and Philippines. A tourist Visa costs you USD20. You can apply for it online at the Cambodia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation website. They charge you an additional USD5 for visa processing. Have a look at the website below for details on visa application requirements (you just need a passport sized photograph and a credit card for the payment)

http://www.mfaic.gov.kh/evisa/ 

Note: Online Visa application is not supported for a few countries. Look at the website mentioned above for a list of the same.

We applied for the visas online and received them within 3 days.

Planning the Itinerary

I started reading about Angkor and the temples and other sight seeing activities that we had to do there. Once I started digging out the details, I realized that there were lot of things to see and that we might have to miss out on a few temples was evident. A colleague of my husband's, who had been to Angkor earlier, lent us a book on Angkor called Ancient Angkor written by Michael Freeman and Claude Jacques. It was very handy to understand the history and importance of the temple and helped me decide roughly on my sightseeing plan.

We were now all set to travel to see some of the oldest temple ruins in the world!

Day 1:

We took an early morning flight from Singapore and reached Siem reap at around 10am. We had got US dollars from Singapore and decided to take some local currency, Cambodian Riel, at the airport and so converted $100 and got about 400,000 KHR. I was quite shocked to see such large denominations of money in my hands and it took me a while to count the notes!

The travel agent had arranged for a pick up and after finding our cab went to hotel Angkor Riviera and checked in. The hotel was nice and our room was quite spacious and neat. We immediately wanted to start on our sightseeing since there was lot to cover in Angkor. We had 2 options for our local transportation – cab or tuk tuk. Since it was very hot to be travelling in a tuk tuk, we chose the air conditioned comfort of a cab. We spoke to our cab driver and decided to hire him to be our driver for that day. He charged us USD25 for the day, which was the standard rate for an air conditioned cab in Siem Reap. We planned on our itinerary for the day and headed out.

We wanted to pick some water bottles and a memory card for our camera. So we stopped by at a shop and were in for a shock when we realized that all prices were in USD! And so what do we do with all the local currency????!?! And this is when we realized that we did not have to convert to the local currency at all! USD cash is accepted all over, even in the smallest shops. Even the ATMs dispense cash in USD!

Floating Village

We started our trip with the floating village, which is built on the back waters of the lake Tonle Sap. (tonle is fresh water and sap is lake, in khmer). It is a combination of a river and lake. During the dry season, it flows to the Mekong river in Phnom Penh. During the monsoon, the water flows in the opposite direction, towards the lake, flooding the nearby areas.
It was quite a drive from the city to the start of the boat ride. The ticket costs USD20 (Again USDs) A small rickety boat will take you on a tour around the village where houses are built on stilts. During the monsoon, the lake gets flooded and the houses look like they are floating. Hence the name (when we went it wasn’t the monsoon season and we saw no floating village. But it does get filled up with water). It was about an hour journey through the village and we got to see the local rural side of the country. Every house owns a boat, as it is their only way of transportation outside their houses.

Once the village ends, you will see the vast lake, which is the largest fresh water lake in SouthEast Asia. There are couple of floating restaurants in the middle of the lake, where you can stop by for a quick bite and drink. The boat drivers hardly speak English. So if you need to convey anything in the middle of your journey, good luck with that!

Roluos, Angkor

We started our tour of Angkor with Roluos. You will need to buy a ticket for viewing all the temples in Angkor. A 1 day ticket costs 20USD per person, 3 day ticket costs 40USD and there is also a 1 week ticket (not sure of the price, but all in USDs). Make sure you buy these tickets and keep them safe, they check for this ticket. This tickets allows you multiple entry for the number of days specified to all the temples in Angkor. We bought a 3 day ticket, since our plan of visiting Angkor was for more than 2 days.

Roluos is currently a small town, which was once considered the first capital of Khmer Empire. The Roluos group of temples,  build in the late 9th century, were some of the earliest constructions by the Khmers. It currently consists of 3 temples – Lolei, Preah Ko and Bakong, in increasing order of size of the temple ruins.

Lolei

Lolei was the last of the three temples built in Roluos and consists of 4 towers. The carvings on the towers are exquisite but all of them are in ruins and hence cannot enter the towers. The fallen bricks are scattered around the towers and some enforcement steel pillars can be seen. There is a monastery located next to this ruin. This temple, being a small one took us about 15 mins to see.

Just outside the temple there are some stalls which sell some cold water, cold coconut water and some snacks. You might be interested in trying the fresh coconut water which is served chilled for $1.

Preah Ko

We then headed to Preah Ko which is slightly bigger than Lolei. It was the first temple to be built. It consists of 6 towers, arranged in 2 rows of three towers each. There are 3 bulls, representing Nandi, the mount of Lord Shiva, in front of the 3 towers of the first row. It took us about 30 mins here.

Bakong

Bakong encompasses the architectural style of both Lolei and Preah ko. It is a temple mountain built in sandstone and surrounded by a moat. The temple is like a pyramid, with five levels and each of these level can be accessed through steps, which are quite steep to climb. You will also find some towers, similar to those seen in Lolei and Preah Ko, around this main temple. The climb was quite tiring, and so we took a small break at the top most level. We spent about 45 mins here.

At this point I must say that it was very very hot and tiring. The heat can drain all the water and energy from the body. It is very much advisable to take an umbrella or a hat along with sunscreen lotions. Also make sure to have lots and lots of water.

Phnom Bakheng

Our next stop was to be at the Phnom Bakheng which is a popular destination to view the sunset. It is another temple mountain dedicated to Lord Shiva. This temple is on top of a hill, being a symbolic representation of Mount Meru, home of the Hindu gods. 
We reached the base of the hill and saw that there was an elephant ride to the top and I got quite excited with that. After waiting for about 15 mins, we went for our ride and our mahout (elephant rider) entertained us by singing some local songs. We reached the top of the hill a little past 5:30 and realized that it  was closed. It was there that we learnt that the temples in Angkor close at 5:30 pm. So make sure you plan your day accordingly. We started our down hill walk quite disappointed that the temple timing was not put up at the base of the hill, where we took our elephant ride.


We were quite exhausted by the time we reached the hotel. We planned the next day’s itinerary with the driver who charged us USD25 which included taking us to the sunrise at Angkor Wat at 5am.
The heat during the day was responsible for a terrible headache. At the hotel spa, we pampered ourselves to some excellent massage and called it a day.

Day 2:

Angkor Wat

We started our day at 5 am with the sunrise at Angkor Wat. Angkor Wat is the largest Hindu temple in the world and the grandest of all the Khmer temples. It was built in the early 12th century as the capital and state temple, dedicated to Lord Vishnu. The temple is huge with the outer wall stretching about a kilometre and surrounded by a moat.

We chose a comfortable spot on the right library building to enjoy the sunrise. You can also watch it from the left side of the main aisle, where there is a small pond, and the sunrise is said to be good from there as you can see the reflection in the water. We avoided it because it was quite crowded and there was no place to sit. The sun can be seen rising from behind the Angkor Wat temple, which is what makes it quite beautiful. The good part is that the sunrise is early and you are done by around 6am.

You can then start exploring the temple which demands a good 3 hours of your time, if you are interested in seeing all the corners of the temple and carvings on all the walls.

If you need to know the history behind the carvings, and you are trying to figure it out with a help of a guide book, I guess you will take longer. There are tourist guides available if you are interested, who will take you around the temple in an organized path and explain to you in detail about the stories behind the carvings. Since I am from India, and having learnt and grown up amidst Hindu mythology, I dint need very long to figure out the stories behind the carvings. I had a guide book to help me identify the characters and the scene was sufficient for me to figure out the carvings. The temple is undoubtedly very beautiful and the details in the carvings are unimaginable. Every stone, every wall in the temple has a story to tell. The stones were huge and the delicacy and the craftsmanship of the carvings were exquisite. I would have loved to stay there a little longer and explore some more details of the carvings, but time was running out on us.

We were kind of done by around 9am. We headed off to the hotel for our breakfast. They had a nice spread of continental buffet, sufficient to stuff ourselves with enough food so we wouldn’t get hungry till late afternoon.

Preah Ang Thom

Kbal Spean River (The River of a Thousand Lingas)

We then headed to see The River of the Thousand Lingas and the Sleeping Buddha statue at Preah Ang Tho. These venues are located outside of Angkor and a separate ticket must be purchased before going there. It was about an hour’s journey before we reached the River of the Thousand Lingas.

We saw numerous carvings of the Lingas on the river bed. The water of this stream is considered sacred as it flows over the Lingas.

I later learnt that this river further culminates into a sacred waterfall. Since this was not initially on our list, I had not read up enough about it. But if you do plan to visit this river, do plan on seeing the waterfall as well. It was a quick stop here before we headed for the Sleeping Buddha.

Statue of Reclining Buddha

A short drive from the river is located the Statue of the Reclining Buddha in Phnom Kulen. The statue is an impressive carving of a reclining Buddha that is about 17m long. The notable fact about this statue is that the entire idol is carved on top of a single solid rock of 20m. The statue is enclosed by a ceiling and walls, converting it into a prayer room and supported by pillars. The statue is surrounded by incense sticks and some religious flags, offering boxes. Under the statue, you will also notice some amateur carvings of faces of the disciples.

To be able to see this statue, you have to reach the top of the rock through a short flight of concrete stairs. At the base of this rock, you will need to take off our shoes and pay a nominal fee for them to be guarded by some members of families living around this area. It took us about 30-40 mins in this place.


On our way back (about 25 kms away from the main Angkor region), we went to Banteay Srei, a small but very beautiful temple dedicated to Lord Shiva and built in pink sandstone during the second half of 10th century.

It has 3 enclosures and unfortunately when we visited, the innermost enclosure was cordoned off. But the carvings on the outside were so detailed that it kept me busy for almost the whole hour. The building material sandstone, has enabled the carvings to be very fine and elaborate, and are very visible even today.

After this we left to our hotel to have lunch and to take some rest before we went back to Angkor Wat to see the sunset.

Sunset at Angkor Wat

We went to Angkor Wat at around 4:30pm. We again found a spot to sit in the Library building, facing the west. The heat has subsided and was replaced by a cool breeze. It was nice to just sit there and look at the beautiful temple and its surrounding. Having seen so many temples built about a 1000 years ago and realizing that I was sitting on a structure that was built almost 800 years ago, was very exciting. I was loving every moment of that evening.
The sunset wasn't as impressive as the sunrise, but it was peaceful and serene to just sit there and enjoy the nice cool breeze after a hot and tiring day.

Night Market, Pub Street

After all the temple sight seeing we had done for the last 2 days, we needed a break. We then headed off to the city, to the night market, near pub street. There are lot of small shops with lot of stuff – clothes, small items made of Cambodia silk, souvenirs. Some massage places. In the middle of the market was a nice bar called Island Bar, which served cocktails at 2.50USD. There is a small food court, from where you can order your finger food. The cocktails were well mixed and the alcohol content was also satisfying.

All in all, a good place to chill after a very hot day. Next to this bar was another massage place, and we were tempted to try something here. Got another massage here, which was not very bad at all for the price that they charged. On the way back, we found an Indian restaurant with veg food options. And a tuk tuk ride back to the hotel concluded our adventures for the day.

Day 3:

We had to narrow down our list of temples to fit into the last day. We were left with Angkor Thom (Bayon, Baphoun, The Elephant Terrace and the Lepper King Terrace), Ta Prohm and Prasat Kravan. After reading a little bit about the temples in the guide book, we decided on visiting only Bayon in the Angkor Thom area.
Thus began our last day in Siem Reap at 7:30am after breakfast at the hotel.

Bayon, Angkor Thom

First on the list was the Bayon temple. En route, we crossed the South gate of Angkor Thom. The Bayon was built in the late 12th to late 13th centuries and was the state temple. The distinctive feature of this temple is the massive stone faces on the towers. The temple is a stone mountain of ascending peaks and the towers have huge faces carved on them. 

The temple comprises of 2 enclosures and a terrace which can be accessed through some steep steps. The area between the 2 galleries is very narrow, and you will find yourself going through the low ceiling narrow aisles. The entire temple seems to be squeezed into a restricted area and is contrary to the spaciousness of Angkor Wat. You can see piles of stone blocks  that are the ruins of the pillars and towers of the temple. You can also see the ruins of Shivalingas.

After navigating through these alleys we took the stairs to the terrace from where we can see the towers and the faces carved on these towers. Most are carved with 4 faces, one in each direction, but some have less. The details and the grandeur of the temple left me speechless. The faces have been carved on multiple assembled stones and the sharpness of the features of each face is something that puts this temple at the top of the list for me. Set aside at least an hour for this place.

After Bayon is Bapoun, which we skipped (prioritization). But the Elephant Terrace and the Leper King Terrace are on the way to the car park, so quickly stopped by for some pictures.

Ta Prohm

Ta Prohm is a very picturesque and amazing. Once you enter this temple, you will realize why it is one of the most must see place in Angkor. The blend of the trees among the stone structure ruins leaves you speechless. This temple was also used as a major location for the movie "Lara Croft: The Tomb Raider".

Ta Prohm is a temple monastery built during the late 12th to late 13th centuries. This temple was chosen to be left in its natural state, as an example of how most of Angkor looked on its discovery in the 19th century. This is a very unique place, since among the ruins are huge trees that have grown intertwined with the masonry. It is indeed a peculiar sight. Since most of the temple is in ruins, it is difficult to understand the layout. There are multiple enclosures, not sure how many, but we were able to identify 3 enclosures. And navigating amongst the ruins is quite fun. We took about an hour to complete this temple.

From here, we went to a small temple built during the early 10th century. Unlike other temples, this one is built with bricks. There are 5 towers here, but only 3 were accessible. The others were under renovation. The central tower had motifs on 3 walls of Lord Vishnu. The extreme right tower also had some motifs inside, of Goddess Lakshmi. And the third tower had a Linga in the centre with carvings of Lord Vishnu on the wall. This was a short visit of 15 mins.

Now that we had done our sightseeing, we decided that it was time to chill and so headed to the Pub Street. This area has lot of small streets filled with many small pubs and restaurants. It’s also a good spot to pick up some souvenirs and gifts. We went pub hopping, having a couple of drinks in each place. The ambiance here was quite energetic. At this time of the evening the area is buzzing with tourists from all over the world. There are lot of back packer inns in this area and so you get to see and meet a lot of travellers. All these places had a good variety of local cuisine to offer. But since we are Indian Vegetarians, we did not have much option for food, except for fries and garlic breads. We had to call an early end to the day, since we had a flight to catch in the morning. But just as we were leaving, we spotted another massage spa place called Devantara. We went in for a foot massage and came out very refreshed. It is on the pub street, if you want to visit. For dinner, we found another Indian place with veg options.

Travel Tips:

Here are a couple of things to note if you are planning a trip to Angkor, Cambodia

1. Plan your itinerary in advance. There are lot of temples and places to see in Siem Reap. Read up on these places and decide which temples are a must see and which ones go into your wish list. In my opinion, Angkor Wat, Bayon, Banteay Srei and Ta Prohm definitely take the highest priority.
2. Take USD. DO NOT CONVERT INTO THEIR LOCAL CURRENCY. All shops, big and small, accept USD. Do not make the mistake of converting your cash into their local money. You get a terrible rate to convert it back to USD and you will find it really hard to get rid of it.
3. If you are going there during the summer months, make sure you take umbrellas and/or hats, sunscreen lotions and other protective gears. Drink lots of fluids. Surrounding almost every temple, you will find small shops selling coconut water, water and juices. Make sure to keep yourself hydrated.
4. Try out the massages there, if you like. They are very relaxing and very affordable too.
5. Don’t miss out an evening in Pub Street and shopping in Night Market.


Happy holidaying

- Seeta