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Other entries in Siem Reap

pink champaign on rice

no kidding. there was a local band playing at a bar last night. the lead singer sounded like kermit the frog with a khmer accent.  when they got to their rendition of "hotel california".... well, based on how the words came out (mururs on d ceeling, 'n d peenk shimpeen en rice...)... I guess there's a khmer dish (or is that a cocktail?)  I haven't tried yet.

just finished up a 3 day tour of angkor wat and surrounding temples. I can see why this is one of those wonders of the world - when the 5 bajillion other tourists got out of my way, it was truly stunning! on par with machu picchu for sure. 

in my typical ignorant way, once I got there, I learned  there's more to this place than just angkor wat - theres a 15 sq km area just FULL of sandstone carved temples (plus even more if you can get further out of town). buddhas, shivas, elephants, ganeshes, wars, stupas, trees, lions, towers and rocks and carvings all over the place.

a lot of the temples were originally built hindu, but when buddhism took over they just switched over the symbolism (that's the beauty of sandstone - you basically get to erase and do over). but not to be outdone, in around 1200, the buddhists built their own crop of temples, then the hindus took over (again) and litterally chunked out all the buddhas from the carvings. back at ya, I guess. overall, it was a constant mix of hindu & buddhism.

the 2nd and 3rd days I rented a bike - exhausting, but such a better way to see everything! my bike was a single speed, 50 pound girls bike with a basket, a flat tire, and a bad chain that went "chunk" every 3rd or 4th stroke. the one gear I had was so low that there was no choice but to go soooo sloooooow. turns out this is khmer style tho (plus hang your feet off at an angle, make sure the seat is too low, and move your whole body from side to side with each pedal stroke). I was pretty authentic khmer by that second day.

the bigger temples were the coolest cause I could get off the road and ride my bike all around them. nothing like biking on single track next to thousand year old crumbling temples.... the moto-bikes made trails everywhere and they turned out to be so soft and cushy on my bike (especially with that flat tire).

I got semi-lost at one point and was on this weaving curvy trail through the jungle *hoping* I'd get back to the temple I was looking for..... at least its pool-table flat here so no hills to slow me down. I finally found it  but ended up on the people-only side of a wall - the guards wondered where I came from....had to haul my 50 pound bike over these rocks when it was time to leave. as if I dont get stared at enough as it is....  that night doran made some comment about land mines...whoops, never even thought about that but I assume if theres a trail, I'm ok. not to mention that angkor wat had to have been combed over pretty good....I hope.

the other cool thing about the bike was more connection with people and the outdoors. everyone yells "hello!" as they go by - especially kids. and everyone smiles. my favorite was the toothless old lady crouched in a ditch - the biggest smile of anyone. I had to look back as I passed and we were still smiling at each other.

day 2 I got caught in an insane downpour for the entire 45 minute ride back. I had to laugh and smile the whole way. based on reactions, about 50% of the khmers were too. at least when you're soaked to the bone, you dont care about getting wetter. its sort of like getting the first scratch on a new car.

so my time is up at angkor wat. another highlight and completely unforgettable. but honestly, it was so hot these past 3 days, I'm not sure I could go another day. and my butt is SO sore even though I had a super cushy seat.

tomorrow I hop a boat to battambang - we cross the seim reap lake. this is the coolest lake -  it's a huge holding pen for excess water from the mekong river, so the river that connects the lake and the mekong changes direction based on if its rainy season or not. rainy season - the river flows north with exess mekong water. dry season, it shifts south to drain back into the mekong. mother nature is brilliant.

bummer is I have to leave tomorrow at 5:40am.... whats UP with these asians and their early mornings??!!

oh yeah, and how could I forget- the most imporant addition to the asian olympic games:

- crazy shit you can carry on the back of a moped. last night I saw a dude with 2 dead pigs. they were totally stiff straight, tied onto the back, bouncing along. never seen that before....

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