Cambodia Weekend Part 3: Adventures continued

Our Cambodia trip was a lot more than just temples.  After our exhausting travel adventure, we hit the ground running by checking into our hotel (Angkor Le Meridien) and then quickly traveling over to our cooking class. 

Siem Reap Cooking Class

Megan and I had both taken superb cooking classes in Chang Mai in Thailand so our expectations were high.  Megan's class was at A lot of Thai and mine was at Baan Thai.  At these classes the food was great and the instruction was at the right Goldilocks level (not too much and not too little).

Our Cambodian class was not quite like that.  Our instructor started as a friendly teacher and quickly turned into a drill sergeant. She would regularly yell at me to "STIR!" and the combination of a language barrier and personality quirks made it difficult to follow her.  On the negative side not much was learned besides how to chop stuff up and make vegetable flowers (Megan rocked at it, I got a participation medal). 

On the positive side it was really really cheap ($13 dollars a piece) and we made a ton of delicious food.  I won't remember it as a mediocre cooking class, but instead as a great restaurant meal where I had to contribute some sweat equity.  The cooking class quality reflects an overall theme that the Cambodian tourism industry is a bit behind Thailand (and others) in terms of sophistication and service orientation.  Regardless, enjoy the pictures:

Authentic market that we visited - the meat section was really interesting

We had to wear these funny hats while we cooked

Just chopping away

Jeff's Amok Degustation

Megan's noodle dish - look at the beautiful tomato rose she made!

Our feast - we also had spicy shrimp salad and pumpkin soup.
My pumpkin soup was the best.

Beware of Clingy Moto-Bike Drivers

Upon arriving at the Siem Reap airport we had two Motobikes take us to our hotel.  This was a great arrangement as it was cheaper than a cab and with a much better view.  Unfortunately the drivers tend to cling like an insecure middle school girlfriend.  They wanted to know our every move and be the ones who drove us anywhere.  At first this seems like a good win-win, they get business and we have the convenience.  But by the end of the weekend we were tired of setting our schedule to fit the Motobikes and we had been burned by their suggestions a few times.

The first suggestion that burned us was their dinner and nightclub choice.  We wanted to go to "Cambodian BBQ" and instead we got sub-par beef and noodles.  The only ones who ate alot of the food were the drivers.  Plus we were "lucky" to be able to pick up their tab.  They then recommended we go to Club Hip-Hop.  Here's a direct quote from the internet (so you know it's true):

"Hip hop is the name of a nightclub in Siem reap, the name is confusing as they very rarely play hip hop music in there, instead the DJs mostly play that kind of techno that you only hear in south east asia"

We heard alot of slow-dancing Japanese pop, Megan's favorite.  Eventually the DJ spun some tunes that could be danced to and Megan and I proceeded to do just that.  On the dance floor we encountered an interesting experience which my friend Matt Gumbleton later described as "White Celebrity Status".  The locals gawked and stared at us despite the fact that we were doing nothing special.  It was a bit surreal being watched and hovered around.  I'm guessing not many tourists frequent Club Hip-Hop.

Club Hip Hop - a 3 out of 10.

We Hip-Hoped away to Pub Street which is where the backpackers let loose.  At this point we were able to unshackle from the Motobike drivers which was much needed.  We ran into some fun places like Temple Bar and enjoyed the people watching.  Nothing too rowdy for us though, as we were tired from travel, cooking, and touring.

Truth in Advertising at Pub Street

The Bus Ride to Phnom Penh

The second major time we got burned by the Motobike drivers, was when we bought bus tickets to Phnom Penh.  I had sized up our options and was ready to buy tickets for the 6 hour ride on the Giant Ibis Bus (which is modern, air-conditioned, and comfortable).  Our Motobike drivers had other ideas (I'm sure they get kickbacks).  They recommended we buy from this other group as it would be cheaper and just as comfortable.  Ha.

We ended up taking what I would call an "Authentic" Cambodian bus ride.  Highlights:

• Megan and I were 2 of the only 3 people who spoke English.  
• We weren't sure it was going to our destination and there was no way to verify
• The seats were terrible/broken
• No air-con just fans
• Part of the roof broke off
• We traveled through really dusty roads which filled our bus with dust and made many of the passengers either stressed or laugh outrageously
• It played some bizarre sub-titled movies that included a movie/play, a gratuitously violent karate movie, and music videos strung into a movie

I was drenched in sweat from this experience. We survived it and can tell the tale of how ridiculous it was.  Just beware of the Moto-Bike drivers, they have their own incentives and despite smiling all the time, they are not always looking after your best interest. 

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum

After our "interesting" Bus Ride from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh we went straight-away to the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum.  This was a very sobering experience.  The Museum is a former Khmer Rouge prison that was used to torture over 20,000 prisoners from 1975 to 1978.  Estimates of the number of survivors in the prison is ranged from 7 to less than hundred.  Much of the prison is in the same conditions as when it was liberated which includes chains, torture tools, bullet holes and blood stains. 

The museum had some very educational exhibits on a number of topics:

• The history of the Khmer Rouge and the extent of their rule and violence.  
• Pictures of the thousands of inmates (including women and young children)
• An update on the war crimes trials of the surviving Khmer leadership
• Narratives of the victims and security guards at the prison
• Hundreds of skulls of the victims (extremely eerie)

The museum is not for the faint of the heart and it definitely affected my mood for a while but it's absolutely important to see it to understand the history of Cambodia and the suffering of its people.  I found it similar to the Holocaust Museum in D.C. but even more shocking given its more recent occurrence and our later conversations with Cambodians who survived the Khmer Rouge. 

Cycling the Islands of the Mekong

On our last day Sunday, we took a bicycle trip around the surrounding area of Phnom Penh through Grasshopper Adventures.  This provided an opportunity to interact with non-tourist industry Cambodians as well as to meet other travelers.  Our route took us through the city (a bit scary given the heavy traffic) then across the Mekong and Tonle Sap rivers via authentic boat shuttles through farms and housing developments. 

Crossing the brown waters of the Mekong River

The biking was moderately difficult.  Despite Megan's natural disinclination towards biking she was a trooper with a good attitude.  She even managed to laugh off the time where she almost fell into barbed-wire*.  It was good exercise and a great window into the everyday life of urban Cambodians. 

My favorite stop was at the local weaving factory.  We learned how they weave amazingly complex and beautiful patterns with simple wood looms.  The attention to detail and the skill involved was amazing.  It definitely gave me a great appreciation for local goods; in fact, I was so impressed I even bought some souvenirs despite my natural skepticism.  It was a bit heartbreaking to hear about how they sell their products to a middle man for so very little. 

Learning how the magic happens

Our tour guide was great.  His jokes were decent and his knowledge was vast.  My experience with him, our Temple guide and later our Vietnam tour guides gave me a few insights.

1. Tour guides are well connected within their community, they know almost everyone
2. Tour guides are very knowledgeable about the history, customs and needs of their community
3. Tour guides have great people skills that enable them to relate to both locals and foreign tourists
4. Tour guides typically have basic business experience and skills (selling, negotiating, etc.)

For these reasons, I think tour guides are uniquely positioned to be entrepreneurial forces in their developing countries.  They are at the nexus of their community and they have the core personal skills to be successful in business.  But they lack economic resources and business education.  I think there is a business opportunity here but I'm still sorting through in my head how it would work.  If you have any critical feedback I'd love to hear it in the comments section below.

Return to Singapore

After our cycling trip Megan and I returned to our guesthouse the Number 9 Hotel.  It was overall a good hotel with just decent rooms but great amenities.  We enjoyed a few cheap beers ($3 pitchers) and the pool table before heading to the airport.  At the airport we got upgraded to the front row because the checkout lady "liked us".  We relaxed as we waited for our direct flight to Singapore; very welcome after the chaos of traveling to Cambodia.

Conclusion

• Cambodia is a great place to visit - I'm very happy we were able to spend 4 days there although more would have been better
• Siem Reap is a bit more relaxing and beautiful than Phnom Penh but both are worth experiencing
• Cambodians are amazingly resilient - everyone was happy, positive and smiley even when discussing the horrors of the recent Khmer Rouge past and the current difficulties they face
• Cambodian food is good but I enjoy Thai food more - the major difference I was able to observe was that Cambodian food tends to be sour whereas Thai food blends more sweet and spicey.** 
• The Cambodian tourism industry is just taking off and is showing promise along with growing pains
• I have plenty to be grateful for back home (family, friends, opportunities, education, etc)

My next blog entry will focus on our weekend trip to Vietnam (Vietnam War history, street food, and crazy traffic).

*It wasn't that close or dangerous but Megan likes to exaggerate the story to sound more daring. :)
**To be fair, I still have much to learn about Cambodian food

Cambodia Weekend Part 2: Temples of Wonder not Doom

Angkor Wat was the main reason I had Cambodia on my must visit list.  The pictures and descriptions of the temple were amazing and it's been considered an alternate wonder of the world.  I did a little prior research on the temple and the Khmer empire that built it, but seeing it, touring it and being in Siem Reap was an incredible learning experience.

Angkor Wat

This massive complex is the largest Hindu temple in the world.  It was built in the 12th century at the behest of King Suryavarman II.  Angkor Wat resembles the Hindu Mount Meru (home of the Devas).  The temple is surrounded by a giant moat that is a 190m wide.  The dimensions correspond to Hindu beliefs and the structure is renowned for its harmony of design.  Given that all non-religious Khmer structures were built with perishable items makes this even more impressive.

Here are some pictures we took at sunrise:

There are five major towers with the largest in the center

The jungle scenery around the temple is fantastic as well

The major distinguishing feature is the five towers shaped like lotus buds.  These five represent the five mountains at Mount Meru.  This shape of tower appears frequently throughout Khmer architecture.

Megan staring in awe at one of the towers

The walls of the temple have amazingly intricate bas-relief sculputres that tell Hindu Epics such as the Ramayana.  The scope and detail were astonishing.  Here's some pictures that will woefully not do it justice:

Bas-relief of an epic battle scene

We hired a tour guide which I highly recommend.  He provided alot of the background, explained the bas-reliefs in detail and answered all of our questions ("Why is there a huge staircase there?" "It's a swimming pool" "Oh, cool").  Angkor Wat is very impressive.  A few more of my favorite pics.

Megan and I at the temple entrance

Angkor Wat moat

Vishnu  the Hindu's Preserver of the Universe - our awesome guide is to the right

The "Cool" swimming pool.

Interestingly, even though Cambodia is~95% Therevada Buddhist now, people still pray at this Hindu temple.  They've in a way converted it over and as a consequence it's stayed in very good shape.


The Khmer Empire built a lot of impressive temples besides Angkor Wat; something I learned while in Cambodia.

Angkor Thom and Bayon

Angkor Thom was the capital that was built a bit after Angkor Wat.  The Bayon temple is at the center of the capital exactly 1.5 KM from all four entrances.  The entrance to the capital has a moat and a bridge theme that is seen throughout.  It has the Gods and Demons holding Dragons as part of the churning of the Ocean of Milk story.

Restored Demon heads at the gates to Angkor Thom

Right next to the "Demon with Bad Teeth"

The Bayon temple was one of my favorites.  Like Angkor Wat it has beautiful bas-reliefs.  These sculptures tell not only Hindu epics but also provide details about everyday life in the Khmer Empire.  Something archaeologists surely appreciate.  It is amazing that the everyday life depicted in this 12th century temple was not all that different from the everyday life of Cambodians in the 19th century.

Bayon Temple

The erie faces of Bayon Temple - rumored to be King Jayavarman VII

The sculpture faces of the Bayon Temple are really cool.  Many of the columns have faces on four sides facing the cardinal directions.  This reminded me a bit of Legends of the Hidden Temple for you children of the 80s-90s.  There are an estimated 200 faces total but that number could be higher for the original building.  The construction materials and upkeep of the Bayon temple is inferior to Angkor Wat and consequently there has been decay.

Ta Prohm

King Jayavarman also built Ta Prohm which he dedicated to his mother.  It was originally purposed as a monastery for Buddhist monks.  Ta Prohm housed several thousand people, and it required over 100,000 people from over 5,300 villages to provide rice and supplies for it. 

The way the trees have grown on the temples is very moving and beautiful.  Ta Prohm is so scenic and mystical it has shown up in movies such as Tomb Raider and Troy (granted not the best movies but still).

Other cool photos

Hindu temple built in a pyramid style

Temple ruins of Prea Khan

The temples are set in a jungle-like ecosystem

Conclusions

• The detail and scale of these temple monuments demonstrates how important religion was to the culture and political environment of the Khmer Empire.  In contrast, the most impressive buildings made by modern Western Civilization are testaments to commerce (Sears Tower) and sports (Yankee Stadium).
• It was great to see the temples in person to get an appreciation for the amount of work and skill needed to build these temples.  Simply massive.  
• Another interesting lesson was the non-linearity in human progress.  The Khmer Empire built these great temples in the 12th century and then mediocrity ensued in the region for hundreds of years.  The mediocrity was due to a combination of environmental factors (overpopulation stressing irrigation resources and overusgae of suitable building materials) and political factors (Cambodia was at the fault line between two emerging powers that differed significantly in culture, Thailand and Vietnam).  But I think it is human tendency to want to see growth in a linear manner versus booms and busts, whereas the booms and busts tend to occur more naturally.
• Angkor is a continued source of price to Cambodians.  It is on their national flag and has been a positive to point to despite tough times (Declining empire, Khmer Rouge, economic difficulties, etc.).

Clearly Angkor is still a source of Cambodian pride

My next post will be about the other adventures we had in Cambodia; including Cambodian cooking classes, a Cambodian night club, a somber visit to the Genocide museum, an authentic Cambodian bus ride, and a biking tour through the islands of the Mekong.