Day 3 - Travel to Siem Reaph - Visit Temple at Angkhor Wat

An early call (considering we are on our honeymoon)! We left Phnom Penh at 7.00 am amidst the rush hour traffic, dodging the motor bikes and the Tuk Tuks. At 9.30 we stopped for a rest room break, and as we left the car we were swamped by hawkers trying to sell us their wares - not least of which, heading in my direction was a young girl carrying a tray of deep fried terantulas! I didn't last very long outside the car and headed pretty quickly back to the safety of it.... Dean managed to capture a stall selling the spiders and deep fried crickets - both of which are a delicacy here in Cambodia. The remaining journey passed remarkably quickly given that the drive took approx 4 and a half hours. We stopped once more en-route to look at the Naga bridge, now closed to heavy traffic. It was built in the 12th Century and is still in remarkable condition.
We arrived in Siem Reaph in time for lunch; Pork Curry followed by the freshly grown fruit that we are now coming to recognise. We were then taken by our friendly tour guide to the temple at Angkhor Wat. What an amazing experience this was, it was truly awesome. Words cannot describe the full effect this place had on us. Construction started in 1113 and lasted for forty years, involving 100,000 people in the building of it. The intricacy of the carvings on the stone work was amazing. The heat was overpowering, and by the end of our tour we retreated to our airconditioned cab for a short ride back to our hotel where a dip on the pool was top of the agenda.

Day 2 of our honeymoon and we were up at 7.00, showered and breakfasted before being picked up by our guide, Rith and taken on a tour of the Royal Palace. The architecture was breathtakingly beautiful and the throne room was incredibly oppulent; not really what I was expecting at all. We visited the Silver Pagoda, called so because the floor is made of silver! We were then driven to Cheong Ek, home of one of the many Killing Fields in Cambodia - the closest one to Phnom Penh. It was a similar feeling to when I visited Bergen Belsen, one of eerie disquiet. The picture above of the tall, white building is called a 'Supra' and is a burial place for the dead; here inside, lie some of the skulls and bones of the 20,000 victims, killed at Cheong Ek, having first been detained and tortured at a prison in Phnom Penh called S-21. We visited this prison next and I was more moved by this than the actual Killing Fields. Photographs were on display of many of the detainees, along with an artist's impressions of the tortues that occurred. I was left quite shaken by it all. Dean and I met one of only 7 survivors from Prison S-21. He has only just been able to return to the place, after the trial of 'Duch', the Khmer Rouge commandant of the Prison. Mr Chum Mey has spent the last few months as a chief witness of the War Trial of Duch. This trial was recently on the news and Duch has been found guilty and will be sentanced in July this year.

We were then taken to a lovely little restaurant in the heart of Phnom Penh and sampled some local cuisine - all meat and vegetables were recognisable!! After lunch we visited the National Museum and saw artefacts dating back to the fifth century.

The city is like a sauna and upon returning to our hotel a cold shower was in order and time for a relax in the cool airconditioning of our hotel. We leave for Seam Reaph tomorrow to explore the temples of Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom. xx

Still Day 1, just before bed

Well dinner wasn't quite as exotic as expected, no fried spiders on the menu, so I had fried noodles and vegetables (I'm too scared to eat meat in case it is dog); Dean had Beef and onions in a peanutty sauce with noodles. Now back at the hotel and Dean is fast asleep, but jet lag has set in so thought I would finish today's post. Will try and add some photos with each post, my favourites from the day. Looking forward to looking around the Royal Palace tomorrow and then it's on to the Killing Fields in the afternoon, probably a sobering time.....

Day 1 Arrive Phnom Penh

Arrived in Phnom Penh, tired after long flight. Temperature 32 degrees centigrade (bloody hot)! Fell into exhausted sleep, as soon as head touched the pillow! Woke to explore the room; very nice with rosewood floor boards and hugemongous bath which was quickly sampled. Heavens opened and torrential rain the like of which is never seen in the UK!
Hired a TukTuk (local taxi type thing in the shape of a motorbike pulling a trailer with seats). What an amazing experience that was. No traffic rules here, just keep going and hope no one hits you - as you arrive at a junction it is first come, first go! Had a couple of beers in a street side pub and are now off to sample the local cuisine - hopefully not deep fried spiders or roasted sparrow!