Siem Reap was a fantastically interesting place. So many ancient things to explore. We really only had 2 full days here so we had to really limit what we could see and do, combined with negotiations with the boys about how much exploring we were all prepared to do.
We decided to spend the first day having a good look at not too many temples, and accept that we will just have to try and get back here at some point to see the rest. Could easily spend days and days wondering around it all.
So we hooked up again with a local guide and transport and headed for the mighty Angkor Wat. This was a real highlight and although it was crawling with (mostly Asian) tourists it really didnt impact on us because of the incredible scale of the place. It's just huge and there was plenty of nooks and crannies for us to side step into to avoid the crowds. Having our guide really helped to give us a lot more information about the temples than we would otherwise have had. One of the most interesting things he told us though, was his own life story of being a fugitive for many years, how he survived, how the Khmer Rouge had impacted on his life, time spent in a refugee camp. An unimaginable life for us.
It was very hot while we were there but lots of deep shade inside the ruins helped. It was great to just wander through and soak up the ancient atmosphere and just marvel and actually standing inside something so remarkable.
Next we visited the Ta Promh made more famous by being in the Tomb Raider movie. It's easy to understand why they chose this place for such a backdrop. Every single corner we turned was a fantastic photo opportunity combined with every boys dream of scrambling over huge, blocks of crumbled temple ruins and massive twisted tree roots oozing down over the top. Again lots of other visitors but also easy to find our own way though the ruins without being tangled up with others. We all really loved this place.
After pausing for lunch and a swing in some hammocks for a while to let the heat of the afternoon subside slightly, we pushed on to look at Bayon temple. It was a completely different style, more open and exposed with massive 4 faced Buddha heads everywhere, ancient inscriptions everywhere you looked and just another fascinating site where you could spend ages roaming around. We didnt in the end though as much as we had all enjoyed the sights, by this stage the kids had just about had a gut full of ruins and very hot temperatures. Lach & Josh retreated back to the aircon'd minibus while Pete, Al & Finn kept going for a while longer and wandered over to another nearby ruin. On our way our guide came across a group of local restoration workers on their break. They were hunting for their special dinner treat for that evening - SCORPIONS ! Big fat ones. They had a tin full of them they that had already caught by rolling over some of the big stone blocks strewn around and digging them out of their holes. The plan was they would remove their sting (!!) and then fry them up later for dinner.
Actually we saw a lot of those types of unusual (for us) local delicacies - fried crickets, spiders etc.
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