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| Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) |
After the movie was shown in 2001, Cambodia became as one of the "must-go" city to visit.
Cambodia is a country in South East Asia bordered by Thailand in the north, Vietnam to the east and Thailand to the west. So if you plan to visit these three other most travelled countries maybe, you can include Cambodia in your itinerary.
Two of the most travelled cities now in Cambodia are Phnom Penh (which is the capital) and Siem Reap. The city in which the movie was shot was actually in Siem Reap and that is where my good friend and I went to explore.
We took the opportunity to book the trip in advance even though we took a budget airline. Doing so allowed us to get more value for money by getting even cheaper rates and consequently, booked the hotel about 2 months in advance. The trip was in February and just the perfect time to visit because the weather was really nice. From Singapore, Jet Star Airways is the only budget airline that flies direct to Siem Reap and flies only on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. So my friend and I decided to fly on a Thursday morning and decided to come back on a Sunday.
From the arrival at the airport, going through the city is quite easy as it will only take you about 15 minutes. When you exit the arrival area, you will be surrounded by tuktuks (tricycle) and taxis but part of the hotel booking is free pick up so we need not worry which one to take. We decided to take the first day easy. Since we took an early morning flight, we decided to sleep the whole morning. After brunch, we planned our itinerary for the rest of the three days. The trip was in the most part free and easy as we really didn't do our research prior but one thing for sure in the plan was to see Angkor Wat at the crack of dawn, get some body massage and buy some precious stones!
The hotel we stayed in offers city tours at a reasonable cost. So we decided to get the package from the hotel for the Angkor Wat trip. Basically, pick up arrangements to and fro the hotel and at the same time buying the tickets to go inside Angkor Wat are included in the package. After we made the arrangements, we started to explore the area within the parameters of the hotel.
Poolside view of the hotel we stayed in.
Within the parameters of the hotel you will find spas, small aunthentic Cambodian food as well and nearby there is a shopping mall - these are only a few floors as Siem Reap is not yet fully developed and there are only one at this particular area. Within the mall you can find a mini-supermarket, a bakery, fast food store and some other local shops.
For the night, we just decided to buy our food from the fast food store and ate it in our room - we thought that taking an early morning flight and waking up early morning the day after, we needed some good amount of sleep. We just decided to explore the pool and the hotel and took some pictures for souvenir!
At the crack of dawn (roughly 430AM), we were awakened by the morning call we had set with the hotel's reception. In about an hour, our designated driver met us to go and see Angkor Wat. This is one of the must-do and must-see in Cambodia. We cannot simply miss seeing it's beauty. After an hour, we traversed through the darkness of the streets of Siem Reap going to Angkor Wat. We rode what Cambodians would call tuktuk - it's like a tricycle but can basically accommodate more people. The travel time was not very long as the streets were still quite empty apart from people also traveling to Angkor Wat. We reached the main gate in about half an hour or so and with the help of our driver cum guide, he bought a ticket for us. And then he said we can go the designated area inside and depending on how long we want to stay inside Angkor Wat, he just waited for us outside the main gate. Of course, just to be sure - we got his mobile number!
The beauty of Angkor Wat before sunrise
We waited for about 20 minutes or so and lo and behold, there it was! The magnificent beauty unfolded right before our eyes. Slowly, as the kingly sun started to shine, it also slowly unfolded its magnificence.
There is a long walk from we were situated to go to where Angkor Wat is - in itself you can already start taking lots of great photos! A total heaven for photo enthusiasts or photo addicts!
Angkor Wat was built in the first half of the 12th century. Estimated construction time of the temple is 30 years by King Suryavarman II, dedicated to Vishnu. Angkor Wat was also listed as the 7th Wonder of the World.
After exploring the ruins of Angkor Wat and immersed ourselves in its marvel and history, we headed outside and looked for our driver. On the way out, we also saw our colleague with his Japanese friend and since they are staying longer than us (they are just there for photo shoots), we left them there.
We decided to explore the Bayon temple second, this time around with our driver cum guide in tow as the ruins are really situated far apart from each other.
According to Wikipedia, the Bayon is 12th or early 13th century as the official state temple of the Mahayana Buddhist King Jayavarman VII, the Bayon stands at the centre of Jayavarman's capital,Angkor Thom.
What's magnificent about the Bayon is the stone faces - the reason for multiple faces is so that it could guard against all the sides of the temple - it is like somebody's watching you at every side.
At the end of lots of photo taking and temple hopping, we could already feel the midday sun burning our shoulders through our shirt. Good thing though, we have towels and bottled water on hand for temporary relief from the scorching heat. However, it was almost lunchtime and our little stomachs were starting to grumble. Time to go and grab some aunthentic Cambodian food!
After lunch we decided to go back to the hotel and have some rest (sleep actually), and asked to meet again with our guide in the afternoon. After a short nap, our driver recommended for us to visit the Crocodile farm...there is an entrance fee but this is very minimal.
Apparently with Cambodia's location which is surrounded by seas and forests, you will not be surprised that it will be surrounded by these aquatic tetrapods. It is also no wonder that there are a lot of souvenir items (wallets, bags, shoes, etc.) being sold at Siem Reap made with crocodile skin.
After the crocodile farm tour, we decided to call it a day. But wait, the night was still young and so we planned to look for a spa and get the cheapest yet relaxing massage ever.
That's me and our trusted driver/guide riding the tuktuk
Bright morning sunshine to Day 3, and the agenda? What else but screaming shopping!!!!
Okay- part of the reason why we chose the hotel we stayed in was because it is closer to the central market where you can find all Cambodian souvenir items.
But apart from that, part of the reason why we travelled to Siem Reap is because we know that the country is rich in gemstones particularly, ruby.
While we are not gemstone experts and we are not pretty sure if what we are buying is the real deal, we took the risk. I guess as well when we came it was not the peak season so sellers are dying to sell and earn. And we just made sure that we chose whom to buy. There are really a lot of stalls selling either just the gemstone itself or with setting (although most which are just silver and may not be the design that you would like. Price ranges can be as cheap as USD 20 per piece for a ruby to as expensive as USD 80 per piece for a white quartz - this one looks like a diamond!
Your eyes will feast on different types of gemstones - citrine, garnet, toumarine, and a whole lot more. The gemstones will be checked for authenticity in front of you (a rectangular shaped machine that beeps and shows how "real" it can be). Be watchful of course as there had been also a lot of forums wherein they warned that you can be cheated.
Lucky me, I had all the gemstones checked when I came back to Singapore and almost all that I bought were real and authentic. So that is really shopping money well spent. And as mentioned, apart from gemstones, there are a lot of knick knacks and other souvenir items that can be bought at Central market.
Having spent all our money on shopping, we just settled and ended our day with another authentic Cambodian massage.
The whole adventure was capped with a good night's rest to prepare for the day after's morning flight.
Let's round up travelling tips!
1. Book both for your flights and hotel early - nothing beats careful planning and you save more by being early.
2. Advisable to go to Siem Reap in February and not the peak season in summer - this will provide you better service from the hotel, it's staff and value-for-money shopping spree!
3. As much as you can, book your Angkor Wat adventure from the hotel you will be staying - it is safe, cheaper and friendlier - full service to the max.
4. Do not miss watching Angkor Wat at the crack of dawn - believe me, you will be mesmerized.
5. Do not forget to bring your camera - Siem Reap is a haven for great photos.
6. Bring comfortable walking shoes, shades, hat or cap when you visit the ruins and the temples - it could be very hot and humid - there will definitely be lots of walking.
7. Save enough money for spa & massage, gemstones and more shopping.
8. Go with a travel buddy - travel is more fun if shared with someone.
Include Cambodia in your must-see travel bucket list!
Have fun and stay safe! Do not forget to write in your comments below.
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