SIEM REAP
There are very few places of interest, let alone one of the seven wonders of the world, that has been untouched by the commercialization of a potential tourist market, and Cambodia is one of those places. There are several reasons why the tourism market in Cambodia is still in its infancy. Only within the last 5 years did Cambodia end their civil war by defeating Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge regime and then by forming a coalition government with the remaining factions. And only within the last couple of years has there been a serious push to remove most of the landmines in and around Cambodian towns and popular tourist destinations. In fact, before we got out of the car to visit our first tourist site, our tourguide cautioned my mom and I not to stray too far from the marked paths for fear of undetonated mines. I don't know if it's become an old wise tale to keep tourists in check, but nonetheless we heeded his advice. Why take that chance?
While there are several notable destinations in Cambodia for tourists to visit, most tourist's itineraries revolve around Siem Reap, the town where the Angkor temples lie, the most famous of which is Angkor Wat. People mistakenly assume that Angkor Wat is the only temple or even that it's the most beautiful temple within the Angkor complex. While its lofty stature is by no means exaggerated (it is one of the seven wonders of the world), several other temples within the Angkor complex were just as breathtaking in my opinion. More on the individual temples later.
So, in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, my mom and I purchased a three day package tour to Siem Reap. Upon arriving, we proceeded to extend our stay an additional three days. While there's so much to write about, I want to share with you a series of anecdotes that typify the experience I had in Cambodia. While some are funny, others are serious and a few are even saddening, all have made lasting impressions on me, each in their own unique way.
As my mom and I waited in Saigon International Airport for Siem Reap Airways, our airline carrier, to begin their boarding call, we realized we were the only passengers there. That is, until the only other people that came along were these two huge, 20+ member tourist groups, one was French and the other Japanese. In the lobby, the French group (which acted more like a frat on vacation) started bantering with everyone they saw, including the subdued Japanese group. But on the airplane, after the Japanese each downed a Tiger beer, their complimentary beverage of choice, it was the Japanese who were jumping up and down the aisles while the Frenchmen were the more subdued ones. I didn't realize it then, but this really typified our Cambodian experience. In fact, I'd say about 80% of all tourists in Siem Reap were either of French or of Japanese origin. And that's a conservative estimate!
Upon arriving, we entered an open-aired hangar that they euphemistically called Siem Reap International Airport. There were so many bugs flying, crawling, and hopping around that it could have easily been Cambodia's renown insect conservatory, and I would not have been the wiser. I'm pretty sure that the bug I later found dead in my ear was their souvenir to me. To be fair, their old airport has been going through a four-year upgrade and is set to be completed by 2004.
The Cambodian currency is the riel (US$1=4000r), but you wouldn't know it in Siem Reap. That's because everything is priced in US dollars, and I mean everything! At markets, you bargain in dollars; at restaurants, the menu is in dollars; at the post office, even they preferred dollars which was a little strange since the stamps were priced in riels! (The only thing riels were good for was making change for a US$1.) That makes everything quite expensive. A bottle of beer which would cost $0.50 in Hanoi, cost me $2.00 in Siem Reap consistently.