B005: Angkor What?

IFWanderer Dene shares her trip (with Gene) to Cambodia's famous ancient temples and more.  Enjoy reading!

I love the beach. I think it’s my (and IFW’s) sweet escape default setting. But since Gene and I just came from Tioman a few months back, we wanted to try something different for a summer getaway... ancient civilization perhaps? Hmm... Let’s go to Angkor Wat.

We flew to Phnom Penh instead of heading straight to Siem Reap, hoping to see a bit of the city before the adventure. I must say, this is typical IFW travel style: taking the farther route for fun, experience, and budget. Sad to say, we didn’t explore Phnom Penh as planned. It was so darn hot and dry that day, dust flew all over the place with every gush of wind. 

Anyway, the bus trip was longer than I expected - 7 hours! But the ride wasn’t that bad. I got to recharge and got my much needed beauty sleep (I was out ‘til morning the day before). The scenery was something like an out of town trip back home, reminds me of Bicol or Batangas. We reached the hotel by almost 11PM and though the restaurant was already closed, they still served us dinner - nice!

Late meals - check!


Temple Run

Well, not really run, we hired a taxi for 2 days to drive us around the complex. We first thought of hiring a tuktuk, as it is cheaper and more Cambodian. But with the day temperature at approx. 40deg. C, wait, no way! See how big the place is?!


We chose to visit the minor temples first to avoid the crowd in the well-known sites (When I say crowd, I mean buses filled with tourists in their color-coordinated shirts, caps or bandanas) There are a lot of sites to check out within the complex which are less popular but equally amazing. I think it would take at least three days to visit and appreciate all. Just be sure to wear your most comfy shoes and bring lots of water.

The temples were built in honor of gods and former rulers, and signify a mixture of Hinduism and Buddhism. It’s better to visit the museum first before the tour - you’ll appreciate it more once you understand the background.

This looks like a candle, doesn’t it?  It’s in a room dedicated to a former king. See the “dimples” on the wall? According to the local guide, it used to hold gems to decorate the room. The hole faces north so light can shine through the whole day, illuminating the precious stones on the wall. 

By the way, most of the temples are under restoration, including Angkor Wat. So it’s quite tricky to get a good shot without the unsightly scaffolds.

It's interesting to see that trees grow on temples... Nature is taking over ancient civilization! :)

Two things I don’t like about tourist spots: the crowd and the vendors. Cambodians in general, converse well in English, but vendors here can be very pushy. A friendly advice: do not entertain vendors, especially the kids, if you have no intention of buying. They won’t stop once you show interest in their items.

We watched the sunset here at a temple on a hill.  Too bad, it was cloudy, so there was no glorious sunset to see, haha! It's too small to easily notice, but on top of that temple was a big crowd!


The next day was allotted for the main temples. We tried to catch the sunrise at Angkor Wat but unfortunately, it was cloudy again. Nonetheless, being in Angkor Wat was a surreal experience, like immersing in the past. There were monks walking around, too. The walls are like books, with intricate carvings telling stories of creation, gods and ancient civilization.

Next stop was Ta Prohm, where Tomb Raider was shot. The place is spacious too, but mostly under restoration. It was packed with tourists - we can’t even get a descent photo without a stranger passing by. They also installed pathways for tourists, which to me, spoiled the Tomb Raider feel of the temple. We didn’t stay here for long.

BAYON is my favorite - I like it more than Angkor Wat and Ta Prohm. It looks older, like stacked rocks ready to fall apart soon. The face statues are a bit haunting too, as if they’re watching you everywhere you go. The faces seem to be smiling, but they look scary to me.

There are other temples nearby, but I forgot what they are called.

The Town


We were supposed to go back to Pnohm Penh on the fourth day. But we enjoyed Siem Reap so much that we opted to extend another day - yey! We walked around the town center of Siem Reap, visited a pagoda, hopped on a tuktuk (finally) and visited the museum.

Food and Night Out


I love the food in Siem Reap. Being a well-known tourist destination, there are so many choices, Asian, Mexican, Italian, Indian etc. The local Khmer food is also good, and it seems they like to use lemongrass in their soups and dishes a lot.

Watching a cultural show is also a must-try. This usually comes with a buffet dinner so it’s worth it. Other things we tried were the night markets, pubstreet and spa indulgence.

All in all, the trip was great.  Will I go back to Siem Reap? Sure! But next time, I’ll go straight to it (skip Phnom Penh) and try a backpacker’s inn instead - travel on a budget the IFW way!

This was taken from the east gate. Since we didn’t get to see the sunrise nor sunset, I made my own.