Temples of Angkor, Cambodia and Ko Chang, Thailand

We're a bit behind because internet access was harder to come by and more expensive in Thailand than expected. Currently in Bangkok with plans up in the air due to the situation in Egypt. We're both disappointed not to be able to go, but glad not to be stranded at the airport in Cairo. Would love recommendations if anyone out there has been to Jordan recently. We may find ourselves with more time there than planned.

In any case, I wanted to share some photos and stories from our time in Cambodia and Ko Chang, Thailand. We traveled by bus from HCMC to Siem Reap by bus. Along the way, the scenery--green heavily vegetated countryside, stilt houses, babies in hammocks--was beautiful and peaceful. Kind of a strange contrast to the recent political history of Cambodia that I was reading as we passed by. Siem Reap is the base of tourism for the temples of Angkor, ruins of enormous religious monuments of the ancient Khmer Empire. Some people also call it, "the place where Tomb Raider is set." As an archaeologist, you'd think I'd know or attempt to learn something substantial about the ruins, but there's so much to understand about how the civilization worked, how it changed over time, how non-Cambodian scientists' interpretations of the ruins affect the way they are presented to the public, the interesection of current Cambodian culture and representations of their past, you get the picture. So I turned off that part of my brain and thought of it as art, and really cool.







Angkor Wat was huge, well re-constructed, and had amazingly detailed bas-relief murals along the temple walls.



Monkeys versus warriors.


We liked Ta Prohm because the jungle was growing in and around the stone.





Some of the smaller pyramid temples were fun to climb up. The jungle vegetation is so thick that it is difficult to see even the nearest temple from the tops of the pyramids.


Although we had many, many offers from drivers and guides to tour us around, we rented bikes to get between our hotel and the temples. Good to be independent, and I've missed biking. For me, the most difficult aspect of this place was that people make their living through tourist services, it is a tough way of live, so they work hard to close the deal. For us, that meant constant bugging by people who want to drive us around, have us stay in their hotel, eat their food, check out the shop. It was interesting to talk to the kids who were trying to sell us trinkets ("You buy! You buy! Three for a dollar. You buy!). We purchased lunch from a woman who had an adorable toddler with snot pouring down her face, and for the past week, I've been in similar condition.


The Khmer food in Siem Reap was pretty amazing, especially loved the clay-pot stewed fish called "Amok."


From Siem Reap, we headed to Ko Chang, an island off the southern coast of Thailand. Kind of a vacations from our journey. The water was warm, clear, and blue and we went on a snorkeling trip. Something I've always wanted to do.



Lonely Beach, Ko Chang


After a few days of beach time, we took a minibus to Bangkok, and here we are. There are massive shopping malls, night markets, street markets, park markets, morning markets, BTS (metro system) markets, and weekend markets. I'm not sure how there are enough people in this city to support all the shopping opportunities.