The Siem Reap Experience - Part 1 - Temples, Tuk Tuks, Poverty

I've just completed 6 nights in Siem Reap and have a few minutes to write between flights.  But rather than give an agenda format to this posting, I'm just going to give some thoughts on various aspects of my time in Siem Reap..

The Temples:  $40 buys a three day pass to the temples and it was perfect for me for this trip and the time available.  As I sit here I am unable to tell you by name which temple I liked best -- and I can't even understand how people can rate and rank them as they do on tripadvisor.com.  For me, so much depended on the time of day, my own energy, the number of people/groups present when I visited, and what inspired me in the moment of each visit.

My Unretouched Photo

Except for the sunrise at Angkor Wat itself (sort of a -- if you're here, you gotta do it place),  I was blessed with a general absence of crowds -- sometimes I was only person at a temple or I could easily chart a course through it that kept my visit private and contemplative. Sometimes I felt inclined to engage other travelers and met many from everywhere - sometimes leading to invites to meet up later or stay in touch on travel tips for anticipated destinations.  Conversations, when I wanted them, started easily as people, like me, seemed to enjoy the opportunity to share traveler stories and tips about what they were doing and what they had liked.

In summary, I loved every step -- I loved going at my own pace -- and, as I have posted previously, I found them all to be inspiring and interesting.  Like my visits to China's Terracotta Army and Great Wall -- and so many other places, I often found myself contemplating the society/civilization that existed when these temples were built -- and trying to imagine how they were accomplished -- and thinking about what conditions might have caused the decline and elimination of the civilization.  It was 3 days of mind-stretching.

Yes, as guide books will remind you, there was always the presence of children and women selling at the entrances and exits -- but unlike some reviewers, it is easy for me to say no (nicely!) because like I've posted previously, these trips are about experiences and memories, not things -- and I choose to buy nothing.  I don't need trinkets or silk or clothing or anything to remember these special moments and I don't have room in my backpack to bring home travel gifts.  Now, that being said -- I did pay $1 for a set of postcards -- but not because I wanted the postcards but rather I wanted to video the young girl selling them to demonstrate her skill in multiple languages -- more on that in a another blog posting.

But I do give in to my own weakness for supporting music buskers -- and there were a few opportunities to do that at some of the temples. Here is a youtube video I took of one set of buskers.  At the end of the video is the sign that explains the buskers.

I've run into other travelers who thought less of the temples experience and deemed it too expensive -- but that's not my view.  I agree with the Lonely Planet assessment (from my previous post) -- it's a not-to-be-missed adventure whether or not you are a fan of the Tomb Raider or Angelina Jolie.

To be sure, I have enough self-pics at every temple to bore even myself -- but I'll include just these two:

Everything Looks Better in a Tuk Tuk:  So my son coined the phrase "everything looks better from the seat of a motorcycle" which I have blogged about previously -- but when I was describing a particular day, my girlfriend suggested that I modify my son's saying to "everything looks better from the seat of a tuk tuk."  She is correct! What a fun way to travel around the city.  Relaxing with a great view!

Also it is worth mentioning that driving is not at all like USA.  Everyday I watched with pleasure as drivers quietly and peacefully were very assertive, pushing their way through traffic -- with no expression of anger with the exception of a quick look of displeasure.  There was virtually no horn honking in anger though it was a common to alert each other to move aside to let a faster vehicle pass.  My tuk tuk driver never exceeded a comfortable 20 mph (he said his old motorcycle couldn't go fast!).

Poverty: This is not a holiday destination! Though there are luxury level hotels, there is no beautiful beach and the poverty of the residents is in your face everyday, everywhere except inside the controlled space of the temples where you only see tourists and travelers.  Outside the walls of the temples, and everywhere else I was reminded of the privilege to which I was lucky to have been born and the lucky breaks afforded me during my life.  But for me it was that daily "slap in the face" humility that inspired me to focus on how the "American Dream" of pursuing and amassing possessions is so unimportant to one's happiness.

 Like my visit last year to Andy's home village in China, I was emotionally touched (sometimes wrecked) by the happiness of people who clearly possessed so little.  And while the sordid history of American involvement in the country (another blog post) would give them just cause to be disgusted with this easily identifiable white American, I only received kindness and smiles everywhere I went.  Smiles and waving were common among the children, especially in the country side; kindness and warmth were evident in my personal interactions with service industry personnel.  About the only place I observed an officious demeanor was by previously described immigration officials and airport personnel.

I had read about Cambodia's poverty -- but now it was no longer just words on a page.  On one day I stopped to ask a temple guard (maybe better described as ticket checker) and he explained that it was a good job that paid $170 a month for 15 days work of 13 hours a day.  Remembering that I was carrying a backpack of electronics worth 14 months of his salary was one of those "slaps" I mentioned above.

Personal Observation: I may get a chance to write about this more, but for now I'll save a few words by just observing that my feelings gave personal validation to what my daughter wrote about Siem Reap when she and her husband traveled here 6 years ago:

"Our travels here aren't about seeing as many places as we can, or drinking to oblivion because it's cheap, or staying in luxury hotels. Our travels are about learning another culture's ways, connecting with other humans, connecting with each other. We've both been overwhelmed with our emotions here. I love the smiles the local children give us as we pass, I love my incredibly dirty feet after a full day of climbing around historic, magic temples, I love the taste of completely new food on my tongue. Yes, Cambodia is a poor country-- but everything about it is nothing short of amazing. You all need to come visit."

 The Siem Reap Experience - to be continued...