July 14 - Siem Reap, Cambodia
We left Fred & Jane’s appt. by taxi for the airport at 9:30 a.m. We were through customs and ready to board the plane by 10:15 a.m. and our flight wasn’t scheduled to leave until 11:20 a.m. In Thailand they don’t include the airport fee in the price of the ticket, so we had to pay 500 baht at a kiosk, like in parking garages, and get a ticket that was punched before we could go through customs.
The flight was a smaller plane than we were on coming to Asia, so our normal carry-on had to be checked. The flight was only and hour and uneventful, except that we were fed, which isn’t typical of a US flight of that duration.
It was hot and sunny when we arrived in Siem Reap. We went through customs and were issued a visa for $20 US each. The hotel had someone waiting to pick us up and we were off to the hotel. Siem Reap is more rural than Bangkok. It is hard to figure out the traffic rules. There are busses, cars, vans, motorcycles, bicycles, and tuk tuks sharing the road. A tuk tuk is a motorcycles pulling a cart with a bench seat for two with a seat for one across from it all covered with a canopy. Cars honk their horn for bikes and motorbikes to get over, or just pull into the ongoing traffic. If a motorbike or tuk tuk wants to turn left and a lot of traffic is coming, he just turn anyway and travels on the side of the road until he can cross over to the right lane. Intersections are a mass of vehicles going several directions. Amazingly, it seems to work, but is a little scary from the American tourist perspective!
Once we checked in, we called a friend of Fred & Jane’s. When she was available, she came to the hotel to meet us. At Fred & Jane’s request, Yani arranged a guide and driver for us to tour the Angkor area. While with us, she bargained with a tuk tuk driver to take us to the Old Marker, to a restaurant, Koulan, to eat and see traditional dancers and take us back to the hotel. He agreed to stay with us from approximately 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. for $3 US. Mr. Tiel was true to his word and was our transportation for the entire evening.
We arrived at the old market and were immediately surrounded by people wanting to sell us things. They say, “Hello, Madame”, and then hold the item in front of us. The children had bracelets, woven wicker flutes, etc. The market is a full city block of small stalls jammed together in rows. Silk scarfs. woven tablecloths, silver plates, servers, jewelry, wooden baskets, textile hangers, carved elephants, etc. When you look at something, there is immediately someone there to tell you it is nice, ask if you want to buy, or show you something else. Often as you walk by a shop, the salesperson would say, “Hello Madame, please buy something.” In the center of the market was the food area, with fruits, vegetables, cooked items in baskets and containers on the dirt floor or on crates, all in the open with flies flying around and on the items. Children were playing in the dirt near their parents, helping sell, or working on school work on a small stool inside the stall. It was all very overwhelming for me. While I have seen many pictures of people living in this way on TV, to be in the middle of it was disconcerting. I didn’t know what to do. After walking around a while, I was able to pull myself together and look at some things. We bargained and purchased some beautiful silk scarves. I saw a blouse/tunic with pretty embroidery, but it was very small. The women in Thailand and Cambodia are much smaller than I. The merchant was eager to sell, so began pulling out other tops for me to try, saying, “Here, this one very, very big!” We found one that looked like I could wear it and we bought it.
As we walked around the market, several beggars asked for money. One was a mother holding the hand of one small child, carrying another. Another was a man on crutches with one leg amputated at the knee. He had stepped on a land mine. He spotted us and wanted money. We smiled politely, and shook our heads. We then walked more toward the center of the market. He was very persistent. Each time we walked out toward the street, he was there, saying, “Hello, Madame.” He followed us around the edge of the market.
We took the tuk tuk to the Koulan Restaurant to eat dinner and see a show of traditional dancing. The dinner was a buffet of Cambodian, Thai and western foods. We ate beef in oyster sauce, sea bass, stir fried vegetables, etc. We are enjoying the fruits, pineapple, watermelon, and others we don’t know the names of. I had cold pumpkin soup with chunks of pumpkin and tapioca in milk. It was very good.
After dinner, we watched a show of traditional Cambodian dancing. Apsara dancing, named for a Hindu goddess, contains slow graceful movements with the hands, arms and feet. The costumes were silks woven with gold threads. The dancers also wore ornate headdresses. Intermixed with Apsra dancing, were folk dances with men and women, telling various stories of rice planting, gathering ants, etc. One dance that was particularly fun involved the dancers holding a shell in each hand and as they danced they clicked their shell with the shell of another dancer.
Mr. Tiel, our tuk tuk driver, was waiting for us when we finished and told us he would wait for us again tomorrow night. If we go out, we'll take him up on it. He took good care of us throughout the afternoon and evening.
All in all it was an emotional and informative first experience in Cambodia.
The flight was a smaller plane than we were on coming to Asia, so our normal carry-on had to be checked. The flight was only and hour and uneventful, except that we were fed, which isn’t typical of a US flight of that duration.
It was hot and sunny when we arrived in Siem Reap. We went through customs and were issued a visa for $20 US each. The hotel had someone waiting to pick us up and we were off to the hotel. Siem Reap is more rural than Bangkok. It is hard to figure out the traffic rules. There are busses, cars, vans, motorcycles, bicycles, and tuk tuks sharing the road. A tuk tuk is a motorcycles pulling a cart with a bench seat for two with a seat for one across from it all covered with a canopy. Cars honk their horn for bikes and motorbikes to get over, or just pull into the ongoing traffic. If a motorbike or tuk tuk wants to turn left and a lot of traffic is coming, he just turn anyway and travels on the side of the road until he can cross over to the right lane. Intersections are a mass of vehicles going several directions. Amazingly, it seems to work, but is a little scary from the American tourist perspective!
Once we checked in, we called a friend of Fred & Jane’s. When she was available, she came to the hotel to meet us. At Fred & Jane’s request, Yani arranged a guide and driver for us to tour the Angkor area. While with us, she bargained with a tuk tuk driver to take us to the Old Marker, to a restaurant, Koulan, to eat and see traditional dancers and take us back to the hotel. He agreed to stay with us from approximately 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. for $3 US. Mr. Tiel was true to his word and was our transportation for the entire evening.
We arrived at the old market and were immediately surrounded by people wanting to sell us things. They say, “Hello, Madame”, and then hold the item in front of us. The children had bracelets, woven wicker flutes, etc. The market is a full city block of small stalls jammed together in rows. Silk scarfs. woven tablecloths, silver plates, servers, jewelry, wooden baskets, textile hangers, carved elephants, etc. When you look at something, there is immediately someone there to tell you it is nice, ask if you want to buy, or show you something else. Often as you walk by a shop, the salesperson would say, “Hello Madame, please buy something.” In the center of the market was the food area, with fruits, vegetables, cooked items in baskets and containers on the dirt floor or on crates, all in the open with flies flying around and on the items. Children were playing in the dirt near their parents, helping sell, or working on school work on a small stool inside the stall. It was all very overwhelming for me. While I have seen many pictures of people living in this way on TV, to be in the middle of it was disconcerting. I didn’t know what to do. After walking around a while, I was able to pull myself together and look at some things. We bargained and purchased some beautiful silk scarves. I saw a blouse/tunic with pretty embroidery, but it was very small. The women in Thailand and Cambodia are much smaller than I. The merchant was eager to sell, so began pulling out other tops for me to try, saying, “Here, this one very, very big!” We found one that looked like I could wear it and we bought it.
As we walked around the market, several beggars asked for money. One was a mother holding the hand of one small child, carrying another. Another was a man on crutches with one leg amputated at the knee. He had stepped on a land mine. He spotted us and wanted money. We smiled politely, and shook our heads. We then walked more toward the center of the market. He was very persistent. Each time we walked out toward the street, he was there, saying, “Hello, Madame.” He followed us around the edge of the market.
We took the tuk tuk to the Koulan Restaurant to eat dinner and see a show of traditional dancing. The dinner was a buffet of Cambodian, Thai and western foods. We ate beef in oyster sauce, sea bass, stir fried vegetables, etc. We are enjoying the fruits, pineapple, watermelon, and others we don’t know the names of. I had cold pumpkin soup with chunks of pumpkin and tapioca in milk. It was very good.
After dinner, we watched a show of traditional Cambodian dancing. Apsara dancing, named for a Hindu goddess, contains slow graceful movements with the hands, arms and feet. The costumes were silks woven with gold threads. The dancers also wore ornate headdresses. Intermixed with Apsra dancing, were folk dances with men and women, telling various stories of rice planting, gathering ants, etc. One dance that was particularly fun involved the dancers holding a shell in each hand and as they danced they clicked their shell with the shell of another dancer.
Mr. Tiel, our tuk tuk driver, was waiting for us when we finished and told us he would wait for us again tomorrow night. If we go out, we'll take him up on it. He took good care of us throughout the afternoon and evening.
All in all it was an emotional and informative first experience in Cambodia.
posted by Alan Welch at
7/14/2005 10:50:00 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home