Cambodia, for all of its wonderful things - including friendly people, great food and the largest religious temples in the world, has a scarred and quite recent ugly history. This ancient kingdom had a rough go in the 20th century, gaining independence from France in 1953 and after that was war-torn during the Vietnam war, when the vicious Khmer Rouge took control. They were in control beginning during the 70's and carried out mass genocide on the people, with an estimated 3 million people being killed. They tortured, starved and worked citizens to death. They killed off scholars, doctors, children, etc. Vietnam tried to take over, which lead to a civil war lasting until 1993, when the Kingdom of Cambodia finally gained independence, with help from the UN. The currency in Cambodia is ironically, US dollars, as that was brought in to help the economy and has just stuck :)
Decades of war have lead to great poverty (only 40% have running water and electricity), poor infrastructure (including a lack of schools), broken families (many orphans) and everyday danger (from still existing land mines littering the countryside and well-known child-trafficing problem (for labor and sex). There are a number of NGO's in Cambodia, working to build schools, protect children, etc. The good thing is that the economy is growing and tourism is helping!
We had a great stay at Journeys Within B&B. We chose to stay here because they are a training and education organization, giving jobs to orphans, underprivileged kids and women/children who had formally been bought/sold for sex. They have a non-profit school adjacent to the property as well. We also ate all of our meals at "training restaurants." These restaurants support these same type of young people and teach them skills in hospitality so that they can have proper employment and get back on their feet. Typically 10% of your bill goes to support the training/education provided to their employees. And that makes the delicious food taste even better!
We were really moved by Cambodia and all of the wonderful people we met on our trip. People who don't have much and have had a life that I can't even imagine, but they still smile so honestly and sincerely. They seem to be grateful for what they have, as it is probably better than what their elders had. I now understand why there are so many charities in Singapore devoted to "caring for Cambodia" and why the kids school just opened a 3 room school house there, provided by parent donations. You can't help but want to help these people, especially the children.
So, onto the temples….
Siem Reap is home to the largest religious complexes in the world! There are more than 1,000 temples in the Siem Reap area, all built between the 9th and 13th centuries. Some are Hindu, some are Buddhist and they are all massive and beautiful. The cool thing is that you can walk through and climb all over the temples! It's amazing and I can't imagine they will allow this for much longer, as the temples are crumbling, so I'm glad we were able to experience them now!
We visited 3 temples within the complex, with our guide Ra. It was hot and dusty, so glad we had Ra and our van with air con!
Ta Prohm - which is where the movie Tomb Raider was filled. Awesome grounds with crazy huge trees growing through the temples.
Angkor Wat - the largest temple in the world, built in only 30 years. I can't imagine how they built these majestic buildings in that short of time! However, this was the biggest city in the world in the year 1200, so everyone must have been working hard!
Bayon - the "faces" temple and my personal fave!
WARNING: Lots of pics!!!!!! xo
At our hotel - view out the back
We had the top level and Jepsen's had the bottom - perfect!
Tuk tuk's are how you get around - heading to dinner!
A great way to experience the sights, sounds & smells of Siem Reap
Dinner at a "training" restaurant called Haven - delish!
Sam after spilling my entire glass of red wine all over him!
Cambodia's signature dish - Chicken Amok - still dreaming of it. Cambodian food is a mix of Thai & Vietnamese - 2 of my fave's!
So studious that boy!
Waiting for the tuk-tuk
Off to the temples - 1st stop Ta Prohm (tree temples) - the trees snaking their way through the temples is really a sight to see!
Mia getting her pic taken (again) by some tourists!
Doing some "tomb-raiding"!!
Onto Angkor Wat - the ginormous mote
The grounds are massive!
Trying to sell Sam some postcards!
This side of the bridge got new heads!!
Temple 3: Bayon - the faces temples - my personal fave!
An archeological dig going on!
More bridge pics - so cool! One side are gods, the other devils
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