Cambodia - Temples of Angkor

When travelling in Asia visiting the temples of Angkor in Siem Reap is a must do. The temples are quite easy to reach. We have flied into Siem Reap in Cambodia. A small city, dependent on the tourism and the old temples.

Best and probably the only way to get there is by plane. Driving in Cambodia is something we probably will never experiecnce - we do not want to experience this as our capabilities are probably not enough to survive the traffic in Camodian cities. By the way, same counts for Ho Chi Minh, Hong Kong, Bangkok - let's say Asia.

Arriving in Siem Reap international airport is a real adventure. The flight itself is just common - but the visa processes are an adventure. Make sure you have a pen with you in the plane as we had to fill several documents.

Your visum will be issuedin the arrival hall, before collecting your luggage. It may take a while. And the process itself is underlined with the noise of permament stamping of passports. The visum for the Kingdom of Cambodia costs you USD 30 per person plus additional USD 2 if you do not bring a spare passport photo of you. But have in mind that you are visiting a developing country that is dependent on the tourists who can afford traveling there. So dont be worried about the process, the price, and the waiting time - rather be happy that you reach a destination, not all of us will get to. That is how we see it, and it is probably a good idea to have in mind that you are visting a non-developed country, whose citizens suffered a lot and may still be suffering.

Welcome to Cambodia.

Oh - and one more thing. After our arrival we were asked what it brings to Cambodia end of April. This is the hottest time in the year. We haven't been aware of this. It was super hot. Not the heat that we are used to from Singapore - it was super hot. But therefore, April and May are the months where there are less tourists in town. We liked that. Welcome to super hot Cambodia.

The temples are the one reason for going Siem Reap. And visiting this area is also the only reason as we recognized on our trip. Siem Reap itself is a small city, nothing much to do or see. There is a small city centre where you can find the common Asian markets. But they have some small nice restaurants, hidden behind the Main Street where we also enjoyed our dinner. Not much to see, but it is still worth it to leave the resort or hotel complex and breathe in the atmosphere of this tiny city.

Much more stunning than the present of the Cambodian city is the past and the history of the place. With the temple of Angkor Wat as the main attraction of Cambodia - the temple area is just stunning, impressive, and unforgettable. It is definitely worth traveling to Cambodia and visit the temples.

We only had the main temple Angkor Wat in our minds before traveling there. And of course we read about the temple where Lara Croft had her adventures. But the Angkor area is much more than Angkor Wat. The size of the area is impressive - and for us it was just unimaginable how the temples have been built ages ago. Strolling through the temples and different ancient buildings felt like having arrived in a different century.

We took us 2 days for exploring the area - 1 day with a guide, the 2nd day we just went to the famous sunrise at Angkor Wat. We were wondering if 2 days are enough to visit the temples. Today we recommend 2 days for the trip, as it is plenty enough time to experience all the important places. 

Our first day started at around 8.30 am. We skipped the sunrise at the temple and preferred sleeping another 2 hours. Some may think "how can you prefer taking a long rest over watching the sunset at the temples" - and that is also what we had in mind when we turned around in the bed -  but in the end, we were fit and had the energy to spend the whole day at the temples.

We took a rickshaw to the Angkor area. A definitely bumpy but funny ride. Sometimes a little scary as we found ourselves in the middle of a traffic jam - cars, motorbikes rushing through the roads - it seemed there is no order at all - but in the end it worked out very well.

Once the driver brings you to the first stop, the visitor centre where we bought our pass for the temples, the traffic gets less and the ride therefore gets more relaxed and enjoyable. We liked it having chosen the rickshaw.

Our guide told us a lot about the Khmer history of the region - of course emphasizing on the poverty aspects and the fact that tip is always welcomed - and he made us to feel very comfortable, put our interests in the middle of the journey and made beautiful pictures of the two of us.

We definitely can recommend having a guide for one day: he knew where to go, when to be where, where to take the best pictures - and we met a very friendly young man, with a high willingness to tell a lot about his country in a very proper English. 

The tour started at the most famous temple: Angkor Wat. We spent around 3 hours in this temples, exploring like every corner. As the temple is the one in the best condition and not completely re-conquered by the forest the temples are in a very original state. It is impressive. And it is worth it to spend enough time there.

After Angkor Wat we went to Angkor Thom. We never heard about this temple - but after having seen a few - Angkor Thom is our favorite. It is the tempe where stone faces are watching you, no matter where you stand. It is mystic. The temple area of Angkor Thom is even bigger than Angkor Wat - but the main temple is much smaller. We spent an hour at this place. Honestly, there is nothing much to see, but the construction and the faces make this place special. It is a beautiful location.

4 hours of watching temples - or better say watching stones - is already a long journey. So there was only one more temple on the list for us: Ta Prohm.

After Angkor Wat we went to Angkor Thom. We never heard about this temple - but after having seen a few - Angkor Thom is our favorite. It is the tempe where stone faces are watching you, no matter where you stand. It is mystic. The temple area of Angkor Thom is even bigger than Angkor Wat - but the main temple is much smaller. We spent an hour at this place. Honestly, there is nothing much to see, but the construction and the faces make this place special. It is a beautiful location.

4 hours of watching temples - or better say watching stones - is already a long journey. So there was only one more temple on the list for us: Ta Prohm.

On the way to Ta Prohm there are a few more temples, which belong to the Angkor Thom area. We drove by and did not stop to visit these temples. But this is when the benefit of the Rickshaw came in. We could always stop for taking a picture, and we just very nice view from our vehicle.

Ta Prohm is - next to Angkor Wat - another very famous temple. Lara Croft made them famous. What a cool place. The temples definitely are loosing the competition against the nature. The forest is taking over the temples again. There is a tree growing on every stone. The power of the nature can be seen in every corner of the area. It is really amazing. It took us again a long time to stroll through the temples - we made hundreds of pictures and appreciated what human beings have built and the nature has made of it. Impressive.

The first day ended after 5 hours temples - around 2 hours rickshaw rides - and that was more than enough to be happy and exhausted on the first day. We finished with a short ride to Siem Reap, had a nice dinner at a hidden Italian restaurant. And that was it.

Day one was impressive. So what to do on day 2? That was an easy decision: sunset at Angkor Wat. This time we chose the normal car to go there, and it was a good decision. We were not the only one who wanted to see the sunrise. So going all the way to the temples by car, we made it to be faster as many others tourists - and we arrived at Angkor Wat quite early, before everybody surrounds at the lake in front of the temple to make the perfect picture. There are not many words necessary to describe the majesty of the area during sunrise. The colors are beautiful. The scenery is extraordinary.

That was it. Rest of the day was leisure time at the pool. We enjoyed the hospitality of the Cambodians and tried to understand everything we experienced. We can really call ourselves lucky - lucky to have the opportunities to see places like these.