We had booked a guesthouse called Bou Savy Guesthouse, which was amazing. We paid $80 for 6 nights in Siem Reap. I can't say enough about how wonderful and amazing the staff was. Each morning we would wander down to the courtyard and enjoy breakfast which was included in the price of staying at Bou Savy.
During our stay we did a ton of things. The first day we visited the region of Angkor. Located in the region are the ruins of Angkor. There were several temples that had been constructed by the Khmer Empire that are stunning to look at. I can't even wrap my head around how these were even built. They were just stunning. The complex included over 20 temples with some of the more popular ones being Angkor Wat, Bayon, and Ta Prohm.
The next day we went to the Landmine Museum which was created by a man named Aki Ra. He personally disarmed the mines at the museum and had been collecting them to create a center like this one. It was really sad to see what kind of destruction humans had created. It was also very confusing to see the really short list of countries that have refused to sign a cease to create act and sitting at the top of the list was the US.
One the way back from the museum we stopped at a small butterfly garden that had been created. There was an area that had been netted off and a beautiful garden built. There were tons of butterflies cruising around and some awesome cabinets but that contained lots of cocoons. The villagers near the butterfly garden collect the cocoons and the garden purchases them from the villagers. It was a way the villagers could make money.
After washing up at Bou Savy our Tuk Tuk driver dropped us at Pub Street for dinner and drinks. I think every evening we were in Siem Reap we made our way to Pub Street. They had an amazing selection of cool restaurants that served a super variety of food. The food and drinks in Siem Reap were dirt cheap. Meals cost around $3-$7, while drinks were $0.50 for a draft beer and $3.00 for pitchers. It was awesome. Also near Pub Street was a delish ice cream shop called The Blue Pumpkin. The ice cream there rocked big time and the lounge upstairs was super cool.
The next day we had breakfast at the guesthouse and waited for our driver from Tara Boat Tours to pick us up to go to the Tonle Sap Lake. Located at the lake was a rural village that was literally floating in the water. It was a drastic change from the actual city life in Siem Reap. Our tour was about 3 hours and included a stop at a catfish/crocodile farm, playing with snakes, and lunch on the tour company's 81 year old boat. It was an awesome experience.
After the river tour the driver took us to Artisans d'Angkor. The facility teaches the villagers around the area different trades that allows them to make a living will learning a craft. It was a really cool place that had a lot of different crafts that were taught.
Following Artisans d'Angkor we made our way back to Pub Street for food, drinks and shopping at the Angkor Night Market. The market was just off the main strip and was created to give tourists a safe shopping environment during the night time. I was really impressed by the night market. There were tons of shops and had a sweet tropical bar right in the middle of it all.
The next day we slept in for a bit and then made our way to Butterflies Garden Resturant. This was a similar butterfly housing establishment but included a koi pond and a super delish restaurant. While we were waiting for our food there was a group of about 10 kids milling around the restaurant with cages full of butterflies. The establishment employees the kids to collect the butterflies and helps them to earn some money, rather then them begging on the streets. We just happened to be there on a Thursday which was butterfly release day. So in a matter of minutes there were tons of butterflies swarming the facility. It rocked big time. The food and atmosphere was super.
After lunch we made our way back to Artisans d'Angkor which offered a free tour of the silk farm on the other side of town. It was real interesting to see how they harvested the silk from the cocoons and the process to make different things out of silk.
We wandered back to our guesthouse to get ready for the new years festivities that would be happening throughout the city. When we arrived at the guesthouse the owners invited us to celebrate the new year with them and their families, so we washed up and made our way down. The staff had created a very elaborate dinner spread, equipped with tons of drinks. It had a great family feel to it. There were other guests and tons of family members wandering the facility. After dinner and a few drinks, we were off to Pub Street once again. Over the course of the week there had been great preparation happening to transform the area for the evening. When we arrived we had some more food and drinks and found a great little spot called the Giddy Gecko. It was a funky little hookah lounge. We ended up hanging there for the new years festivities. There was some great live music, cheap drinks, and awesome hookah. It was a wonderful way to usher in the new year. We called it quits around 1:30am and back to the guesthouse we went. When we arrived at Bou Savy the place was still celebrating. It was so cool walking in and seeing all these happy amazing people. I really can't say enough about the Bou Savy staff and facility.
On our last day in Cambodia we stopped at the children's hospital to donate blood. The hospital offers free child care for Cambodian citizens and they are in desperate need of blood. We were the first two people of 2010 to donate blood. After donating blood we went to the Angkor Museum and learned a lot about the history of Cambodia and the temples.
Overall it was an awesome trip. At some point in my life I will be making my way back there. I really didn't want to leave Siem Reap. The people there were just amazing and it was such a great diverse setting. It a world of difference from robotic life style of Korea. It was really nice to see different kinds of people and different kinds of things.
Next on the list of travel is probably Tokyo around March or April. Should be awesome. January is going to fly by. There is finally live music coming to Seoul. It's been 6 months since I have seen a live show and I have been going through withdrawals. We have Muse on the 7th and then Green Day on the 18th.
More pictures of Cambodia.
Listening to The Rifles For The Meantime.
