Cambodia with the in-laws

After Pai we rushed back down to Bangkok to pick up the in-laws in. With them we headed straight for Cambodia. Only one stop planned there: Siem Reap (to see the famous Angkor).

Angkor is absolutely massive and you could spend weeks visiting every building on the site. We opted for a three day entry ticket. The first day we started out with some of the “smaller” buildings but nonetheless very impressive with beautiful sculptures. The second day we visited the most famous buildings on the site (Angkor Vat, Angkor Tom and Ta Prom). Starting at 5:30 am to see the sunrise... which in fact we didn’t see at all because by the time we got there it was already light. But everyone stayed in front of the buildings waiting anyway, so we made the most of it and started visiting while everyone waited pointlessly outside. Which was great because we got to see Angkor Vat almost completely by ourselves! By the time we got to Ta Prom however we were in the full “guided tours” hours and the place was packed with tourists queuing for photos every 5 meters. We got out of there pretty fast and decided to call it a day. The third day we started by going back to Ta Prom, too early for the guided tours, and were able to enjoy a peaceful visit. We finished off by a temple of which I can’t remember the name but that is a little further off. It dates from the 13th century and the sculptures have miraculously survived much better than on any of the other temples. It is absolutely astonishing. It was a tiring three days but absolutely worth it!

The interesting thing about Angkor is that it is so vast that, unlike other sites that are completely closed off, it is completely open. Of course you must buy a ticket to see the ruins, but the tickets are only checked at the entrance of the ruins. So technically you can walk around the outside of the ruins without buying a ticket. And cambodians live all around the area! So there are houses and little shops everywhere!