10 & 11 February, 2024

Hi everyone,

Saturday was predominantly a long bus ride from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap, but we made a few stops along the way. First, we paused in a village that is known for cooking tarantulas. Our guide bought one for folks to try, and Sarah had a tiny piece of the leg, which mostly tasted like garlic.

We stopped briefly for lunch and then a while later in a village near the river. The houses are built on stilts to accommodate the rainy season. They are allowed to fish during the dry season before the fish swim into the mangroves to reproduce.

The highlight of the day was a boat cruise along the Sab River to Tonle Sap, which is the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia. During the monsoons from about April to October, the lake expands from about 1,500 square miles to about 4,000 square miles and increases the depth from 3-10 feet to 30-45 feet. At its peak, it’s around the size of Lake Ontario.

On the cruise, we had a chance to see how some of the fishing families and members of the floating village live. There are floating houses, floating shops, and even a floating school.

We had another couple of hours on the bus before arriving at the hotel, where we had a quiet night. 

Yesterday morning we saw three temples at Angkor, the ancient capital city of Cambodia, and the Khmer Empire. (We found out that “Khmer” is pronounced like “khmai”). The remains of the city stretch at least 77 sq miles, though more continues to be found with newer technologies like LIDAR scanning.

First, we went to the ancient city of Angkor Thom, to see the Bayon and the Baphuon. The approach to the popular South Gate gate, crossing the moat that surrounds the city, is flanked by 108 statues; 54 gods on the left and 54 demons on the right. The gate itself is 75 feet tall, topped by four giant stone faces. From the gate, it is a full mile to the center of Angkor Thom, where the Bayon is.

The Bayon was the last temple built at Angkor, constructed during the 12th century. It rises three levels and features 54 towers with over 200 huge stone faces that are thought to resemble Avalokitesvara, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, though also resemble King Jayavarman VII, who ruled during its construction. It is unique among Angkor temples as the only one constructed to honor Mahayana Buddhism. Prior kings built previous temples at Angkor to honor Hindu gods, and the religion practiced in Angkor changed a few times.

Demons lining the approach to the South Gate of Angkor Thom:

The Bayon:

After the Bayon, we walked the short distance to the Baphuon, which was built in the 11th century. Its pyramidal mountain form represents Mount Meru, the mythical home of Hindu gods. The temple was in great disrepair and the French undertook a project to restore it in 1959 by dismantling it piece by piece and putting it back together. Unfortunately, the plans were destroyed mid-restoration during the Khmer Rouge, so it wasn’t until 2011 that the Baphuon finally reopened. You get great views if you make the steep climb to the upper level, and the rear wall of the structure makes up a 65-meter-long reclining Buddha (likely added much later than its construction as a Hindu temple).

View from the upper level of the Baphuon:

We then walked through the Elephant Terrace to get on the bus to our final stop in Angkor for the day. The terrace is 950ft long with many sculptures of elephants, lions, garudas, and other animals.

The last temple we saw, Ta Prohm, is more popularly known as the Tomb Raider temple, having been used in the 2001 Tomb Raider movie. Also built in the 12th century, much of it has crumbled, making for a very atmospheric walk. Some of what remains standing is covered by strangler fig trees, which are both destroying and holding the temple together and they are several hundred years old. They grow right on top of the temple, with roots digging down into it. It very much looks like the jungle surrounds are reclaiming the space.

The Angkor city is beautiful, a vast forest with incredible temple ruins scattered throughout. It’s hard to describe the scale, but was incredible to see. Tomorrow we get an early start to see the sunrise at Angkor Wat.

After our temple visits, we had a great lunch at New Hope, which is a restaurant and school founded by Planeterra, G Adventure’s nonprofit. Our meal included veggie wontons with sweet & sour sauce, banana flower salad, a traditional Cambodian dish called beef luk lak, sticky rice, vegetable curry, and fresh fruit. Once again, we ate very well! 

After relaxing at the hotel for a few hours, we met up with the group again to head to Phare, The Cambodian Circus. We arrived early to get dinner at the food stands outside the tent. It was inexpensive and delicious. We also saw a brief performance by some adorable school kids who are training in the art of dance, music, and circus.

The performers in tonight’s circus went to the school and now perform professionally. 75% of the ticket sales go towards supporting the school, which is free and specifically for kids who would not otherwise be able to afford to get an education.

The performance itself was fantastic, and we would absolutely recommend it to anyone who visits Siem Reap or one of the other cities in Southeast Asia where they hold shows.

Lots of love,

Sarah & Spenser