Ahhh, Siem Reap, you have brought us back to life with your fresh mango smoothies, cool guest houses and fun city vibe. We got settled into a gem of a spot near the city center, Two Dragons Guest House, a Siem Reap original. With A/C in the room, a comfy bed, fabulous food, and $0.75 draught beer we could not go wrong. The city has its share of expats as well, so the standard of living is the highest we have seen since Saigon and English is spoken everywhere. Seeing the Hard Rock Café was a bit of a surprise but that might give you an idea of what to expect here.
We had full intentions of touring Angkor Wat with all the other tourists but I came across a small NGO that provides a mountain bike tour of some less visited temples in the park and it turned out to be exactly what we were looking for. Two - three thousand people visit Angkor Wat every day. Five of us went out with two guides to tour the area bi bicycle and leave the masses behind. What a blast. We learned so much about the Khmer that day. And it was a full day. The best part was a visit to the local school that is supported by the money we gave for the tour. By local I mean a grass thatched building in the forest. The kids were just leaving as we pulled up. Day two was a 'local' day. Our new phone was already on the blink and our tablet had one last chance at life with a visit to the Samsung Service Center. Leigh treated herself to a new sundress which is perfect for the weather here. The main street in Siem Reap resembles downtown of a north American city. Artisans Angkor is a very impressive school here that sets up disadvantaged youth from the countryside with skills and employment in one of many forms of art, including carving. We visited the school and saw the work first-hand. It was truly inspiring.
Day three was going to be another epic journey, even without the unforeseen glitch. I love to geocache. What-cache you say? It's modern treasure hunting - see www.geocaching.org. Today we were off to log the only Earth-cache in Cambodia, about 50 km north of Siem Reap. We cycled up there only to be told we needed to buy a park pass back in Siem Reap. No going back now, it was too late in the day. After a few minutes of humming and hawing the park guard suggested I wait until three o'clock...wink wink, when the park is 'closed'... nudge wink, his shift ends... wink nudge wink, he wouldn't be there, but the policeman would be and all that was required to get by him was a fiver (that's the way things work in Cambodia). So I hired a 17-year-old guide named Tam, waited for the signal and off we went. Leigh had to get back to Siem Reap before 5 to check the status of our tablet so I was solo on this one. There were 900-year-old carvings in the river rock about 5 cm under the water surface. It was so impressive and well worth the five bucks 'admission'. But by the time I was back on the road the sun was dropping fast. We were strongly advised against riding at night in Cambodia, something I can re-affirm after riding halfway back through dusk at break-neck speed before I finally crossed paths with a tuk tuk (a motorcycle taxi) who took me the rest of the way but not before it was entirely black with night. We'll be avoiding that situation as much as possible.
The amenities available along the stretch of highway leading to the Thai border are few and far between and we were in no mood to risk another 'Pursat episode' so it was back on the bus for a quick exit from Cambodia. The Thai/Cambodian border is ripe with scammers that have gone to some length to appear legitimate. Buses claiming to be government-run will stop at odd locations to 'repack' the storage compartment, allowing locals to quickly rummage through for goodies. You may be dropped off at a travel agency to purchase visas at elevated prices. The driver may charge various surprise fees en route and might even demand you surrender your passport for unexplained purposes. We found Nattakan, a new Cambodian bus company that had excellent reviews and was apparently scam-free. Nine hours later we arrived in Bangkok without issue. Cambodia was a great experience. We were pleasantly surprised with the south, could have done without the central part of it and absolutely loved the north but if all you see of Cambodia is Siem Reap you're not getting the complete picture. For a country recovering from the atrocities of the Khmer Rouge regime it is moving forward at record pace.