Siem Reap, Cambodia – A great holiday destination.

In my last blog, I talked about our upcoming holiday to Siem Reap. We’ve now been and came back a few days ago. Did Siem Reap live up to our expectations?

It sure did. Everything, including the 37 degree temperatures, was perfect. We stayed at the Rambutan Hotel and Resort, a gay owned and gay friendly property only a 10 minute walk from the centre of Siem Reap. The bedroom was downstairs and the living room and writing space was on the second floor. This suited us and accommodated my erratic sleep patterns. I was able to get up in the middle of the night and go upstairs to work at my computer or read stretched out on the sofa, while Bayu slept on. The resort also had a pool, dining area and resident cat. Perfect. Half the guests were families, so it’s obviously straight friendly as well.

What about the food?

We first went to Siem Reap thirteen years ago and we found the range of food a little disappointing. This is no longer the case. Greek, Mexican, Italian, BBQ, Thai, Khmer. Chinese, Japanese and seafood restaurants abound and the quality of food is exceptional, reasonably priced and the alcoholic drinks cheap. Our hotel provided breakfasts and they were also excellent. Most restaurants we chose were about a 20 to 30 minute walk from our hotel and this was our justification for eating too much. The fish or the seafood Amok, a Khmer specialty were definitely a favourite. It is a coconut curry dish served with rice. None of the restaurants disappointed.

And the temples…

Ankor Wat and the surrounding temples are the main attraction. We’d visited them on our previous four trips, so Bayu decided to have a rest day, while I took off to Ta Prohm Temple for a morning of sketching. This temple features in the film, ‘Lara Croft: Tomb Raider.’ I found a stone step to sit on and proceeded sketching. My limited talents were observed by other tourists and conversations ensued. My sketches and photos will be referred to over the next few weeks to produce a couple of oils. Next time I return to Siem Reap, I’ll sketch with water colour pencils and visit more of the temples.

And the art…

The number of art galleries in Siem Reap has grown over the years and there is now a reasonable variety of art works. Of course there are the mass produced art pieces in the markets, but some galleries now display better pieces.

Reading and writing…

Markus Zusak is the author of the international best seller, The Book Thief. Knowing my passion for adopting dogs, Susie Greentree gave me a copy of his book, Three Wild Dogs and the Truth. This wonderful book became my holiday read and the inspiration for most of my holiday writing. I’ve written two books about our dogs, Two Poofs and a Poodle and No More Dogs and after Siem Reap, I have the start to Adopt Me. Just what I don’t need – another book started while seven other wait to be finished. But when inspiration strikes…

And, I’ve left the best for last.

We went to the Phare Circus on our second night in Siem Reap. As always the acting, acrobatics, music and storyline was inspiring. They offer seats in 3 price ranges, USD$18, $28 and $38. Of course, I bought the most expensive ones, only to discover that the cheapest seats were equally as good. Will I never learn? This is a must see if you visit Siem Reap.

In summation.

Siem Reap is the perfect holiday destination if you like flat walking, visits to amazing ancient temples, great food, wonderful accommodation, shopping and an acrobatic circus. We will return and next time I aim to do the hot air balloon flight above Ankor Wat. Maybe we’ll see you there.