Other stuff than temples
Trip Start
Nov 21, 2007
1
18
37
Trip End
Jan 01, 2008
Siem Reap, Cambodia
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
We learned from our driver yesterday that the name "Siem Reap" comes from the Khmer word for Thai, or Siem (similar to the old Siam) and Khmer for "defeat", Reap. The Thais invaded Cambodia centuries ago, and when they did, they took three provinces in the west of Cambodia, including Siem Reap province and the then-capital at Angkor. That's when the capital was moved to Pnomh Penh.
Today was a long day in the car, but we were rewarded with no crowds. First off was the overgrown temple of Beng Melea, which is being allowed to totally go back to whence it came as the jungle tears down walls and covers up the rock with trees and plants. There was a fair amount of climbing and ducking and scrambling, and we had to be led by a guide through the maze of the path. Pretty fun.
Next was a trip to Tonle Sap lake and the flooded forest of Kompong Phluk. Not too many people (tourists) here, as the road is in rotten shape; we had to get out of the car and hop on a motorbike to go the last kilometer to the boat launch. The village is built on 7 meter high stilts to avoid the annual flooding as the lake takes up excess water from the Mekong nearby. During this time the villagers fish and conduct all their business by boat. It's quite picturesque.
Finally was a trip to the national silk center, where we saw the process of silk manufacturing from start to finish, including selection of silk worms for making their silk cocoons. To keep ants out of the worm house (sounds like an appetizing selection to make, doesn't it?), they construct the house on short stilts and surround each stilt with a mini moat about an inch across and a half an inch deep. Ants can't swim, I guess. Compare this to the moat around Angkor Wat, which is at least 50m across, something even the most athletic barbarians couldn't pole vault over, unlike the narrow excuses for moats at most european castles. Not that anybody would consider sacking a religious temple, nor fortifying themselves within one, though with a moat and walls like that, it would be a fine choice.
Food update: We had a late lunch in the flooded forest, at the only restaurant in town. No menu, no prices; you just get to eat what they're serving. Of the three lunches out on tour we'd had, this was the best yet, and cheapest. $3 a person, set price. This included shrimp cocktail with a delicious chili and vinegar sauce, then a fried fish (yep, skin and bones included), fried battered fish pieces with a peanut sauce (yummy), stir-fry pork with vegetables, and rice. Finally, some fruit for dessert. Geez- there are only two of us- they served enough for 6 people. Good stuff with limited resources, however. I finally didn't feel totally dehydrated and opted for a local Angkor beer (they had Anchor beer, too, but I think it was an import), which was a good undistinguished lager.
Dinner was at Red Piano, where Carrie ordered a yummy Tomb Raider cocktail (lime, Cointreau, tonic) and Crepe Suzette for dinnner (life is short, after all). I took a chance with the Spaghetti Red Piano, which is like Carbonara, but with adds chicken and mushrooms and spring onions to the mix, and the cream sauce is made with coconut milk. It was so good that Carrie dove in and we ordered a second helping. There was some wine in the sauce, too, and maybe a couple simple spices. The best meal since we've been in SE Asia, hands down. Highly recommended.
Breakfast the first day was on the grounds of Angkor Wat, and Carrie finally got her first banana pancake, ubiquitous backpacker food all over SE Asia. It was a cake made in a pan, alright- thick, and just set on top of bananas instead of cooked with them inside, and honey instead of syrup as all good banana pancakes are served. No wonder it took 20 minutes to fry a pancake. Either that or they had to run a couple stalls down to buy the bananas after we ordered...
