New Year’s holiday is huge for Vietnamese people; they will stop everything they are doing to spend it with their family for a couple of days. My two friends and I (Brendan and Jessica) were a bit worried, since we were visiting Vietnam and didn’t want to get stuck doing nothing, so we decided to head to Siem Reap, Cambodia. It was only a short plane ride away, and the VISA was cheap.
We applied for an E-VISA through the government website, which was very easy and convenient. Once we submitted all the documents, it took less than a week to get our VISA via email. We printed it out, kept it with our passport, and showed it to immigrations in Cambodia. Although you can get VISA on arrival, getting the E-VISA was easier and saved us a lot of valuable time. If you're an avid traveler, you know it is always hectic to get VISA on arrival at the airport.
Once we went through immigration, we walked outside and were greeted by a lovely man from our hotel. He had cold fresh towels and refreshments. My friends and I were in awe because usually a greeting like this is done at the establishment, not at the airport. Also, we noticed that the transportation was not a shuttle bus or an uncomfortable vehicle, but two antique cars that were once “owned by the King,” said the driver.
On our ride to the hotel, we got a glimpse of the city. It was amazing to see vast open fields, a bunch of monks in their orange robes riding a Tuk-tuk, local women riding bicycles, as well as monkeys chilling on the corner of a street, nibbling on some food. This was a big change for us since we had just come from the bustling city of Ho Chi Minh, the city that never sleeps.
At our hotel, we were greeted by the wonderful staff members and received a personal welcome from the manager. We had a lovely conversation with him and he was nice enough to let us know that because of overbooking, one of us would be getting an upgrade to a suite. Originally, we had reserved two regular rooms; Brendan was going to take one and Jess and I were going to share. Of course, Jessica and I gave our reasoning why we should get the upgraded room. Since Brendan was such a good sport, he decided to let us have the amazing suite. We were in our glory!
The Heritage Suites Hotel is a luxury boutique hotel located near the Angkor temples. It is sleek, clean and simple, with a mix of vintage and modern designs. The lounge area has a bar that is reminiscent of the Great Gatsby movie.
The restaurant had delicious dishes that were served either in the lobby or in the mezzanine area. One night, there was a band performing in the lounge area, which was filled with hotel and outside guests.
We nibbled on some delicious appetizers, drank some yummy cocktails, listened to some good tunes, and chit-chatted with people from all walks of life. It was such a great evening! Afterward, we had a nightcap with the manager before retiring to bed.
One night, we decided to hang around the hotel’s saltwater pool, because after a long day of exploring in the hot, humid weather, nothing sounds more appealing than dipping your tired body in a nice refreshing pool. We ordered some wine and made it a relaxing evening!
One of the nights, we decided to take a Tuk-tuk into town. We wanted to check out the nightlife, but our tummies were growling so instead, our driver took us to an outdoor food market, where vendors set up carts, chairs, and tables. The place was near Sivatha Boulevard and Achamean Street. We ordered a bunch of dishes and chowed down. It was one of the best meals we had by far and it cost us only $6 USD for four huge plates of food. It was so good; we went back another night.
Eventually, we did find the party at Pub Street, which is a long road of bars and cocktail lounges. Can’t miss it! This street was filled with foreigners drinking and dancing. We went in and out of different bars, enjoying the scene, and dancing to some fun music.
Getting around Siem Reap is easy, there are plenty of Tuk-tuks, but to explore further outside of the temple areas, it is best to hire a driver. One day, we decided to call our friend’s father’s driver to take us around but he wasn’t available and suggested his friend.
Now you’re probably thinking $$$$$ but it only cost $60 USD + lunch to have the driver all day. Our driver, Nimble, was professional, used his own vehicle, and he gave us suggestions on places to go. We went to a remote fishing (floating) village called Kompong Phluck and rode on a long tail boat on the Tonle Sap Lake. He did all the communication with the locals and stayed with us the whole time. We felt very safe.
The floating village was interesting to see, and a bit sad. The houses are not in the best conditions. The children were barefoot, playing on the dirt road. People were working on their fishing boats or nursing their children with the bare minimum attire. Although this is their way of life, it made me thankful for mine. After visiting the village, we took a boat ride out a bit more to a boat restaurant. We had refreshing drinks and some prawns. A great day of exploring outside of Siem Reap!
Our main purpose of going to Siem Reap was to check out the temples. We got to check out most of them and the best one was the Tomb Raider temple, “Ta Prohm.” It was amazing to see the trees and the temples intertwined together. It was shocking to know that some of these trees have been around even before I was born.
We wanted to get up at four in the morning to see the sunrise at Angkor Wat, but we couldn't get up if our life depended on it. Although I heard the best time to see Angkor Wat is sunrise, we made do with seeing it during the afternoon, which was nothing short of amazing.
Walking through the gateway of Angkor Thom was magical. There were vehicles going through while some pedestrians like Jess and I were taking our time, admiring the statues and everything around us. We had our driver wait on the other side of the gate since after passage it is a bit of a drive to get to the center of the city.
The Bayan temple was super cool. The big, huge face carvings, the tunnels, and climbing up stones that have been around before my time was an experience of a lifetime. Usually, going to a landmark or an old site, tourist are not allowed to touch or take pictures because it will ruin it, but not at the Bayan temple. I felt like Indiana Jones!
Brendan missed out on seeing the temples with us because he slept in late. Instead, he decided to do a helicopter tour of the temples when we went to the floating village. He had such an awesome time and got some great aerial shots. The disadvantage is that the aircraft can’t fly over Angkor Wat, so you can only see it from the distance.
TIPS
- It is best to bring USD (1 and 5 dollar bills) than to exchange your country's currency to Cambodian money. Unfortunately, Cambodian money isn’t worth a lot, and locals prefer USD. Since they can’t break large bills, get a ton of dollars or five dollar notes.
- If you try to exchange Cambodian money in other Southeast Asian countries, you will be out of luck. We tried to exchange our money in Vietnam and Laos, no one would take it.
- A good meal will cost you 1.75 USD.
- Watch out for children trying to ask for money, selling things, or trying to pickpocket you. They are everywhere! I wanted to give money, but if you give money to one child, more will come to get their share.
- Best time to go to Angkor Wat is at 4 am, to watch the sunrise. But I heard there is a crowd, so arrive early.
- If you decide to take pictures of people; it would be great to give donations.
I had such a great time in Siem Reap; it really is an amazing city with lots of cultures. But there is not much to do there, so only a couple of days would be good! We went for 4 days and 3 nights and I thought it was a perfect amount of time to explore and relax.
Side Note: We went in February and it was hot and humid! Be prepared for extreme heat. Bring a lot of water when traveling to different temples. Also, umbrellas are great to help protect yourself from the afternoon sun.
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