I just noticed that we never published this post. Here it is a few weeks late. We had read that the Angkor National Museum was best seen prior to visiting the actual temples. Consequently, we ignored that advice and saw it after visiting Angkor Wat and Ta Proehm. This was a mistake. We took the […]
Siem Reap
Postcard from Ellen – Siem Reap Adieu
Postcard from Ellen – January, 2025 Hello everyone, I haven’t been blogging as much this trip. I realized it’s partly because there are so many followers I have been feeling self conscious. But also because, like many of you the craziness around the USA has gotten me very down at times and I wanted the […]
Kompong Khleang
Tonle Sap is the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia. It is very near Siem Reap, so there are a bunch of tours to various fishing villages. We’ve been told that the closest one is a tourist trap, full of scams. Kompong Khleang is the furthest from Siem Reap, and the most authentic. We signed […]
Apsara Dance
Perhaps in homage to our ancestors, (they would have wanted us to go to this), we decided to go to one of the Apsara, or traditional Cambodian, dance shows. They start with a buffet, then do an hour long show. To be honest, they did a fine job, and the food wasn’t too bad. But […]
Angkor Thom
Angkor Thom was the last and most enduring capital city of the Khner Empire. It was established in the late twelfth century and covers an area of 9 km². At the centre of the city is the Bayon state temple, with the other major sites clustered around the Victory Square immediately to the north including the Elephant […]
The HeroRats of APOPO
From the APOPO website: THE PROBLEMOver 60 countries are contaminated with hidden landmines and other explosive remnants of war, that cause tragic accidents and hamper communities from developing their productive land.Meanwhile, slow and inaccurate detection methods make tuberculosis the world’s most deadly infectious disease. 10.6 million new people contracted TB in 2022, 3.1 million went […]
Ta Prohm Temple (Lara Croft)
Ta Prohm Temple was made famous by the tree growing over it in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, the 2001 movie. Turns out, there are trees all over the place, not just the famous one. As we drove there from Angkor Wat, we passe moats, royal pools, and miles of ancient stone walls. Walking in, we […]
Angkor Wat
Nikki from Journey’s End gave us the contact info for a remork driver name Tear. He was excellent, both as driver and “quasi” guide. Walking through Angkor Wat is wandering through the ancient ruins of a once-great civilization, where one cannot help but feel the history and former grandeur of every weathered stone and towering […]
Tuk Tuk Food Tour
Apologies to start. I don’t really remember the names of most of the foods we tasted. It’s more on me than on Hong, our wonderful guide. Hong grew up in a small agricultural village a ways away from Siem Reap. She regaled us with stories of how to catch baby frogs and rats to eat. […]