Siem Reap

Siem Reap is the capital city of Siem Reap Province in north western Cambodia, the gateway to Angkor region.

From Phnom Penh: 
Speed boat up the river from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap, costs $35.  Bus for $6 or a luxury bus for $12.  We took the luxury bus option which was the better choice. Part of the highway taking you to Siem Reap is just dirt road so there is a lot of dust and it is bumpy... the luxury bus was comfortable and had air con, which meant we could have the windows shut to avoid the dust without dying from heat. 

Taking the bus gives you the opportunity to see the countryside of Cambodia, vast amounts of flat lands and rice paddies, occasionally water buffaloes swimming in some road side pond and locals bicycling along the rice paddies wearing the iconic pointy paddy hats.  

Accommodation: The only place to stay in Siem Reap is at the Villa Siem Reap near the old French Quarter.  The staff is amazing, the food is amazing, the rooms are super nice and well priced.  

Temples of Angkor: Angkor means Holy City in Khmer, this was the region that served as the seat of the Khmer Empire between 9th to 15th century.  Began in AD 802 until 1351 when Angkor fell under the Ayutthayan Kingdom (Siamese Kingdom).  

The temples are grandeur and truly amazing.... I don't know how else to describe it.  The feeling of seeing and being in the temples is exhilarating.  There is truly so much to see in each temple and each temple has something different to offer from a detailed sculpture along the walls of Angkor Wat depicting battles, to the many faces that gives Angkor Thom its fame and to the giant trees that have nestled their roots through the cracks becoming integral parts of the structure in Ta Prohm.  

Things to watch out for:  

You can hire a taxi or tuk-tuk for the day to take you around the temples with a pick up from your hotel.  It should only cost $15 but if you choose a sunrise and/or sunset option it might be $25.  Better to coordinate a tuk-tuk driver through your hotel, that way your chances of being ditched by your driver are less likely.  

Sunrise at Angkor Wat is not as unique as it seems.  At 5 am from your hotel, you are taken to Angkor Wat, (bring a flash light).  You follow a massive herd of people through the entrance of the temple and you are expected to wait with the heaps and heaps of people waiting to watch this sunrise.  The sunrise is over the three distinctive structures of Angkor Wat, with the best view in front of the huge pond.

OR....

Instead of stopping where the herds of people stop, you keep going into the temple with your light, make it through the temple, and watch the sunrise from the other side...completely deserted, quiet and peaceful.  It is  the only way to see the temple alone.   

Sunset is the same thing... you hike up to Phnom Bakheng temple, the view is nice.  But when you reach the temple, there will already be tons of people perched on the side waiting for the sun to set.  It is ridiculously packed.  We decided to ditch the temple after checking it out, and caught the sunset in front of Angkor Wat.  

Cool temples we saw:

Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, Prasat Bayon, Ta Prohm Temple, Banteay Kdei, Preah Khan & Phnom Bakheng. 

Angkor Wat and Ta Prohm are the most famous.  Ta Prohm is kind of ridiculous; because iTomb Raider  was filmed there bus loads of tourists are packed into the tiny enclosed temple and winding passageways.  It would be fun otherwise, but it was very suffocating. There is a more peaceful area to the right side of the all the hustle and bustle but you would have to be willing to go through some 'non safe passageways' to find it.  Also if you expect to get a single photo of any part of that temple with no photobombs, make sure to hone your super ninja-speed photo skills, since it is common knowledge that Chinese tourists have perfected theirs. 

Favorite temple:  Angkor Thom.