We hired a tuk tuk for the morning for $8US. Every thing in Cambodia is in US dollars. They have their own currency the "riel" but it is only used in a tourist area like this as change. The tuk tuk was great and it wasn't long before we were at Angkor Wat. We walked across the causeway as seen in the photo. There is an entire wall inside the lake and then further inside, the wat which you can just see in the very distance.
It's great to just wander around the massive complex. Usually we just followed Holly as she explored. Sometimes however she would end up in rather precarious places and unaware of any danger or wanting help. She often tried to play hide and go seek but left signs for us to find her, as can be seen in the photo above. The major Wat is massive and very impressive. We managed to leave the thronging crowds by walking through to the other side. Here we found all the monkeys to the kids delight.
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| Angkor Wat from the side |
After a couple of hours we went into the market area. They're really pushy but we did buy some watermelon and bananas.
From here we went further into the park to the Angkor Thom which is a much bigger area, again surrounded by a lake. The wat (Bayon) in the middle is still large but more decayed even though it is nearly 100 years newer than Angkor Wat. The whole area was lost until rediscovered in 1860. It was all over grown in trees and so somewhat damaged. The entrance to the island was amazing.
There were smaller crowds at Bayon and it was a real opportunity for our kids to just explore. Of course we still had to deal with the Holly star status.
It was really hot so we went home at about noon for a swim and rest. Later I went out to the old market for various items. Really cheap Levi Jeans (the real McCoy), its good to have a local with me. The markets are fun with an opportunity to barter. Even after bringing them down from $25US to $16 they still seem really happy. It makes you wonder what the mark up is.
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