Yeah, here I come with another
solo trip. This time, my destination was Siem Reap, Cambodia. What was the site
I visited there? What else? Of course Angkor Wat Complex. Here I tell you a
story of my solo trip in Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia.
Note: As my English not so good, thanking you in advance for your understanding..
Biggest Temple Complex In The
World
In my country, Indonesia, there
are many temples either Buddha temples or Hindus temples. The two of great
Indonesian temples are Borobudur (Buddha) and Prambanan (Hindus), many people
going there. Me? Absolutely, I was checking in there (lol). But still, I was really
curious about the biggest temple complex, why? Don’t ask why because you never
know what it feels like till you’ve done a temple trip. Trust me, temple trip never
fail! I was surprised when I was getting info from the internet, Angkor Wat is in
first rank destination in Asia (mid of 2015). Knowing that info, I decided to
go there soon. Thank God Cambodia is ASEAN country, so I don’t need a lot of
preparation to do the Angkor Wat trip. Yeah, finally I put my leg in Cambodia
land after starting from Jakarta (my hometown) to Bandung by train, continuing
Bandung to Kuala Lumpur by plane, staying a night there, then flying to Siem
Reap from Kuala Lumpur. I realized that Angkor Wat is really the biggest temple
complex in the world after I’ve done Angkor Wat one day tour.
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Siem Reap International Airport
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Siem Reap Int'l Airport Interior
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Reflection
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Here comes the sun
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My vision
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Angkor Wat backyard
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Monks
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Angkor Wat main track
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The corridor
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Taken by beautiful Korean solo traveler
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Praying spot
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Little stupas
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Bayon Temple
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Bayon Temple's peak
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Awesome track
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The King's face
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Me in Siem Reap
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Transport for the rich
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Angkor Wat landscape
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How small I am
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The power of solo traveler
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The crowd
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Similar with Borobudur
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When the sun higher
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Elephant riding
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The bridge
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Selfie in traffic
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Ta Keo Temple: beautiful but bad luck
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Cambodian carving
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Featuring China Gov't
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So high, could you spot people below?
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The gate
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Nice track view
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Srah Srang Pool (more like a lake)
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Mr. Sam left before pic completely taken
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Smallest one: Prasat Kravan
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Unexpected Experiences
Dehydrated. Yap, Siem Reap is
hot, dry and dusty, especially in summer. The level of these conditions are in higher level than my
country. I have to drink 6-8 litres of water a day and an Estonian told
me that she has to take 8-10 litres, wow..
Sleeping in box. Kind of new
experience to sleep in a box. I booked a box in Boutique Dormitory Kochi-ke.
Clean, chill, tidy, simple, and of course japanese style.
Feel homey even not in the place
I stay. Being invited to a new place is interesting, but how if you don’t know
where is it, to whom the place belongs, and don’t know what will happen to
you. Not a big deal for me, I just asked to the host to send me a maps and go.
Arrived, we introduced each other and chit chat, then continued with Turkish
style dinner, how can’t I call it’s not feel homey? Yeah, I felt it in Traveller
Cat Guesthouse.
Dinner with people I don't know
before. How lucky I am to be invited by someone I don't know before then meet new people
and dinner with them. FYI, I am the only one Asian there.
Alone. Yap, it’s one of risks if
you do solo trip. But, I’d take the risk anyway.
Sad story. My Tuktuk driver, Mr.
Samnang, told his life story and the country. I learned that the King has no
power like the Prime Minister and the people of Cambodia is still under Civil War
trauma.
Poverty. Look around the city,
you can see the poverty in your eyes. You’ll see it by how people there lives.
If you take a look on temple signages, you can see that the temple was rebuilt
with foreign help and fund.
History. Long history of
Cambodia from the 12th century when the temples was built until present when
the temples become a touristic site and UNESCO world heritage, from the Civil
War until a prime minister leads Cambodian people.
Temples. Cambodian temples are
unique. Sometimes similar with temples in other countries but still unique.
Beloved people. Tuk-tuk drivers
(Mr. Heng and Mr. Samnang), dormitory worker, Traveller Cat Guesthouse people
(especially Merve for inviting me then cooking for us and also Monica for sharing things with me), silk seller, food seller, all of you will be in
my memory as beloved people.
Light spicy food. Comparing with
Indonesian food, I think Cambodian food is lighter. For me, it’s okay but still
I prefer Indonesian food, but I love the pork satay/kebab anyway.
Fasting. No dollars, no problem,
I had to fast in my last night in Siem Reap. With last 7 USD in my pocket and 5 USD
to be used for transport dormitory-airport, the rest only 2 USD, I cannot buy food. I passed a
night without food.
Sick. Maybe due to fasting, I got
sick there. Another new experience in my travel journals because I never get sick during a trip. Thanks to my mum who remind and push me to bring some medecines, if not, it could be getting worse.
Good coffee and bread. Cambodia
have a good coffee and bread, don’t miss it when you do a trip in Cambodia, cheap but taste good.
Tired. That’s consequence of
traveling. Here, in Siem Reap, I can’t feel my leg after finish the Angkor Wat
trip.
Nice silks. Hand made Cambodian
silk (2x2 meters) for only 19 USD, it’s nice. No, it’s very very nice. Thanks
to a girl who gave me a good deal (shake hand), unfortunately I didn’t bring dollars a lot.
Useless money changer. This one
is bad experience. We cannot exchange rupiahs and ringgits there, that’s why I
cannot buy more souvenirs and I had a night there with starving (fasting).
Meet old friend (high school).
This one really unexpected experience, meet your high school friend accidentally in a place very far
from your country? I did it, and you know what? We had same flight from Siem Reap to KualaLumpur, wow.. See you in another place and another time Rahma..
Nice views. Even hot, dry and
dusty, Siem Reap is still a good place to see nice views. Sunrise, dusty road,
dry forest, and the others.
Excited. From start to finish, I
always feel excited to see, to learn, to hear, to do whatever it is in Siem Reap, Cambodia.
Happy. Yeah, I am very happy I
can visit Angkor Wat complex and feel Siem Reap atmosphere.
Grateful. Thank God for everything,
thanks to my family (especially my mum) to let me do an overseas solo trip, thanks to
AirAsia for cheap flights, thanks to Danu for Xiaomay (his Xiaomi Yi’s name),
thanks to my office to let me take 4 days leave, thanks to beloved people in Cambodia,
thanks to other tourist who gave me their hands to take pictures and all that I cannot
attach here so I can finish my 9 days solo trip (Jakarta-Bandung-KualaLumpur-Siem Reap-Medan).
Amazing. Solo trip always
amazing..!!
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Amok Fish and Cambodian Coffee Milk
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Pub Street
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Psar Chaa (Old Market)
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Local food
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Pork satay/kebab
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Luk-lak
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Cheap baguettes
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Hot, dry and dusty
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An international school in Siem Reap
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Traveller Cat Guesthouse people
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Traditional music played by difables
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Different trees in a life
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Bicycling here need good stuffs
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Bracelet from priest
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Cambodian carving
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Cave (box) for 2 nights
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Meet Rahma (old friend)
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Sweetmeats
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Dirty doggies T_T
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Groceries
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Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia is one of top experiences in Asia. So, what are you waiting for? Just go there.. Where to go? wherever it is (in Bahasa Indonesia: Mau kemana? kemana aja boleh)
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