A banner in front of a temple. Back when I worked for an airline in Bangkok, I encountered a fair bit of human trafficking. If an inadmissible person was sent back to Bangkok, we were stuck if they did not have their real travel documents with them because they could not reenter Thailand. The solution was to send the trafficked person to Cambodia. The syndicates who smuggled them would send a runner with the trafficked persons real passport and a ticket to Cambodia. From Cambodia, they would once again make their way back to Bangkok for another shot. It was a bad situation, and one where I was helpless to do much.
As I mentioned in my previous blog, I found myself with extra time on my hands in Singapore because I didnt have to begin working on certain family logistics. I therefore decided to cut short my time there to spend a few days exploring a site Ive always wanted to visit. As an added bonus, I figured Angkor would be without the tourist hordes, which made this an even more attractive time to visit.
I arrived in a rainy Siem Reap late morning on Wednesday. As soon as I checked in to my I headed out the door to explore Siem Reap. My first impression was that there were lots of Prius (Prii?) on the road. Siem Reap felt like your typical Southeast Asian tourist boomtown; you see lots of motorcycles, a mix of independent and hotel chains, a few small malls, Starbucks, and fancy coffee shops with English signage. I even saw a vet clinic with signage saying they can arrange the logistics to get lucky animals who have been adopted by foreigners to their new homes. But, these establishments were mostly empty, and it is clear that Cambodias tourism industry hasnt recovered. Especially telling were
Caged birds at a temple. To make merit, Buddhists would buy these birds and release them. Most of them end up getting caught again and sold again.
a couple of empty large restaurants with huge parking lots - usually such establishments cater to large tour groups.
After walking around a bit, I chose the venue for my first Cambodian meal - a hole in the wall establishment with locals and no tourists. The proprietor barely spoke English, so I pointed at pictures and ended up with a watery curry. After eating, I wandered into a supermarket for some provisions. There, I saw Cambodias dual currency system in full swing. In general, foreigners are expected to pay in USD. However, Cambodia does not seem to utilize US coins, so change is given in riels, at a slightly advantageous exchange rate to the vendor, I might add. But, since riels in multiples of one hundred, you cant fault the establishments for rounding down. Even the cash register was programmed to calculate the change in riels.
After some more wandering, I returned to my as the dark clouds looked threatening. True enough, it started to rain soon after. That night, I woke up several times to the sound of torrential downpours.
Phoan toying with the motorbike in a desperate attempt to repair it while I went to purchase my ticket.
powered by a motorcycle - to take me to the temples. I declined to hire a guide because even though I would learn more with a guide, I prefer to explore on my own terms. Besides, having a guide tell you things sometimes dampens my sense of awe. I decided that I would simply follow the greatest hits itinerary and cover the Small Circuit in one day, and the Grand Circuit the next. The going rate was USD15 for the former and USD18 for the latter. As this was the tail end of the rainy season, I didnt even bother with a sunrise or sunset trip given the amount of cloud cover.
Phoan, my driver, met me and we set off for the ticket office. We bounced along the wet, badly potholed backroads of Siem Reap and then joined the well maintained highway to the ticket office. It seemed as if Phoans motorbike was underpowered. En route, the first signs of trouble emerged: I heard the engine backfire.
