Cambodia

Hi everyone,

It is a sad thing to have to say our time in Cambodia is quickly coming to an end. We just received our Visas for Vietnam and we are planning to head out early tomorrow morning for a new adventure in a new country. I will just give a quick re-cap of the places we've been and all that we've seen.

Siam Reap
We first crossed the border from Thailand and headed to this tourist town that is the starting point for trips to Angkor Wat. Although it is possible to see Angkor wat in 1-3 days we decided to take the whole week just to relax and re-coup from 3 intense days of sight-seeing. We rented bicycles and rode them almost the whole way around the 22 km loop that connects most of the main sites. Angkor Wat is the most well-known name for what is actually a huge complex full of ancient temples and cities that thrived during the Angkor period, which was about 10th or 11th century AD.
So, as you can imagine, much of these ruins have been overgrown with towering trees and lush green jungle vegetation. It was amazing; beautiful; and breathtaking. We had such an amazing time cycling under these huge green canopies of trees and wandering through ancient runs. In some places the trees have grown right out of the rubble, wrapping their thick roots around the old stones. It is amazing. We both had a really good time here.

I also got to spend some time chatting on the phone with both my sisters and their little boys. It is not something I get to do all the time because it can be expensive but it was so so so amazing to hear their voices!

From Siam Reap we took a bus to Battamabang (I'm sorry if this is misspelled), where we got a more "authentic" view of a town that exposes more of Cambodia's daily life, as well as it's horrific recent history of genocide. A very poignant experience was visiting what are called the "Killing Caves" which were used for horrific purposes in the 1970's by the Khmer Rouge. What was even more striking was the fact that we were lead to these caves by a 10 year old by who skipped along and swung on trees as most 10 year old boys do. We walked into the cave, my hear beating rapidly, Carmen and I both very somber and speechless, with a 10 year old boy who really should be able to learn in school and play with other kids. He should not have the daily task of leading foreigners to a mass genocide site where they say 10,000 people were killed and where their bones are still there for everyone to see. So this was pretty sad and hard for us to wrap our heads around.

That day was full of other activities as Carmen and I decided to "embrace" the town and let the local guides lead us to some different sites (one being a "raft" made of bamboo that they attach to the train tracks and ride a good few km's on). We listened to their talk of Cambodian life and we both had a really good time. On the way back we passed a foundation started in the name of "Maddox Jolee-Pitt" for some humanitarian efforts in the town. Apparently Brad and Angelina come to this nondescript town often, and are doing some good things there in the name of their Son. They say the have seen Brad Pitt riding motorcycles around the town, and he seems pretty happy that not a lot of local Cambodians flock to him for autographs. Too bad Brad and Angelina were not at the place when we stopped by.

From Battamabang we took the bus to Phnom Penh, where we have spent the past few days waiting for Viet Nam visas, as well as sorting out some problems with my USB stick. I guess it is pretty ironic that in a country plagued with such a tragic past that something of a personal problem would happen to me. In any other county, finding out that 3/4ths of all my pictures have been deleted by a virus, I might have reacted differently. I might have gotten really upset and thought that life was not fair. Being in Cambodia, being overshadowed by a history of a genocide, I feel that my pictures are just pictures, that life will go on, that I can be happy that worse things have not happened to me or my life. I honestly don't care about my pictures right now! I'm just glad I have the memories in my head (and some on facebook!), if at all. And besides, we still have all Carmen's pictures...

As I'm writing Carmen has decided he wants to see a Museum in the city that is a perfectly preserved torture chamber from the Khmer Rouge period. Reading the description I opted out, feeling like it was just a bit too real, a bit too heavy for me to handle. But Carmen is a strong person and I'm sure he is going to have a lot to say about it.

On a lighter note, we have come to love the humor of the Cambodian people. Wherever we go we were greeted with huge smiles; people who sing and whistle; people who are always willing to help us if we have any questions; people who laugh out loud; people who eat most of their dinners communally; people who swing in hammocks and giggle with their little ones; people who build their businesses out of their houses, therefore always inviting us into their living spaces.

It is safe to say that we had an amazing time here, even though we were only able to visit three towns.

We will take these lessons with us as we keep on travelling.

xoxo
marcie+carmen