EagleEyedMo – Page 5 – TravelArtFood

Little Paradise

I was very lucky again in my choice of accommodation. This small resort was a collection of bungalows and traditional bamboo houses, set in a tropical garden with a perfect pool and a spa.
I had a facial which included neck, head, and foot massage while my face was plastered with freshly cut cucumber strips. Pure bliss. Wish I had a picture of my face. One could also chose mango or papaya masks.

Located between Siem Reap and Angkor it is away from the noise and hustle, making it very quiet and peaceful, unless a neighbouring site has karaoke night on Saturdays and nobody can sing.
The markets of Siem Reap and the nightlife of Pubstreet is only a short trip by tuk-tuk.

It is also only 15 minutes by bicycle to Angkor Wat via a not so busy side road which influenced my decision.
I had initially planned 7 nights but extended to 13. The joy of no time restrictions.

The food is excellent too. Lots of Khmer dishes to try. And the fresh fruits and coconuts, omg… Photos to follow.
The staff is very pleasant and helpful, often up for a chat. Highly recommend this resort.

Angkor by bicycle

A dream has come true: I am exploring the Angkor Wat archeological park on a bicycle!

Cycling was easy. Even though there is busy traffic at times everyone was overtaking me slowly and carefully. Often there was a cycling lane which was also used by mopeds. Such fun, and environmentally friendly.

Given the detrimental effect of emissions on any type of structures, but especially those made of sandstone, I am astonished about the amount of tuktuks, mopeds, cars and mini-buses driving through the historic sites daily.

I wanted to see Angkor Wat first but when I arrived several big coaches were spilling out people… couldn’t cope with that so I just cycled past towards Angkor Thom, the other big temple complex.

My hotel is the purple X at bottom. Only 15 minutes to Angkor Wat.

Rong Lmung Temple – not much to see but as it was my first temple to visit, this small tower has a special place in my heart.

My bicycle has a basket 😀 so convenient.

Cambodia, here I come

Visiting Cambodia has been on my wish list for a long, long time. And now I am actually here! I still can’t believe it.

Then the clouds opened and revealed lots of flooded areas. I learned later that some areas are always flooded during monsoon season but dry out afterwards.

I landed at the recently opened new Siem Reap Angkor International Airport. The terminal building has temple-style roofs.

I had to get a visa upon arrival. You can get an eVisa online in advance but it is not necessarily recognised when crossing rural borders later by bus or boat.
There were 6 officers sitting next to each other. I was expecting them all to serve directly but no, they were more like a production line. Officer number 1 took your passport, checked it and handed it to the next. Not sure what number 2 did. Number 3 took the payment. Number 4 printed visa label. Number 5 pulled off the back and stuck the label into passport. Number 6 put two stamps on the visa and handed them back. A well organised process. Guess which number was a women.

Anyway, my hotel had organised a pick-up and off I went on my first trip through Cambodian countryside. As the airport is new, so are the roads and therefore there is not much green yet but still mainly red soil. Not much traffic either until we got to Siem Real. Takes 45 minutes from airport.

First interesting things I’ve seen! Who doesn’t love transformers?

After checking in at the hotel and getting refreshed (the humidity hits you every time you leave air conditioned areas) I was off to get the 7-day-ticket for the Angkor Wat archeological park, the very reason for me being here. A short tuk-tuk ride away with a quick tour through Siem Reap.

Bangkok Graffiti

Big Buddha in Bangkok

Having seen the buddha on Instagram, Elena and me decided to hop on a local bus and head over. We literally had to jump into the bus as the driver swerved over 2 lanes to get to us, opened the back door but barely slowed down. Elena jumped in first then helped me inside while hanging on a seat for dear life. Good grief! The ticket lady looked slightly amused. Well, we were not. We were relieved to be uninjured. But now we have a dramatic tale to tell, right?

The Royal Wat Paknam Phasi Charoen temple on the outskirts of Bangkok dates back to 1610 and is located on an island created by canals flowing from the Chao Phraya river.

In 2022 construction on a 69-meter-tall (230 ft) Buddha statue that will be visible across Bangkok finished. 69 meter, that’s like a 20-storey house. Paid for with $16 million worth of donations. Wowser.

Bangkok Impressions

Wat Suthat Thepwararam Ratchaworamahawihan and the Giant Swing

Wat Ratchanatdaram Worawihan

This big Buddhist temple complex near the Golden Mount contains a Loha Prasat, known as the “metal castle” for its 37 iron spires.

The architecture is unusual, almost like a maze. Every level represents a level of meditation. The view from the top is worth the climb.

The Golden Mount peeps over the roof of the temple

River Cruise and Chinatown

One evening I helped a girl with too much luggage to get to her hostel. That’s how I met Elena from Miami.
The next day we hopped on a local ferry and headed down river to Chinatown. We both were not impressed, having experienced Chinatowns of NYC and London before. It also rained which didn’t help.

Here some impressions from the river:

And here some impressions from Chinatown:

The King and Us

On November 7th, the King & Queen of Thailand visited the temple Wat Bowonniwetwiharn Ratchaworawiharn.

I had witnessed the preparations for an event on my visit to the temple and had asked a lady cleaning golden carvings with a soapy toothbrush for details. So on the day of the royal visit I was amongst a handful of tourists allowed to sit together with hundreds of locals on the street curbs opposite the temple to watch the royals arrive.

As one would expect, there was a lot of military, security, spectator group leaders but also tourist officers. The latter questioned me and other tourists coming up to the barriers about our intensions. “We would like to see your King and Queen”. That seemed to be the right answer and he guided us to places were mats had been put down to protect our clothing. As with lots of other places, especially temples, you had to take off your shoes.

The first marching band of two arrived, and so did the first drops of rain.

We tourists all scrambled under awnings. Mats were rolled up. Hardcore locals did not get up. They had been waiting for hours to ensure first row curb seats. They came prepared. Rain ponchos were handed out.

The locals were shouting the King’s name. He is well liked amongst his people.

My friend Malcolm will appreciate the beautiful Rolls-Royce. It reminded me of his novel, The Tiger’s Ghost; a Rolls-Royce plays a prominent role in it. Great story. Check it out on Amazon.

I got a proper look at the King and Queen when they left and drove past us again. I just forgot to turn on my video, blonde me.
And yes, we all waited over an hour for the whole entourage to come back. But it was raining anyway and nobody wanted to get drenched.

I later saw a report of the visit on TV. I felt very lucky to have witnessed this in person, on my first visit to Thailand no less.

Wat Bowonniwet

This was the first temple I visited in Bangkok. Located not far from my hotel and close to Khao San street I walked past it on my way to the Grand Palace.

Full name Wat Bowonniwetwiharn Ratchaworawiharn is a major buddhist temple under patronage of the Chakri Dynasty. Many royal princes and kings studied and served their monk hood here. This includes the late King Bhumibol (Rama IX) who is also laid to rest here, as well as the current King Vajiralongkorn (Rama X).

Another former king of the Chakri Dynasty, King Vajiravudh (Rama VI), is also laid to rest here.

The day I visited a lot of cleaning (all the intricate golden carvings with toothbrushes!), tree cutting (health and safety would have had a fit) and decorating was taking place. The reason will become clear in my next post.