Siem Reap Tomb Raiders, Part 1

When the kids were little, I gave them a pile of cards filled with world landmarks, and would quiz them over and over again about places like Machu Picchu and the Great Wall of China and the Eiffel Tower. And there was one card that particularly captivated me, which seemed so exotic and faraway that it felt like a dream to ever visit. But perhaps all that day-dreaming, all those thoughts focused on this great wonder of the world, set something in motion in the Universe that cleared the path, and brought our family here to Cambodia to visit the largest religious site on earth, Angkor Wat. But we'll get there in the next post, because there's so much else to see in Siem Reap!

(Our music video vlog of this adventure is HERE)

Little did I know how my love affair with Angkor Wat would spread to all the other temples, too, and to the dizzying sights and traffic sounds and resilient, beaming faces of Cambodia. I fell head-over-heels for this place, my absolute favorite of this summer's adventure. 

Mount the tuk-tuk with our driver, Mr. Lee (we loved Lee!). I'll take you on a tour. 

We stayed at Model Angkor Resort, a gorgeous traditional Khmer style hotel and hidden gem that treated us to five-star luxury, two pools and free breakfast for only $100 per night. Seriously, we had to cross a bridge over a koi pond to get to our room! The staff--Sophy, Lee, Joy, etc.--treated us like royalty.

We arrived in the afternoon in a blanket of humidity at the nearby airport in Siem Reap, and after a swim at the hotel, decided to check our the Pre Rup Temple for sunset. It's a popular place!

  After sunset, we went to a large buffet to sample traditional Cambodian food and enjoy the Apsara dancing.

A thunderous monsoon began shaking the building midway through, and when we left our tuk-tuk driver had let down the tarps for one very wild ride through the flooded streets back to our hotel. It was such a fun adventure with the rain pelting down like cats and dogs and lightning flashing in the dark of night!

Our second day was a whirlwind temple tour I had arranged with the hotel and driver, taking us a bit off the main circuit and avoiding the crowds of tourists enjoying sunrise at Angkor Wat. Instead, we headed first to Banteay Kdei, and we had the place almost entirely to ourselves! After Angkor Wat, this temple was my favorite to explore.

Lorelei got a few fire ant bites. This line of ants stretched to the top of this huge column.

 The hat I'd purchased for $5 the day before fell on top of this! Eeeew.

 A random stranger found me and leached on to me, showing me all the best spots to take photos and insisting I take one every few seconds. I couldn't get him to leave me alone, and when he finally did, he asked for money. Gah! I gave him a dollar, a bit miffed. But I did at least get some nice shots of this boy who generally hates photos and insists on frowning in all of them, and now I'm pretty grateful.

 My favorite part of Banteay Kdei was this sweet woman who tied bracelets around our wrists and chanted a blessing for "good luck, long life." I've kept my bracelets, and the kids are still wearing theirs!

After Banteay Kdei, we traveled about 40 minutes out of Siem Reap to see Banteay Srei, the pink temple known as the Citadel of Women. 

 Banteay Srei is smaller than most temples, but its carvings are exquisite. Instead of a king, this temple was designed by a priest.

Look at that gorgeous squiggly writing!

Some hip monks in shades.

 Our next temple was Ta Prohm, made famous as the Tomb Raider temple with a jungle growing over it! It was cool.

Aaaaand this is how the kids were starting to feel as the heat of the jungle became suffocating...

 I was just in awe of the jungle creeping over these ruins. So beautiful!

 Happy kids-ha! Those tree roots snaked around like a python!

We lucked out that there wasn't a huge crowd at Ta Prohm, and after exploring to our hearts' delight, headed off for a great Cambodian lunch in the shade of the famous Bayon temple complex.

 We were missing our cats and decided to give this one a few scraps of chicken.

Next post, stay tuned for the Bayon, Angkor Wat, Ton le Sap lake and much more fun in one of our favorite places in the world!