| Independent travel has been great, but after 4 | | | | seconds, bent down and grabbed the bottle sitting |
| months on the road all the planning and organizing | | | | near Brian’s feet, and ran off. Everyone in |
| was getting a bit tiresome. We booked an | | | | our group just watched in a combination of |
| 18-day guided tour that would take us from | | | | amusement and sadness…then clutched their |
| Bangkok all the way through Cambodia and | | | | belongings a little tighter. |
| Vietnam with the luxury of nearly everything | | | | Day two, and three, and four brought us on a |
| being planned for us. | | | | guided tour of the famous Angkor Temples which |
| In Bangkok we met up with our group of 11 | | | | were built between the 8th and 13th centuries |
| fellow travelers, as well as our guide and a new | | | | and are spread out over about 40 miles around |
| trainee. As it turns out, everyone has been great | | | | the village of Siem Reap. Some were in nearly |
| and our group is getting along quite nicely. | | | | complete ruin, some in the middle of restoration, |
| The first part of our tour took us into Siem Reap, | | | | and some in surprisingly great condition considering |
| our first stop in Cambodia. Before I get any | | | | they are a tiny bit old. For you movie buffs, the |
| further, I’d like to go over some shocking | | | | Angelina Jolie movie Tomb Raider was filmed in |
| statistics. The average age in Cambodia is 57. | | | | one of the jungle temples there. |
| About 50% of the population is under the age of | | | | While in Siem Reap we also took a boat ride on |
| 18. Their literacy rate is said to be between | | | | lake Tonle Sap which is home to a floating village |
| 40-50%. And about 1/3 of their population lives | | | | of houseboats, floating stores and churches, even |
| on less than $1 USD per day. Another | | | | a boat that serves as a basketball court. We did |
| interesting fact??? 80% of all visitors to Siem | | | | some shopping around the temples and in Siem |
| Reap are either Japanese, Korean, or Chinese. | | | | Reap, because every few feet there are children |
| Getting from Bangkok to Siem Reap involved a | | | | surrounding you begging you to buy there |
| 12 hour bus ride across the boarder, of which the | | | | bracelets/scarves/books /etc. We’ve also |
| last 160 kilometers were on a very bumpy and | | | | done a lot of eating - Cambodian Khmer food is |
| unmaintained gravel road. At one point our bus | | | | very tasty. Lots of pumpkin, coconut sauce, and |
| had to stop for repairs as we had 3 flat tires. | | | | fresh fruit. |
| As we crossed from Thailand to Cambodia the | | | | So far our travels in Cambodia have surpassed |
| changes were immediate. Garbage was | | | | our expectations. Next stop? Phnom Penh. |
| everywhere you looked, piled high in fields and | | | | Stay tuned….. |
| ditches. At the boarder we had to get off the | | | | Author: Anne |
| bus, walk through customs, and wait on the | | | | Source: The Hallgrens’ Blog - RealtravelThey |
| Cambodia side to be picked up again. Brian | | | | are traveling as a couple in their 30s from Belle |
| managed to get robbed in the first 5 minutes in | | | | Plaine. They decided to quit their jobs, sell their |
| Cambodia, luckily it was only his bottle of water. | | | | house in the suburbs, and spend time exploring |
| A young barefoot and filthy boy walked very | | | | the world. |
| slowly up to him, looked him in the eye for a few | | | | |