Sunday, May 1, 2016

Siem Reap

I did not see much of Siem Reap during my visit, just a few blocks near my hotel. I stayed in the I Lodge, which is on the edge of the main tourist area of restaurants and shops. There is a night market, lots of bars and restaurants and many shops selling trinkets.
I saw groups of Chinese tourists come to the tourist area on, what else, tour buses. They were tourists seeing tourists. Kind of like the summer of 1969 when people would drive from out of town to midtown Atlanta to see the hippies.
It rained yesterday and that cooled things off for about twenty minutes. My hotel room was on the third floor and I had a little balcony looking over the back of a school building and a really narrow alley. I was on the balcony looking down at a roof two floors below and watched a rat walk over the roof.
I liked the hotel. I had AC, a clean bed and hot water in the shower. Breakfast was included and the room was $15 per night. The air conditioner was a bit noisy and it dripped water on the floor, but it cooled the room.
My Angkor pass was good for only three days, so I went out this morning to take a walk. I mostly stood near a busy intersection and took photos of traffic. I got a shot of a family of four all riding one motorcycle. They didn't have any pigs or chickens on board, though.
This was the first place I have been in a long time where the hotel rules posted on the door in my room specifically forbade prostitution. I assumed they didn't want the guests bringing in prostitutes. When I went out every evening for supper, men offered to procure women (and once, a boy) for me. I showed the first one my wedding ring but that didn't faze him. I just ignored them after that. I didn't get those offers in Bali, even when walking by myself in the evening. I guess it's a Siem Reap thing.

2 comments:

  1. As always, fun to read your comments. Thinking of Dad especially tomorrow, May 2. Sixty-three years ago . . .

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  2. Rat? Yikes!! But I'm glad you had a cool room and a hotel with no prostitutes!!😀 Sounds like there is a lot of fascinating activity there!

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