That Thursday morning I was up by 4 a.m. For the second time in a row. I almost had everything packed the night before and yet I forgot my hat. Sun lotion. No hat. Genius.
I drove myself to KL Sentral to catch the bus to LCCT. I asked Deb to wait for me just in case the buses are full. Luckily I managed to get a seat and the bus won’t be leaving for the next 15 minutes. I had time to kill. Then I realized I forgot my earphones. Double genius. No McDonald’s cone sundae, I sat there hoping to catch some sleep. I actually did, on and off, when the bus wasn’t trying to turn a sharp corner.
The flight was smooth. I had my coffee and that was enough to keep me happy. As I walked out of the airport, I scanned the airport lobby for Song. He said he’ll be waiting for me with a piece of paper with my name on it, but I never saw it. I quickly called him and there he is amongst the many tuk tuk drivers waiting for their customers. I shook hands with Song (force of habit), forgetting that they greet people slightly different in Cambodia, I hoped he didn’t mind. On the way to Tara, where I’ll be staying for the next 3 days, I let the breeze run through my fingers and my red scarf blowing in the wind. It sure feels like being in a 60s movie, driving around in an old convertible. What I didn’t have is a pair of Jackie O sunglasses.
The welcome drink in Tara is lemongrass tea, I love that stuff. In fact everything smells of fresh lemongrass.
Then Rizwan showed up. A face I hadn’t seen for….less than 24 hours.
The room wasn’t ready so we decided to go for a bit of sight seeing and we decided on Kampung Pluk. It’s a village just about an hour out of Siem Riep and to get there you’ll need to take a boat. It’s USD30 per head for the half hour boat ride.
The houses on Kampung Pluk are built on high stilts. During the wet season the road is submerged underwater and the villagers get around by small boats. There are places very similar to this especially in East Malaysia, the only possible difference is that Siem Riep is just flat land as far as the eyes can see. We had to cut short our trip and head back to Tara, for the rest of the day, I slept with the TV on, while Rizwan left for a meeting.
The next day was another early morning. By 5 a.m. we were on our way to Angkor. We were (well, maybe I was) adamant to catch the sunrise. The crowd kept coming and I guess that took away a little bit of the excitement. It wasn’t the best sunrise, but I have absolutely no complaint about the company. That morning Rizwan and I just walked around Angkor Wat, for most part it was just the two of us. Where the crowd disappeared to bewilders us still. It was quiet, it was beautiful and the sun was just coming up. I especially love how the early morning light penetrates lazily through the temple cracks. To think it’s been doing that for centuries now, and to think how many have actually gazed out through those same stone openings, is just beyond captivating.
Then we said goodbye, temporarily, to have breakfast back at Tara and nap. We were back at Angkor later that afternoon, until sunset. We stopped by at the local funfair on the way back. It was so colourful and vibrant. We played a round of shoot the balloons each and won prizes. We let Song choose one for his children, and he picked a lovely doll for his daughter. What I found cool were the mats they laid out along the road near the food stalls. What you can do is pay a small fee to sit and enjoy your food there, out in the open and equipped only with a candle. Back to Tara after that. End of Day 2.
The last day was spent wandering around the streets of Siem Riep, trying out the food, just a chilled out day, taking more photos. We had lunch at Khmer Kitchen and dessert at the Blue Pumpkin – simply awesome! We maximized our time before the long bus ride to Phnom Penh the next morning, where I’d be catching my flight back to Kuala Lumpur. We ended the evening by attending the Beatacello concert and drinks in town.
I hate when trips like this feel like it goes by too quick, this one was no exception. But that was outweighed by how everything falls in place nicely. The flight back was bumpy, but all I see is the slow transformation of light to darkness, aptly marking the end of my journey, and I can’t wait to embark on a new one.
break
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