If you land in Siem Reap then you have one primary reason for being here… Anghor What.
But on the days you’re not visiting start by slowing down!
We had been travelling a lot and this morning we had a slow start, a leisurely cooked breakfast and then simple chill time reading and relaxing by the pool.
At 12 noon Wing and his ‘tuk tuk’.
Took us to ‘Sojourn’ a hotel with villas on the edge of the town for an authentic Cambodian cooking class.
The journey was bumpy as the roads of the main arteries are really in bad condition after the monsoon season.
This remote hotel whilst modern was set amongst the rural community.
Together with another English couple we took part in an authentic cooking class, preparing a three course meal.
We started by visiting a local family to understand their way of life. They were given rice, so benefit from our visit and we ended by eating the meal and returning to our hotel the way we came, by ‘tuk tuk’.
An authentic Cambodian cookery class was an excellent way to spend our afternoon and highly recommended.
The afternoon ended with reading time by the pool and feeding time for the mosquitos, before showering and exploring Siem Riep at night.
Taking a short ‘tuk tuk’ to the centre of Siem Reap to visit its many night markets, restaurants and famous Pub Street reveals another side of the town that caters for every taste, from loud bands, busy and noisy streets to the quieter more serene river side stroll.
No offence is intended by Cambodian people but bargaining is a cultural practice .. starting high and sounding desperate with fallen prices… saying no just means that the price falls. Saying bye bye is hopeless and a savvy young man selling magnets summed up this practice well… “bye bye .. you buy” in other words they’ll stop bothering you once you’ve bought something.
This place is becoming very popular and attracting big names such as the Hardrock Café found in New York, London and Paris.
Whilst this is no Las Vegas, this could be the embryo of things to come .. personally I prefer authentic Cambodian culture and less of a western influence!
