You can choose to visit Cambodia’s Angkor Archaeological Park in a single day, or for three or seven days. — Dreamstime/TNS
People tend to look at you funny when you say you’re going to Cambodia, as if maybe you’re a few fries short of a Happy Meal.
After all, it’s a small country that’s really, really far away (from the United States) and most of what people remember about it involves wars and other stuff like the Khmer Rouge.
But I’m here to tell you that those days are long gone. The Khmer Rouge was only in power for four years in the 1970s, and, while its impacts can still be felt, today’s Cambodia is a fabulous place to visit. Trust me. I just went there.
Not only do you have mind-boggling ancient ruins to explore, great food to eat, beautiful white sand beaches, mountains, forests, cheap massages and kind and friendly people everywhere, but it’s really cheap for Americans, thanks to a strong exchange rate.
The Ta Prohm temple in the ancient complex of Angkor Thom, is nicknamed the 'Tomb Raider' temple. — MARLA JO FISHER/The Press-Enterprise/TNS
The basics
Did I mention that it’s cheap?
Cambodia does have its own currency, which is called riels, but there’s 4,000 riels to the dollar, so most people just scratch their heads, give up and use dollars. So, yes, this is a country where you don’t have to stand around trying to do maths in your head to figure out how much that smoothie will cost. And the answer is: Probably less than you’d expect.
Most people go to Cambodia to visit Angkor Wat, which is the slightly inaccurate name for the largest religious complex ever built in the history of the world. It’s bigger than the Vatican City in Italy. Crazy, right? Especially if you’ve never heard of it.
Because Angkor is so much more than just the “wat”, which means monastery and is the name of the largest structure there.
Angkor was an ancient city and the headquarters of the Khmer Empire, which dominated much of South-East Asia for some 600 years.
I know, most people here have never even heard of it, but – trust me – if you like history, you’ll love this place. You can channel your internal Indiana Jones. If you saw the movie Lara Croft: Tomb Raider you’ve already seen Angkor, because the incredible Ta Prohm temple, which is being slowly overtaken by massive strangler fig trees, features prominently in it.If you like Thai food, you’ll love this place too because Cambodian food has some of the same roots. If you like to save money, you’ll love it, because – remember – it’s cheap for us.
Phnom Penh is a short flight away from Siem Reap so if you have the time, visit both cities. — Pexels
The remaining city of Ancient Angkor today includes 80 ancient stone temples, the most famous of which is Angkor Wat. Yes, I said 80 temples. Whew. And we’re not even talking about the other structures.
Now, I admit that during our nine days there, we only made it to four of the temples, but they were spectacular to visit. Each was unique and unforgettable.
Angkor Wat is the most important tourist attraction in Cambodia and is even featured on the Cambodian flag. It’s what is known as a “temple mountain”, an architectural representation of Mt Meru, which is sacred in the Hindu religion. So, yes, there are a lot of stairs.I’m not great at climbing stairs, so I didn’t explore the interiors of all of them, but just getting up to the entrance alone is a spectacular feeling.
Most tourists stay in the attractive city of Siem Reap – just outside the archaeological zone – and that’s where we based ourselves for nine days. I was worried that we’d be spending too much time in one place, but there were so many things to do in the area that we actually could have stayed longer happily.
By the way, Siem Reap is near the border of Thailand, so many people add it onto a trip to that fabulous country.
At one time, the Khmer Empire stretched far and wide, trading with India and China. The great temple complexes were originally Hindu, because that religion had found its way from India in the first century. Later, when most of the country became Buddhist, the temples were converted to Buddhist shrines.
Preah Sihanouk in Sihanoukville has gorgeous beaches. — Pexels
Things to do
So what if you want to visit?
Well, it’s possible to “do” the most famous sites in Angkor in one day, but that would be a very long, gruelling day spent traipsing from one temple to the next.
These days, I prefer a much more leisurely pace. I’m less interested in seeing everything, and more interested in enjoying what I see.
That’s why on this trip we didn’t even visit the capital city of Cambodia, Phnom Penh. Yes, there are plenty of attractions there, including a royal palace, boat cruises on the Mekong River and more. I’m not telling you that you shouldn’t go to Phnom Penh. I’m just admitting that we didn’t make it.
Because I’m lazy and I just wanted to loiter around Siem Reap.
Pub Street is Siem Reap’s most famous tourist attraction that has nothing to do with temples. As its name suggests, Pub Street is lined with pubs, bars, eateries and ... fish spas. — Dreamstime/TNS
The Khmer Empire fell around the 13th century, and eventually the country was invaded and then colonised by other lands. The French took over around 1884, in addition to their leadership role in neighbouring Vietnam.
This means that, today, there are crumbling examples of French architecture around the country. Sadly, most of them are in poor shape. It also means that the French had an influence on Cambodian cooking, as it did in Vietnam.
Cambodian cuisine is much older than Thai cooking, dating back to before Europeans began bringing hot chillies over that originally were discovered in Latin America.
Unlike in Thai food, where the chillies are mixed into the dish, Cambodians give you the spicy condiments on the side, so you can mix in as much or as little as you like.
And many people love to spend time at the beach resorts, which have become more accessible in recent years. Cambodia has a beautiful coastline off the Gulf of Thailand.
The islands off the coast of Sihanoukville offer crystal clear waters and a laid-back vibe, still mostly developed only with small hotels and businesses. People come here to relax on the powdery white-sand beaches, snorkel and scuba dive, hike in the jungle and just generally decompress.
Kep is another popular beach resort, less developed than Sihanoukville. We managed to slothfully also miss these destinations, even though they have a great reputation.
Instead, we devoted ourselves to the temples, to our hotel’s beautiful swimming pool, to eating and to visiting sites on day trips from town.
I’d hired a private driver guide, Dara Lann, and he took us on an unforgettable trip to Kulen Mountain. This mountain is considered sacred and has a long history of worship, dating back to the animism that was practised by the earliest humans.
It took about 90 minutes to get up the mountain – and cost us US$20 (RM88) each to enter the area. Dara stopped first to show us the spectacular gorge beneath us, and then we visited the sacred Kulen river.
Known as “The River Of 1,000 Lingas”, this area is known for its unique carvings that can be seen underneath the flowing water. Ancient peoples diverted the waterway and carved unique symbols of male and female, known as lingas, into the riverbed. This meant that the water flowing down the mountain along the river was blessed as it passed over the lingas on its way to Angkor Wat.
Other attractions on the sacred mountain include a visit to a sacred waterfall and swimming hole, and to the very top, where a massive image of a reclining Buddha was carved into the peak. Pilgrims climb the steep stairs daily to see the Buddha and leave offerings.
We bought a bouquet of white lotus flowers for US$1 (RM4.40) to leave as an offering.
On the way home from the sacred mountain, we stopped at one of the best-known temples in the area. Carved from pink limestone, Bantay Srei is known as the “temple of women” because of the beautiful images carved into the stone.
One of the challenges facing today’s Cambodia is trying to recover the many temple carvings that have been looted and sold over the centuries. Headless statues and missing decorations attest to the looting that has taken place, particularly during the terrible years of the Khmer Rouge, when starving villagers would sell anything to stay alive. Nowadays, though, Cambodians want to see their patrimony restored.
Although it seems like an exotic adventure, travel to Cambodia is not hard or complicated. Nearly everyone involved in tourism speaks at least a bit of English. It’s easy and inexpensive to hire a taxi or tuk-tuk (a motorised conveyance powered by a motorcycle engine) to take you anywhere you want to go.
Your hotel can help you find a guide, or travel agencies around the Pub Street tourist district can supply.
Yes, it’s far away (for Americans). We flew to Singapore and changed planes to Siem Reap. We spent 19 hours in the air. It was a party a minute. OK, I’m lying. But it was OK.
The Cambodian people might be the friendliest and most kind I’ve met in all my travels. When I would stand at the curb with my cane, evaluating what it would take to step down into the street, random strange guys would rush up to help me.
I’m not thinking that’s going to happen in Irvine (in California), but if it does, let me know. – Marla Jo Fisher/Tribune News Service
If you’re feeling adventurous, or if you’re not really a fan of Angkor Wat, then head to Khum Chi Phat in Koh Kong Province. — Pexels
Travel notes for Malaysia
- Most airlines in Malaysia fly direct to either Siem Reap or Phnom Penh in Cambodia. Flights are usually from the Kuala Lumpur International Airport and klia2.
- Most mid-range tourist hotels cost between RM150 and RM250, but you can get cheaper ones if you stay further away from tourist hotspots or the city. You can also splurge on luxury accommodations as resorts in Cambodia tend to be slightly cheaper than in other countries in South-East Asia.
- English-speaking guides are easy to find; do remember that they will also be the one to drive you around so if you get approached by someone who tells you that you need two separate people for these services, turn them down. Driver-guides will cost about RM100 to RM250 a day, depending on tour duration and type of vehicle. The tuk-tuk would be your cheapest option, but you can also ask for a car or van if your group is larger than three people.
- A day pass to the Angkor Archaeological Park is US$37 (RM163); a three-day pass is US$62 (RM273) and a one-week pass is US$72 (RM317). The day pass can be bought on the same day and are issued up to 5pm. If you get it after 5pm then the ticket may only be used the next day. The three-day pass is valid for 10 days from the issue date while the one-week pass is valid for one month after the issue date. This means that if you get either of the latter two passes, you don’t need to plan your visits on consecutive days. You can buy the Angkor Pass from the official ticket centre – the Angkor Ticket Office – near the Siem Reap town, or online.
- Most of the temples in the park can be visited from 7.30am to 5.30pm, but there are exceptions: Angkor Wat and Srah Srang can be visited from 5am to 5.30pm, so that visitors may be able to see the sunrise; Phnom Bakheng and Pre Rup can be visited from 5am to 7pm, so that visitors can watch the sunset.
- Admission passes are not refundable or transferable, as a digital photo of yourself that’s taken on the spot, will be printed on the tickets. Also, the admission fee does not include special permits for commercial picture taking or film shooting.
