Rest Day Siem Reap: Seeing Siem Reap

December 29, 2006

The streets are almost empty of tourists, we find breakfast at the Balcony Cafe, across from the Red Piano. Patrick has muesli fruit and yogurt, Rachel a cheese and onion omelette, croissant Baguette, pineapple juice and coffee.

After breakfast, Patrick goes to an internet cafe, Rachel to walk through the old market. At 3:30pm Thomas had suggested we ride to the "pier" where the boat to Battambang leaves as reconnaissance, it is only a 40min ride. A good idea to do a test ride, since the boat leaves very early.

We cycle to the floating village on a flat, pretty straight asphalt road until the end where we turn left through the "floating village" on a bumpy dusty road and the anarchy of traffic: tour busses, motorcycles, trucks loaded with goods, weaving in and out of traffic. The road is lined with shacks, little kids run naked (Patrick said there must be a naked boy gang), one truck was moving a house.

Eventually we get to the end and see the long boats we will be on to Battambang. On the way back down the road we see men crushing ice blocks. The ice is stored in sawdust, and with a hook, the four foot long blocks are dragged out and dusted off then lift into the crusher and collected into a large bag. A man carries this bag to one of the big coolers that is the refrigeration for the people and for the seafood caught from the lake. We ride back to Siem Reap at dusk.

For dinner, we have Mexican food, a chimichanga, chips and salsa, chicken fajitas and Frozen Margarita and beer.

Imagine such good food in Cambodia!