In one of my posts in Italy, I wrote about the fact that some plans "seemed like a good idea at the time". The best laid plans...well let's just say I wish my bed at the hotel was just a bit softer to cushion my tender under and back side.
Happy Merry Christmas!!!
The day began with gifts from Santa and a lovely breakfast around our very own Christmas tree. Thank you Aldona!!!
Our goal today, visit the historical Angkor Wat temple and the other temples in the area. This temple was the site of many historical Buddhist pilgrimages and is tucked away amongst beautiful rivers and greenery. The morning started with an amazing breakfast of congee with salted duck egg and preserved veggies, Cambodian style pho and some other goodies like a papaya, dragon fruit and apple salad. Sated, we sat around the breakfast table plotting our next move. Janice, Rich and Rodney opted for the very sedate car and driver. Cat, George and I felt adventurous and decided to rent bicycles for a day. The map showed it was about 6 km to the temple site and there were two loops available to cyclists; a 20 and a 17 km route. Cat said "let's do the long route"! Sure. It's been a while since I've been on two wheels without a motor but I flashed back to my century ride days and figured this would be a breeze. What my memory conveniently failed to remind me was that those days were oh....6-7 years ago? But since I didn't remember, I happily went along with the plan as did George. I mean come on, it's 20 miles. Pshaw...what the hell can happen to us in 20 miles right?
The day began with gifts from Santa and a lovely breakfast around our very own Christmas tree. Thank you Aldona!!!
Our goal today, visit the historical Angkor Wat temple and the other temples in the area. This temple was the site of many historical Buddhist pilgrimages and is tucked away amongst beautiful rivers and greenery. The morning started with an amazing breakfast of congee with salted duck egg and preserved veggies, Cambodian style pho and some other goodies like a papaya, dragon fruit and apple salad. Sated, we sat around the breakfast table plotting our next move. Janice, Rich and Rodney opted for the very sedate car and driver. Cat, George and I felt adventurous and decided to rent bicycles for a day. The map showed it was about 6 km to the temple site and there were two loops available to cyclists; a 20 and a 17 km route. Cat said "let's do the long route"! Sure. It's been a while since I've been on two wheels without a motor but I flashed back to my century ride days and figured this would be a breeze. What my memory conveniently failed to remind me was that those days were oh....6-7 years ago? But since I didn't remember, I happily went along with the plan as did George. I mean come on, it's 20 miles. Pshaw...what the hell can happen to us in 20 miles right?
40 minutes later, we were shown to our two wheeled steeds. They were Trek and Giant, not too shabby. We got fitted for our helmets...well ok, we didnt REALLY get fitted, they basically guessed our head sizes and brought what they had...but at least we HAD helmets. Our assistants take off and we jump on our bikes. Cat stares at her bike, then looks at me asking "ok how do you shift this thing?" Ummm...what? "Oh, I haven't ridden a bike in about 20 years" chirps George and Cat has never ridden a mountain bike. Hmmm...this is getting interesting. I give them both a quick crash course in mountain biking and gears and push off.
Given the amount of traffic in Vietnam and Cambodia, we were a bit trepiditious about cycling but the road actually had a separate bicycle/scooter section that allowed us to ride in relative safety. We just had to worry about the spotty condition of the road, the dust and when we had to cross intersections. We followed the map provided by the hotel and made our first stop and the Angkor Wat ticket booth. The dust started getting to me, even wearing sunglasses so I made myself an impromptu mask with my scarf.
6 Miles
We finally reach Angkor Wat temple, dismount and chain our bikes together in case someone gets itchy fingers to take three beaten down bikes. The first view of the temple took my breath away. I just couldn't get the camera to really capture the immensity of the buildings but I tried.
We explore the nooks and crannies of what's left of the temple. I bet it was even more impressive in it's hay day. There was a man standing at one of the junctures and offered me some incense to place at the foot of the Buddha statue for good luck. I took it, knowing at some point he will ask me for a "donation". I bow three times at the Buddha and place the incense at it's foot. The compatriate of the guy who sold me the incense motioned for me to hug the statue which I did, then said I should kiss the statue which I definitely did not. They open a satchel for the donation with a sample $10 bill inside, uh huh...they got $1 and a smile.
Our exploration of the temple led us up and down stairs and various dark pathways. I placed my hand on one of the stone columns and felt a sense of peace. I can almost imagine all the monks that have graced these ruins and feel their prayers and blessings. It's not that I'm particularly religious, I just appreciate the history of these buildings and prefer those that were used for peace rather than violence.
I'm squishing George's head haha...
Our tour of Angkor Wat completed, we browse through some local shops across the street and pick up some t-shirts for $2. I also landed a beautiful painting and haggled them down to $25 from $40. I think I could have negotiated more but I was happy with $25.
We hop back on our bicycles to head to Angkor Thomm. Oooooowwwwww!!!! We all flinch as our tender bottoms touch the iron pads they call bike seats. We gingerly climb on and start peddling, hoping our bottoms would get used to the seats again soon. We ride through a stone gate along with other bicycles, tuk tuks and scooters. Our destination was Angkor Thomm but we missed it somehow. Ok, hate to say this but after a while all the temples look alike. As we rode, we pass some monkeys so decided to stop for a photo op.
9 Miles
We arrive at another temple called Bayon which is definitely after Angkor Thomm. We decide not to detour back and explore this temple instead. The amount of time spent at Bayon compared to Angkor Wat was exponentially less. But we got some good pics in.
We were getting tired, thirsty, hungry and slightly annoyed with the constant humidity. We spent about 30-45 minutes here and decide to search for food. We all realized we were ill prepared for our little excursion. We were out of water and had no snacks to replenish our quickly fading energy. We carefully mount our bikes again, grimacing in pain now and push off. Our goal was to find some food and if we fail in that....beer.
12 Miles
A few miles later, we happen across a crop of tents with more of the same souvenirs we saw earlier but oh wait...is that...BEER?!!! We quickly pull over, dismount and hobble bow legged over to the ice cart with bottles of beer advertising. I think Cat and George actually drooled. I opted for a diet coke. We rested our weary crotches on the dirty plastic seats by the ice cart and drank our beers and soda like we've never tasted anything better. At this point in time, I think all the memories of any other liquid that has every passed our parched lips have been eradicated from our memory. Oh.My.God. This was heaven.
As we sat in our bliss, a little girl walked over selling postcards. "Please, one dollar? I need money to go to school". Wow, they really have this down pat. Cat gets suckered in and buys 10 postcards for a dollar. As soon as she starts pulling out money, another little munchkin starts to crowd in on the action. "Please, one dollar?" What was this one hawking? Ah...magnets. Cat agrees to buy 3 for $2. A few more come over and we were done no matter how much money they "need for school".
Our beers/sodas finished, lighter on the cash and slightly more rested, we decide to take the shorter of the two routes home to save our butts. Yes pun intended. We eye our bikes with something almost close to hatred and push off for the last time that day...we hoped.
The last leg of the bike ride back to the hotel was brutal. Aching bodies, numb crotches, dust filled mouths and eyes were our constant companion. At one point we stopped to check our route and poor Cat actually whimpered "I'm so tired!" We get onto the main street heading South, yay...relief was just that much closer. A red light halts our progress and I put my right leg down as I stop...and my entire body went down with it. There was literally no strength in my legs and it just gave out landing me on my ass on the sidewalk. I couldn't stop laughing hysterically as Cat and George jump off their bikes to help me up. I could barely stand my legs were quaking from fatigue. We considered just dumping our bikes onto a tuk tuk and riding our assess back but NO! We will prevail! We will NOT give up!
We finally turn onto the main street of the hotel. You know how sometimes you go somewhere and the return trip seems so much shorter? Yea well, this was not one of those times. Where the fuck was our hotel?!!! Was it REALLY this far?!!! We pedal with our frozen legs because it's all we can do. Wait...is that our hotel? No...shit. Pedal, pedal, pedal...
Our hotel was called the Angkor Miracle Resort and Spa. Well named as it was a fucking miracle we made it back in one piece and not dead from hunger, exhaustion and dehydration. We gratefully return the bikes and walk with quivering bowed legs through the lobby and head straight to our rooms to take a shower. I toss myself on the bed and.....HOLY MOTHER OF GOD!!! My crotch screamed in protest and I almost jumped back off the bed. Ooooowwwwiiieeeee...
Showered and slightly refreshed, Cat and I meet up with George to head downstairs for dinner. We couldn't find Janice, Rich or Rodney so we decided to eat in the hotel restaurant. We were just too tired to go anywhere else. We had a wonderful meal of calamari with sticky black rice and pomelo, spring rolls and crunchy rice crackers with minced pork in a coconut curry sauce. We reminisce about the day and despite the pain we went through, we wouldn't have traded one minute of our experience for the world. Adventures like these are what the best travel stories are made of. We laughed about the bike ride and that we thought we could do 20 miles unscathed, the fact that I wanted to pet a monkey, about the kids peddling magnets and postcards and the fact that we probably would have paid $10 for a beer if it had come down to it. We were very proud of ourselves and named ourselves "Team Angkor Wat".
Go Team!!!
Given the amount of traffic in Vietnam and Cambodia, we were a bit trepiditious about cycling but the road actually had a separate bicycle/scooter section that allowed us to ride in relative safety. We just had to worry about the spotty condition of the road, the dust and when we had to cross intersections. We followed the map provided by the hotel and made our first stop and the Angkor Wat ticket booth. The dust started getting to me, even wearing sunglasses so I made myself an impromptu mask with my scarf.
6 Miles
We finally reach Angkor Wat temple, dismount and chain our bikes together in case someone gets itchy fingers to take three beaten down bikes. The first view of the temple took my breath away. I just couldn't get the camera to really capture the immensity of the buildings but I tried.
We explore the nooks and crannies of what's left of the temple. I bet it was even more impressive in it's hay day. There was a man standing at one of the junctures and offered me some incense to place at the foot of the Buddha statue for good luck. I took it, knowing at some point he will ask me for a "donation". I bow three times at the Buddha and place the incense at it's foot. The compatriate of the guy who sold me the incense motioned for me to hug the statue which I did, then said I should kiss the statue which I definitely did not. They open a satchel for the donation with a sample $10 bill inside, uh huh...they got $1 and a smile.
Our exploration of the temple led us up and down stairs and various dark pathways. I placed my hand on one of the stone columns and felt a sense of peace. I can almost imagine all the monks that have graced these ruins and feel their prayers and blessings. It's not that I'm particularly religious, I just appreciate the history of these buildings and prefer those that were used for peace rather than violence.
I'm squishing George's head haha...
Our tour of Angkor Wat completed, we browse through some local shops across the street and pick up some t-shirts for $2. I also landed a beautiful painting and haggled them down to $25 from $40. I think I could have negotiated more but I was happy with $25.
We hop back on our bicycles to head to Angkor Thomm. Oooooowwwwww!!!! We all flinch as our tender bottoms touch the iron pads they call bike seats. We gingerly climb on and start peddling, hoping our bottoms would get used to the seats again soon. We ride through a stone gate along with other bicycles, tuk tuks and scooters. Our destination was Angkor Thomm but we missed it somehow. Ok, hate to say this but after a while all the temples look alike. As we rode, we pass some monkeys so decided to stop for a photo op.
9 Miles
We arrive at another temple called Bayon which is definitely after Angkor Thomm. We decide not to detour back and explore this temple instead. The amount of time spent at Bayon compared to Angkor Wat was exponentially less. But we got some good pics in.
We were getting tired, thirsty, hungry and slightly annoyed with the constant humidity. We spent about 30-45 minutes here and decide to search for food. We all realized we were ill prepared for our little excursion. We were out of water and had no snacks to replenish our quickly fading energy. We carefully mount our bikes again, grimacing in pain now and push off. Our goal was to find some food and if we fail in that....beer.
12 Miles
A few miles later, we happen across a crop of tents with more of the same souvenirs we saw earlier but oh wait...is that...BEER?!!! We quickly pull over, dismount and hobble bow legged over to the ice cart with bottles of beer advertising. I think Cat and George actually drooled. I opted for a diet coke. We rested our weary crotches on the dirty plastic seats by the ice cart and drank our beers and soda like we've never tasted anything better. At this point in time, I think all the memories of any other liquid that has every passed our parched lips have been eradicated from our memory. Oh.My.God. This was heaven.
As we sat in our bliss, a little girl walked over selling postcards. "Please, one dollar? I need money to go to school". Wow, they really have this down pat. Cat gets suckered in and buys 10 postcards for a dollar. As soon as she starts pulling out money, another little munchkin starts to crowd in on the action. "Please, one dollar?" What was this one hawking? Ah...magnets. Cat agrees to buy 3 for $2. A few more come over and we were done no matter how much money they "need for school".
Our beers/sodas finished, lighter on the cash and slightly more rested, we decide to take the shorter of the two routes home to save our butts. Yes pun intended. We eye our bikes with something almost close to hatred and push off for the last time that day...we hoped.
The last leg of the bike ride back to the hotel was brutal. Aching bodies, numb crotches, dust filled mouths and eyes were our constant companion. At one point we stopped to check our route and poor Cat actually whimpered "I'm so tired!" We get onto the main street heading South, yay...relief was just that much closer. A red light halts our progress and I put my right leg down as I stop...and my entire body went down with it. There was literally no strength in my legs and it just gave out landing me on my ass on the sidewalk. I couldn't stop laughing hysterically as Cat and George jump off their bikes to help me up. I could barely stand my legs were quaking from fatigue. We considered just dumping our bikes onto a tuk tuk and riding our assess back but NO! We will prevail! We will NOT give up!
We finally turn onto the main street of the hotel. You know how sometimes you go somewhere and the return trip seems so much shorter? Yea well, this was not one of those times. Where the fuck was our hotel?!!! Was it REALLY this far?!!! We pedal with our frozen legs because it's all we can do. Wait...is that our hotel? No...shit. Pedal, pedal, pedal...
Our hotel was called the Angkor Miracle Resort and Spa. Well named as it was a fucking miracle we made it back in one piece and not dead from hunger, exhaustion and dehydration. We gratefully return the bikes and walk with quivering bowed legs through the lobby and head straight to our rooms to take a shower. I toss myself on the bed and.....HOLY MOTHER OF GOD!!! My crotch screamed in protest and I almost jumped back off the bed. Ooooowwwwiiieeeee...
Showered and slightly refreshed, Cat and I meet up with George to head downstairs for dinner. We couldn't find Janice, Rich or Rodney so we decided to eat in the hotel restaurant. We were just too tired to go anywhere else. We had a wonderful meal of calamari with sticky black rice and pomelo, spring rolls and crunchy rice crackers with minced pork in a coconut curry sauce. We reminisce about the day and despite the pain we went through, we wouldn't have traded one minute of our experience for the world. Adventures like these are what the best travel stories are made of. We laughed about the bike ride and that we thought we could do 20 miles unscathed, the fact that I wanted to pet a monkey, about the kids peddling magnets and postcards and the fact that we probably would have paid $10 for a beer if it had come down to it. We were very proud of ourselves and named ourselves "Team Angkor Wat".
Go Team!!!
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