Our last day in Cambodia we rented ATVs and went out into the countryside. It was such a fun way to see more of the "real" Cambodia.
There were many small farms with cows everywhere.
A stop on our ATV tour. We had some spectators- notice the children in the background.
Saying hello. The children were always so friendly and had the biggest smiles. We waved to so many along our route.
Monkeys in a tree.
Water buffalo on our ride.
The entire trip was so much fun and was full of new experiences for all of us. I left with a renewed sense of just how blessed we truly are. Our problems don't compare with what these people face everyday. It was a beautiful country with beautiful people and we hope to go back someday.
We started day 3 with a van ride to Tonle Sap Lake. We saw many homes and structures on our way to the lake. All built on stilts to be prepared for rainy season. We counted over 20 "stray" dogs on our drive and several "stray" cows. Jae said that if we let the Cedar Bend Humane society know about the dogs, that they'll want to help.
Once we boarded our boat, we made our way down a canal towards the lake. There were many people fishing. Some stood in the water with nets and others were in boats. These boys' boat was taking on water.
Once we got onto the lake we could see the floating village. Many houseboats all anchored in the same area.
Another houseboat in the same area.
And another.
This is the floating school. We also saw a floating church and a floating market.
Tourist boats tied up. We got off to look at a crocodile and catfish farm on another floating structure.
Getting back on the boat. It was truly an eye-opening and humbling experience. We saw so many children playing in that water. Ra told us the life expectancy in Cambodia is very low, party because of disease and no health care. He also told us they pull 7 million snakes out of that lake every year! Snake was on our hotel menu.
A woman near Old Market selling snails. We did some shopping and had $1.50 margaritas with lunch! That's 1/10 the price of having one in Singapore.
After another swim in the pool, we headed off in our tuk tuks for dinner once again. And we did have the Amok for the third night in a row. Delicious!
We woke up Friday morning and found Tuna- the hotel dog- outside our door. Jae was thrilled!
Our friends the Heinrichs spent this trip with us. This is our guide "Ra" drawing a map of Ta Prohm, the first temple we saw.
Ta Prohm was incredible. Huge trees have started growing over the tops of the temple. Some scenes from Lara Croft Tomb Raider were filmed here.
The girls enjoyed being able to climb up, in, and around the temple structures. This is my favorite photo of them from the day.
With the Heinrichs at Ta Prohm.
Tomb Raider spot.
The second temple we saw was Angkor Wat. It was nice to have Ra with us to teach us all about the Khmer people and the significance of the carvings. This is the largest Hindu temple in the world, built in the 1100s.
A monk in prayer on top of one of the Angkor Wat temples.
Jones on level 2 of Angkor Wat. The climb to level 3 was steep, so children were not allowed.
The view looking out from the top of Angkor Wat.
The last temple we visited is called Bayon. These huge structures with faces carved into them were filled with bats. Noisy bats!
Bayon family picture
A bridge we drove over on the way home. If we wanted to, and if we didn't have hot/tired children, we could have visited temples all week. So many to see!
After cooling off in the pool, we headed out in tuk tuks for another yummy dinner. Chicken Amok- again!
We arrived at Journeys Within (our fantastic little boutique hotel) and fell in love immediately. The afternoon was spent by the pool. The girls made friends with an employee's daughter. Leeka was shy and there was a language barrier, but they had fun playing. Took a tuk-tuk to dinner and had our first taste of Chicken Amok. Absolutely the best thing I've eaten since being in Singapore!
In February we had our first visitors! Grandma Lu and Aunt Helen came to stay with us for 10 days. We had so much fun showing them around Singapore. We stayed really busy and had lots of fun. Here are some of the highlights:
Fish Spa- these four really enjoyed it.
Getting on the Singapore Flyer. The world's largest observation wheel!
Visiting Chinatown. We spent a little time in the temple and a lot of time shopping the stalls.
A tour of Gardens by the Bay.
The Singapore Zoo
Fun on Sentosa Island. CNY drums, riding the gondola up for the luge, and checking out the Southern most point of continental Asia.
It was such a fun time for all of us. We're excited for our next visitors. Come see us in Singapore!
