Smatterings of Siem Reap

Entering a bar on Pub Street our American selves take over, do we wanna people watch or do we wanna dance? The alcohol here is cheap, like cry in delight and elation cheap.  Fifty sent beers, two dollar pitchers of cocktails, and they don’t skimp. My inner alcoholic was so cheering at the sight of it. We definitely got a few shy, local ladies to come shake it with us on a stage, when we noticed them nervously bopping about in the corner. Our American girl dancing style did not only stand out on the dance floor but also in regard to our body art.  The weather was hot, and we, although respecting cultural modesty (covering shoulders and knees in religious spaces) were in summer clothes, which show off some of our ink collection. The ink, combined with our excess of ear piercings, got a lot of gawks. People were genuinely perplexed and even concerned as to why we had done this. We did not meet this reception in any other country or city we had ever visited. We didn't really know how to explain ourselves to these curious or scorning individuals, the fact that we just felt like doing it, somehow did not seem like a great explanation. What did they want us to say? Thinking back to California, these locals would be shocked at the inked sights to be seen there, hope they can come for an equally opposite culture shocking visit sometime.

Not the cheapest in town

Sleeping like a sweet, sweet babe. 

Now thinking of popular imagery, you just don’t hear as many hooker stories about Cambodia as you do about say, Thailand. It doesn't have the same sleaze reputation and from what I could see was not as western-ly corrupted in this sense (not to say that sex trafficking isn't a serious issue here, as it is in many places)The thing that it does have is, how to put this… accessibility to quenching your war driven fantasies? You can rent any automatic weapon, bazooka, whatever and just go to town in some random field. You can also detonate grenades. Don’t get me wrong this isn't necessarily bad, no one’s getting hurt physically, but it does seem to be another paternalistic imposition. This is set to cater to  Americans or Europeans tourists who think this would be really cool. I have to think it’s kind of odd that getting your hands on grenades is so easy here, that it is a sustainable business, and if it’s that easy, how else are these weapons being used?  Also, given the traumatic history of this country, I don’t know, shooting off guns like a maniac there seems disrespectful. I mean come on PTSD is a real thing and living through the violent slaughter of your people might give you a few triggers.  

Wait to be weird-ed out...

Mmm, lemon grass and Kaffir lime-y!

On a lighter note, another fun factoid that we discovered after being semi forcibly lured into a tourist trap. Many Cambodians’ can do this freaky thing with their hands… no no, not like dirty…well mayybe…They can arch their fingers backwards in the opposite way then seems natural.  The visual of this,  is Freddy Krueger-like, and scary. I have heard accounts that it takes finger binding to achieve this effect, which seems logical but even males who are not dancers seem to be able to do this. It is considered very attractive, so maybe, it is to them, like us having straight teeth via braces, we gotta suffer a little to achieve this standard of beauty!

Whew, bargaining is exhausting; I think I’ll get my feet sucked by tiny fish, pay the inflated price, say goodnight to our twins and call it a night!

Crashing into Cambodia

Landing into Siem Reap airport I could immediately tell this was more substantial of a city than the Laotian town we had just left. Mean looking Cambodian officials greeted us to demand we pay our visa fee, quoting us a figure that was not the same in USD and Riels, their currency. I imagine they assume you don’t have Riels coming in so they can get the exaggerated dollar price or that people flat out haven’t planned ahead to realize the difference in exchange rate. We went to the ATM, twenty bucks is twenty bucks and we weren't gonna get swindled, at least not this time!  It is possible that the ATM service fee made the amounts he quoted us equivalent, it’s possible.

We arrived with a good amount of the Laotian currency the “Kip” in hand, which we assumed we would change over on our arrival- wrongfully. Nowhere and I mean NOWHERE would take the stuff; and in fact they laughed in our faces like we were trying to change monopoly money. “Silly girls! That stuff is worthless!!,” heads thrown back chumming it up over our naïveté.   Man, I know it was a two to one exchange in favor of the Riel but no one would take it. We had the same experience in every other country we attempted to change it in. Cambodians didn't mind if you wished to pay with American money, accepted everywhere as the second national currency. 

Exclusively for Cambodian Peoples

Siem Riep is now a small city that sprang from a village, it has grown exponentially over night, really since the 90’s and done so to expand and serve its tourist markets. In the last decades the population here has boomed to around 200,000 making it the third largest city in the country. The surge has brought stoplights, roads, hotels and of course bars. Only 5 years ago power electricity was not available all day long, it was on some sort of blocked schedule totaling four or five hours a day.  This rapid growth seems to have affected the people, changing traditional lifestyle and culture. They know the money that can be made here and as such there are many people who have adopted a swindling mentality. The sweet and simple honest vibe that the Laotians so easily projected was overwhelmingly absent here. Men seemed a lot more predatory, not that they actually were but moving from one culture to the next, the contrast was not lost. Our hotels front desk guy immediately tried to sell us a number of tours. He was so insistent it almost seemed like he was trying to force us to buy them. He moved like a reptile even when just sitting in a chair and darted about when he spoke the same way lizards bat their tongues in and out of their mouths. His very long fingernails only highlighted this appearance.  Something about his manner made us uneasy and off put. This same vibe was repeatedly confronted in vendors and tuk tuk drivers whom were all extremely pushy.

Get in this tuk tuk, now!

Street side vendors

Fresh delights waiting to be had for pennies. 

The intense personalities were not the only obstacles to be confronted. The heat, the innumerable bugs and the living conditions, are other potential deterrents.  If this is sounding less than appealing that’s just how it looks upon first glance. This, which I am describing, is just the tip of the iceberg. It’s what you immediately see before you delve deeper down to see the larger truth. That truth sadly overlooked by many people who choose to only see that which floats above. It might benefit tourists to ask themselves why someone would act so pushy and aggressive. Can it be the result of extreme poverty coming to a head with comparatively extreme wealth? Can you blame a person for being smart enough to see an opportunity and trying to snag it? The people that we encountered on a more personal level where all kind and thoughtful; which is actually more amazing given the insane history that affected that exact area  in the late 70’s and up until as late as the 90’s.  As soon as you even just barely leave the city the energy completely changes, people are living village life and struggling and succeeding and dancing and crying just like you and me do.  The Cambodians are extremely resilient, after all the atrocities that many have personally lived through they manage to not be bitter or fearful. I can’t say I would fair the same and I know historically other nations have not bounced back with the same open attitudes. 

Continuing tropical escapades.

Strolling arm and arm, gazing to our left and right, throwing our heads back in unbridled and spontaneous laughter, the night is alive around us. What a fantastic evening, the town uncurls its petals for us to delight in. The sights! The smells! The sounds! We playfully fantasize about the dreamy boy at our hostel, come to think of it, all the boys around here are cutie pies. Their smiles so warm and inviting we both agree. Shall we try the sparrow my darling sister, just because we can? Or should we pass this evening and instead opt for the noodle whatever-that-is over there? This banana ice cream just may, be the best thing I’ve ever eaten! Oh joy! Then everything stops. Oh, fucking, sweet Mary, I need a toilet and I need one now!  We squeeze each other closer and pick up the pace desperately scanning the nearby restaurants hoping to find somewhere to stop. Phew, a few minutes later balance has once again been restored, and we can continue on with our gallant stroll and idealized evening.  AND, believe me, it is idealized, because a little stomach funk is the small price one pays to experience the amazing delights that this world has to offer. If that sounds to be too much for you, maybe ya best go back inside your house and stick to watching the fun from your TV set. 

Hmong Market

 Stretching out our arms we count the new bug bites we got in our sleep as we meander over to a nearby café to get our morning fix. Only about a half dozen each, not bad compared to other days. Thank whatever powers that be for blessing us with coffee and I really mean that more sincerely than you could ever know. Coffee in hand we hurry to meet the van that will take us out to Kouang Si waterfalls. Upon arrival we split from our fellow riders and up towards the falls.  At the base of the park there was a black bear sanctuary; pouching is a problem in the area, apparently.  Most visitors decided to stay out at the base of the falls, but we thought that was kinda weak and so went forward to push our luck with time and trek to the top. Looking out over the whole valley, with our feet in that fresh and flowing water we couldn’t much more appreciate the beauty of nature all around us.

 

 Getting back into town we stopped for a $5 foot massage. Here’s the funny thing about being in a place like this for me. I can become very conflicted, hmm not morally, but I guess personally ideologically.  Sleeping on a crappy cot and eating simple food and being outside makes me feel like this is what life’s all about. Simplicity. You really don’t need much to get by and not just get by but be completely happy.  I feel fantastic, like I could marry a local man, run a little shop and exist in the same way as so many have before me, content. Then, following that breath I buy an amazing hand crafted silver necklace that costs what people here make in 2-4 months and go on some “expensive” tour. Here’s another doozy of an example for ya. After talking to some back packers they recommended we hit up a bar called Utopia for our “late night” fun (I use quotes because the country has a curfew of 12am).  We finally find it after walking down some dark alleys, wondering if this is a good idea after all. It really is a little utopia. Tucked away, it opens to a great space, floor filled with pillows, people lounging; a manicured back yard space with tables hidden under trees and a large volley ball court. Ok, so? Well I start to look around and all over as decorations are bomb or landmine shells. It just strikes me as being wildly inappropriate. This space was clearly not created for Laotian nationals, but does that make it ok? Are we all too inebriated to remember reading the paragraph of Laotian history in our guidebooks? So what would you do? I had a fun night, cool spot, my sister and I even invented a game that I can’t mention here because you might steel our BRILLIANT idea! We met some interesting characters, sometimes I just wish I could be the one to stand up and storm out over something like this. On the other hand, it is just a bar and maybe this is proving just how much I need to relax and drink! However, it did taint the ambiance, at least a tad - come on bar owner, is that really necessary, oh and can I get a refill?  

Relax Cat.

We actually ate that fat, thinking it was fish. Smartness.

Oooo fire!

So many other little things happened in Laos, but I’ll leave you on that note. As well as the fact that I finally got my Beer Khao; even though that means absolutely nothing to you. 

Don't worry, plenty safe.

Temple Terror?

So, let’s talk about temples and Buddhism. Temples: kinda like churches. Buddhism: the Christianity of the east. Over simplified? Oh, yes. You following me? Better be so far. I am not going to go into a rant about religion, (well….) just share a quandary I encountered and some back story to understand it.

In my youth I spent a great deal of time in churches, catholic churches to be more accurate. Certain things have been long and hard, drilled into me. NO, I am definitely not trying to say I was molested by a priest. Please, get your mind out of the gutter! As an adult, many of said drilled things I don’t agree with, and some I have desperately tried to dig out. In the digging out process, a person often turns to new things to fill the dugout space. For me that was Buddhism. Some of the ideologies really stuck and moved me, especially those related to suffering. 

Through my understanding of Catholicism, I am a bad person, and you are too. Actually, we all are, because no one can live up to a standard where even thinking a bad thought is sinful. Sinners who don’t repent will go to hell when they die, and there they will spend an eternity in anguish. As the living, you have the terrible idea and vision of this hell to think about and to mentally anguish you. Actually and honestly I never feared hell, as a concept of afterlife. I more feared adults knowing that they could make this life long and suffering. It’s true, all sins can be forgiven, but let’s face it, if there is a god he or she or shim will know if you are truly sorry in your heart for thinking about smacking your boss when they ask you to stay late on a Friday night. The point being I don’t think I’m a bad person. I’ve definitely thought things that I would never do, and have done things I wish I hadn’t, still not a bad person. 

Back home we call these here purdy flowers cempasúchil

Offerings along the outer wall of a temple

As an American teenager I was blessed with the joys of angst-y, maybe even angry feelings. The idea that a suburban kid should have anything to be angry about is neither here nor there because the feelings existed, period. The thing is no one ever explained to me that that’s normal. Suffering is a part of live, a life that is fluid. What a simple concept yet one that is so empowering and hardly ever espoused among westerners. In fact many people do everything in their power to avoid it suffering. Unfortunately for those people, it is inevitable, you cannot out run it, it will find you. If we know our suffering will pass it is easier to fight it. If we try to look at that suffering and dissect it and look at it from the perspective of our perceived cause of that suffering that too often lessens the blow. If we can gain knowledge from that suffering like learning about ourselves, our partners, our friends or life and humans in general than it’s not ultimately a loss, it has potential to be a huge win. That to me is empowering and uplifting. I bought a beautiful Buddha charm while in Thailand, and believe me this thing isn’t cliché. It’s tiny and gold and without literally picking it off my neck you would not be able to tell what it is. I wanted something to keep on my person to remind me of these ideas, and perhaps I also thought a big ol, Buddha tat might be in poor taste. 

The temples all over South East Asia are ornate, and they are everywhere. Where there isn’t one, there is a shrine to hold you over. Someone told me a shrine has to be built on a property before the actual construction can begin, don’t quote that, I’m not sure of its accuracy. In any case, in Laos there is a mandatory year of “being” a monk and you can see how it deeply the ideals are ingrained in the people by just their temperaments. My sister and I could not walk a block without stopping to gasp at a beautifully painted and carved temple. The insides of these temples must be impressively decorated spaces; I however wouldn’t know. I only went into one temple the whole trip. That temple was also not so much a sacred space as a tourist attraction. Pay a dollar to have a monk put a string on your wrist as a blessing even though monks aren’t supposed to touch or even sit next to a woman. 

Strip malls still cant take you far from a spot to stop and make an offering

Over and over again I gasped, as I passed these splendid buildings, halfway around the world, in a place I may never see again and still could not bring myself to go inside. What are the ritual rules, the etiquette? Jesus! err I mean, damn it! I didn’t want to be the one to do something stupid or accidentally offensive in that type of a space. What would I have done once inside? I can’t kneel down in front of Buddha and pray, it would seem so forced. Maybe, if, I had gone with someone who knew exactly what to do, but even then I would feel awkward. Oh buddy, but get me in a catholic church and I’ll be your sweet dream. Serious face, up and down reciting the prayers and singing the songs that somehow I remember after not attending for ten years now.

This is not hypocrisy folks. This is nostalgia at worst and at best me considering the suffering my not doing the kneeling and praying could potentially and unnecessarily cause. It’s also a long story about me not going into temples.