Day 3 Siem Reap
On the third day, we rent bicycle to cycle a little further than the old market area and to the main roads. There's a nearby restaurant we'll try later but first stop we went to Lucky Mall, I suppose one of the better looking and new buildings in Siem Reap. It is quite small actually, even smaller than Atria, and there's a few eateries there, coupled with a supermarket and a few more tenants.
The cycle there took us about 10 minutes from the place we rented our bike, and as we walked in the shopping mall Carmen is feeling a little under the weather (migraine, flu, nausea, vomitting), so we sat at the cafe for a little bit for her to recuperate, fortunately there's a pharmacy where I could get some remedies. While traveling it is very important that you keep yourself hydrated and clean all the time as people from different countries have different level of hygiene, some practices of hygiene here may get you feeling unwell.
After about an hour of rest, we explored the town a little bit to look for lunch. It's always good to take at least a day in your holiday to get a vehicle to explore around the place you visit as there are many surprises you may get that you perhaps wouldn't if you didn't do so.
About 1km away from town there's a street with many boutique restaurants and cafes which were actually houses converted into these eateries, and for lunch, we found this little gem called "beaches by Reflections". they serve mainly Thai food in Khmer style ie Tomyam that is less spicy, very soupy green curry, and grilled chicken stick seasoned with turmeric powder & herbs, the meal cost about US$15, pretty much like the lunch that we have everyday here.
Along the street there are many alleys, if you know where to find, you may just stumble upon other little shops like these. Our next stop was peace cafe which was highlighted in the guide book we took from the hotel. It's a cosy little shack where on the ground floor they operate as a restaurant and on the first floor the organize yoga classes, talks etc. There's a also a accessories stall on the ground floor selling accessories made from bomb shells. For every purchase the proceeds go to a charitable cause.
After a light drink, we're back on the road, this time we're just cycling around on a hunt for interesting places to stop by, and found yet another shopping mall, similar to the one we went to earlier, but older.
The weather was really hot today, so after all the sweating, the aircond in the mall was just the right thing to have at that moment. We had cycled for about 5 hours and finally we stopped by at Pub Street yet again for Blue Pumpkin. Carmen of course couldn't resist the desserts so we sat at the sofa seat while she ate and I slept for a good 1 and a half hour.
By the time we woke up it was already almost 6pm so we continued our journey and this time to look for dinner. We heard of the very much reviewed FCC, and headed there. We passed there earlier while we were exploring the other side of the town. The place is a combination of a restaurant, cafe, a spa and a bar (I think), and there's a pool at the entrance that welcomes customers that enter the building..
By the time we got there,it had started to rain, and the dining area is open air so we're worried that the rain would get heavier, so we decided to o eat at another place. While we were cycling the rain indeed got heavier, so we explored a little bit more before we settled down for dinner. Across the river, near our lunch spot is a place called the Butterfly Garden. What's unique is the fact that they have over 1500 types of butterflies within the eatery but in terms of the ambience, it was just so-so. We did not give it a second look although there were quite many good reviews on trip advisor. On our last night, we didn't sting so much on our spending as we still have some balance left to spend, so we decided to splurge a little more for dinner, we ended up in Nest, a restaurant by the Hotel De La Paix just a few blocks away.
It's a fine dining joint that serve food with some reasonable portion. When we arrive we were surprised that the whole place was fully booked, but the manager eventually made some space for us. It was empty at the time we arrived, but half an hour later, the place was full, but I would assume they were patrons of the hotel and the dinner at this restaurant impart of the tour package probably, because everybody came in large large group.
I had rice noodle soup while Carmen had squid ink risotto, and is probably not a good first date food to order as it's black and it stains your teeth. But we both have to say the food was really good, and after dinner we were both satisfied and couldn't take in anything more, and therefore our last stop was at the bicycle rental shop.
We were home by 8.30, cleaned up, and ended up watching fashion tv till we sleep by an hour later...
And the 8.30am flight back to KL concludes our beautiful trip in Siem Reap, Cambodia!
Our hotel, Angkor Spirit Palace, is definitely a hotel we would stay in again if we come back to Siem Reap for one, everybody in the hotel is extra friendly, they try their best to guide you and understand you and make sure your stay here is remarkable. The transfer from the airport to the hotel is free, and transfer from Hotel to town were also free, so I think we would have at least saved 10-15 dollars there.
At one point, the front office manager (highest position in that particular hotel's management, actually came by and look for use to pick us back to hotel at midnight, and because he couldn't find us, he looked for us for an hour, that have to say is what hospitality is. Top notch.
And when we left, there were souvenirs for us.
And overall, including flight and transportation, we have just only spent a total of RM2500 the entire trip for the both of us for 4d3n!!
One impressive thing in the country is that many people there are able to speak good or at least decent English, and some of them are even equipped with the ability to speak in foreign language, especially for tour guides, those leading Japanese tourists could speak FLUENT Japanese with the correct accents! Hck, we even saw a tuk tuk driver who was able to speak in French! And it doesn't stop there, we have seen people speaking Spanish, italian, you name it, the probably have it.
I think they just need to improve on the shopping scene. Everybody Is selling the same thing, the only t-shirts you see people wearing are: Angkor beer, no money no honey, I love Cambodia... How typical! But shopping here can be misleading, do not purchase anything until you have walked the entire market, chances are the price of things are cheaper the deeper you dwell into.
But overall it is a trip well worth going, enjoyable and unforgettable experience!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
The cycle there took us about 10 minutes from the place we rented our bike, and as we walked in the shopping mall Carmen is feeling a little under the weather (migraine, flu, nausea, vomitting), so we sat at the cafe for a little bit for her to recuperate, fortunately there's a pharmacy where I could get some remedies. While traveling it is very important that you keep yourself hydrated and clean all the time as people from different countries have different level of hygiene, some practices of hygiene here may get you feeling unwell.
After about an hour of rest, we explored the town a little bit to look for lunch. It's always good to take at least a day in your holiday to get a vehicle to explore around the place you visit as there are many surprises you may get that you perhaps wouldn't if you didn't do so.
About 1km away from town there's a street with many boutique restaurants and cafes which were actually houses converted into these eateries, and for lunch, we found this little gem called "beaches by Reflections". they serve mainly Thai food in Khmer style ie Tomyam that is less spicy, very soupy green curry, and grilled chicken stick seasoned with turmeric powder & herbs, the meal cost about US$15, pretty much like the lunch that we have everyday here.
Along the street there are many alleys, if you know where to find, you may just stumble upon other little shops like these. Our next stop was peace cafe which was highlighted in the guide book we took from the hotel. It's a cosy little shack where on the ground floor they operate as a restaurant and on the first floor the organize yoga classes, talks etc. There's a also a accessories stall on the ground floor selling accessories made from bomb shells. For every purchase the proceeds go to a charitable cause.
After a light drink, we're back on the road, this time we're just cycling around on a hunt for interesting places to stop by, and found yet another shopping mall, similar to the one we went to earlier, but older.
The weather was really hot today, so after all the sweating, the aircond in the mall was just the right thing to have at that moment. We had cycled for about 5 hours and finally we stopped by at Pub Street yet again for Blue Pumpkin. Carmen of course couldn't resist the desserts so we sat at the sofa seat while she ate and I slept for a good 1 and a half hour.
By the time we woke up it was already almost 6pm so we continued our journey and this time to look for dinner. We heard of the very much reviewed FCC, and headed there. We passed there earlier while we were exploring the other side of the town. The place is a combination of a restaurant, cafe, a spa and a bar (I think), and there's a pool at the entrance that welcomes customers that enter the building..
By the time we got there,it had started to rain, and the dining area is open air so we're worried that the rain would get heavier, so we decided to o eat at another place. While we were cycling the rain indeed got heavier, so we explored a little bit more before we settled down for dinner. Across the river, near our lunch spot is a place called the Butterfly Garden. What's unique is the fact that they have over 1500 types of butterflies within the eatery but in terms of the ambience, it was just so-so. We did not give it a second look although there were quite many good reviews on trip advisor. On our last night, we didn't sting so much on our spending as we still have some balance left to spend, so we decided to splurge a little more for dinner, we ended up in Nest, a restaurant by the Hotel De La Paix just a few blocks away.
It's a fine dining joint that serve food with some reasonable portion. When we arrive we were surprised that the whole place was fully booked, but the manager eventually made some space for us. It was empty at the time we arrived, but half an hour later, the place was full, but I would assume they were patrons of the hotel and the dinner at this restaurant impart of the tour package probably, because everybody came in large large group.
I had rice noodle soup while Carmen had squid ink risotto, and is probably not a good first date food to order as it's black and it stains your teeth. But we both have to say the food was really good, and after dinner we were both satisfied and couldn't take in anything more, and therefore our last stop was at the bicycle rental shop.
We were home by 8.30, cleaned up, and ended up watching fashion tv till we sleep by an hour later...
And the 8.30am flight back to KL concludes our beautiful trip in Siem Reap, Cambodia!
Our hotel, Angkor Spirit Palace, is definitely a hotel we would stay in again if we come back to Siem Reap for one, everybody in the hotel is extra friendly, they try their best to guide you and understand you and make sure your stay here is remarkable. The transfer from the airport to the hotel is free, and transfer from Hotel to town were also free, so I think we would have at least saved 10-15 dollars there.
At one point, the front office manager (highest position in that particular hotel's management, actually came by and look for use to pick us back to hotel at midnight, and because he couldn't find us, he looked for us for an hour, that have to say is what hospitality is. Top notch.
And when we left, there were souvenirs for us.
And overall, including flight and transportation, we have just only spent a total of RM2500 the entire trip for the both of us for 4d3n!!
One impressive thing in the country is that many people there are able to speak good or at least decent English, and some of them are even equipped with the ability to speak in foreign language, especially for tour guides, those leading Japanese tourists could speak FLUENT Japanese with the correct accents! Hck, we even saw a tuk tuk driver who was able to speak in French! And it doesn't stop there, we have seen people speaking Spanish, italian, you name it, the probably have it.
I think they just need to improve on the shopping scene. Everybody Is selling the same thing, the only t-shirts you see people wearing are: Angkor beer, no money no honey, I love Cambodia... How typical! But shopping here can be misleading, do not purchase anything until you have walked the entire market, chances are the price of things are cheaper the deeper you dwell into.
But overall it is a trip well worth going, enjoyable and unforgettable experience!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
posted by Jules at 3:37 AM
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