Cambodian Fantasy- Pics

Phnom Penh, near and in Royal Palace. Above, and two pics below.

Standing tall. Angkor.

Apsaras (not kidding, they are called Apsaras) on walls.

Poetry in stone- Angkor Wat temples, Siem Reap -below (with the Missus) and above.

Angkor Wat Temples

Angkor Wat has been on the (bucket) list for a while, and a conference in Phnom Penh provided the opportunity. You can go there straight (and not via Phnom Penh), as the nearby airport is an international one- Siem Reap. The temples are a great place to wander around for a couple of days (with a tuk-tuk to drive you from one temple to another)...a bit like the Hampi-Vijaynagar complex in size. The temples are in worse shape than Hampi, but some are being restored with help from Germany, India and France. Anyway, here are some pics-

 Shot on the go, from tuk-tuk.

The moat around the main temple.

 Three on the rock, and two in front.

 These are Apsaras (celestial nymphs). There is a German project to restore all the Apsaras (!)

 Our tuk-tuk, a contraption with a bike pulling a cart.

 A long shot!

 Walls full of Ramayana and Mahabharata.

 Bayon temple..against a blue, blue, sky.

 Interesting point of entry.

 This one has entangled roots of large trees. Angelina Jolie's Tomb Raider was shot around here.

Closer look at the faces.

Flying Zebras and More

There was this place called Flying Zebra pizzas that I happened to eat at in Siem Reap, Cambodia. A small, homely but distinctive eatery, it had a wood-fired oven that was right at the entrance, and you could see the pizza being put inside it- it was a big oven. The taste of the thin crust pizza was very different, may be because of the wood. Better than many I have eaten elsewhere. It was served on a wooden plate too.

The TV played Charlie Chaplin films- a couple of classics that I must have watched ages ago in a theatre were on, bringing on nostalgia. There was also an interesting drink available, made of crushed mint and ice, with lemon juice and water/soda that looked unlike anything I remember having before.

In other words, a nice touch here, a nice touch there, and service with a smile. What more can a customer ask for?

Another interesting feature in Phnom Penh is that all streets are numbered, so they are easy to find on a map. They have names too, but names are usually tough to find for outsiders. Tourist-friendly, I'd say. And US dollars are in use for public transport or any other purchases, so you don't have to change currencies, saving a lot of bother. The local currency is Riel, which is about 4100 to a US dollar.