Three friends of mine rated Siem Reap as one of their most treasured traveling experiences. With us being so close to Cambodia, we decided to spend a couple days there. A lot of the lodging options on booking.com offer free airport transportation. Take advantage of this perk because the airport is a solid thirty minute drive from downtown Siem Reap. We were expecting a car to pick us up but instead it was a tuk-tuk. I’m surprised we were able to fit all of our luggage.
Bicycling home from school 
Markets on our way to the hotel
We booked two nights in the pool view suite at Angkor Siesta Villa for $110. We were very impressed with the room and facilities but if I were to ever go back I would stay closer to downtown. The humidity was fierce and walking into town from Angkor Siesta Villa was just too much. Tuk-tuk rides were more expensive than in Thailand. Actually even more expensive than an Uber in the U.S. They wanted to charge $20 one-way for a five minute ride so walking is really your best option.
The front desk receptionist suggested we try Khmer Kitchen. WOWOWOW! Cambodian spring rolls, pad Thai and a sweet potato/carrot curry. This was definitely my favorite food spot. I would do anything to have this meal again.
Our tuk-tuk driver (hired by our hotel) took us to the Silk Factory about 30 minutes outside of town. They provided a free tour of the factory before guiding us to the gift shop. We felt kinda stupid because neither of us realized that silk came from silk worms. I’m not really sure how we missed that memo our entire lives BUTTT moving on. Silk worms have a life expectancy of 47 days and the factory had displays at each stage of life.
The next building housed the antique sewing machines where the women worked tireless hours making incomparable handmade pieces. Our guide mentioned that only women work in the factory and they are thankful their jobs have not been replaced with industrial equipment. From our eyes these seemed like poor, labor-intensive working conditions but Cambodia is an underdeveloped country. There is still very little infrastructure outside of town, relying on a subsistence economy. Seeing the time invested into each piece of art made it more valuable. Hannah made a few purchases in the gift shop including silk scrunchies and hair ribbons!
We had dinner at Jomnan’s Kitchen. The food was good but the Thai-traditional environment made the experience. We sat cross-legged on red floor cushions while eating our meals. The walls were lined with Buddha statues and bookcases.
Angkor Wat
Siem Reap has become a popular travel destination due to Angkor Wat, one of the worlds largest religious monuments. My greatest advice would be to hire a private tuk-tuk for your day trip to Angkor Wat. It would take up so much time trying to walk from temple to temple. The service was offered through our hotel (most do this) and it cost us $25. For an additional fee you can also hire a tour guide but we opted out from doing so.
Tickets can be purchased in person only at the Angkor Archelogical Park ticket office that opens at 5am. A one day entry fee costs $37. For a long time they were cash only, however, credit card is now accepted. Make sure you are dressed in temple attire- sleeves and long pants. We wore shorts and tank tops into the ticket office and by the looks we received I could tell this was frowned upon.
You would think starting at 5am to catch the sunrise would mean beating the crowds ((Wishful thinking.)) Guided tours with several hundred people lined up in the grassy areas near the temples. Since we were solo, we stood on the stone path directly in front of the temple. I took photos as the sky changed from dark blue to light pink and baby blue. We definitely had the best view with the smallest crowd. Of course after sunrise we were able to see the thousands of people who shared this experience with us. Beating the crowds was our new goal.
Not even 7am.
I couldn’t help but imagine how marvelous Angkor Wat must have been in the 12th century. There were these massive pools on both sides of the main hallway. I bet the water was sparkling clear with potted green plants along the sides. Their parties were probably insane. Maybe I watch too much TV.
Pool inside Angkor Wat 
Stone carvings 
There are breakfast tents inside the grounds. Although they were nice about it, the constant bombardment of gaining our business became annoying. We thought breakfast would be cheaper outside of the gates but it actually cost an arm and a leg.
Our tuk-tuk driver was MIA for at least an hour after finishing breakfast. WE certainly were not going to attempt walking the preservation. Luckily, a local helped us out and found our guy.
I was really looking forward to The Ta Phrom Temple! You may notice it from the film Tomb Raider. The jungle has completely taken over and it’s fascinating to see the trees, spungs and vines grow through the stone. Of course it was busy and there were lines to get photos. The tourists were assholes. Some even yelled at us for trying to take ONE photo together. It wasn’t our fault a tour bus just unloaded and caused a line but we had to wait like everyone else.
Photo Cred: Hannah 
The Bayon Temple in Angkor Thom was our last stop of the day. It was already after 2 which meant we had been exploring for over eight hours. Everything was overly congested and we were ready for some food. I thought the faces of the Buddha in the brick were really neat. You’ll see these scattered among the grounds.
Haha, we grabbed a couple coconuts on our way out. All I’m going to say is be careful when buying street food/drinks.
Cheers!
We had our tuk-tuk driver stop at an art tent on our way back into town. Thank god I found my painting in Chiang Mai for $60 because they were charging $300 for theirs. I felt badly because Hannah really wanted to find something she liked but the prices were not ideal.
We decided to have an upscale lunch at Malis Restaurant. I ordered the discovery set menu for some variety. Overall, we were not that impressed. We definitely had better experiences with the street food. The samlor profile crab and the takeo sausage were the best on the discovery menu. Hannah had the scallops and those were pretty tasty. I wish I would have gotten them as well.
Of course Hannah and I couldn’t miss out on the night markets. If there is one thing we are both good at it’s shopping! We didn’t buy much here because again, they were more expensive than Thailand markets. I did get some ceramic ramen bowls with little chopstick holders. We both bought ceramic elephant coffee mugs but they were $10USD which is expensive.
After some shopping, we took a stroll down Pub Street; similar to Bangkok’s Khao San Rd. Not really our scene but if you like to party- that’s your best bet. If you wanna be like us, you can buy some rolled up ice cream and be in bed by 10!
Our short trip to Siem Reap came to an end and we headed back to Thailand to finish the week with clear water, white sand and lots of relaxation. Unfortunately, Siem Reap was not exactly what we had in mind but still so grateful for the experience.