White-chan in Siem Reap - What we ate

You won't believe it. We're only paying USD24 for a twin room with aircon, and that actually includes breakfast! And not some cannot-make-it cheapo breakfast, but a good plate of toast with scrambled eggs and coffee!



We found that the typical Khmer food is very Thai and Vietnamese, but don't know who influence who lah! There is always lemon grass and basil leaves fried with something, and even the Khmer curry tastes like Thai curry. But one thing for sure, Cambodians like they food very cooked, that's why all meat are very cooked and tough...



One day, I saw "Fried Morning Glory" on the menu and ordered this supposedly exotic dish, then it turned out to be... Kang Kong! DOTZ... But the hazelnut shake is nice lah, really creamy but refreshing at the same time!



We can't remember how many rice rolls we have tried, but because the vegetables are fresh, they all taste nice!



Like any tropical country in South East Asia, coconut drink is common in Siem Reap too. However, these huge coconut are not as sweet as the usual ones we have in Thailand or even Singapore leh! But the passion fruit shake is good though!



Okay White-chan double confirmed we are crazy. It was 37 degrees Celsius and we decided to have hot pot alfresco style at the balcony for dinner. But that hotpot was good! Lots of vegetables, enough meat, and as many as 4 eggs for a set for 2 sharing! And the hot pot soup was good too, because it tasted like abalone chicken instant noodles soup! Hahaha... overdose of MSG!



And then we heard our hotpot was not authentic Khmer enough, so we took a tuk-tuk out to this 100% local all-you-can-eat Khmer BBQ using the Khmer steamboat/BBQ pot! It was really cheap at USD4 (no GST and service charge!) with all kinds of vegetables and meat and some seafood!



Yes we are tourists, so we have to do what the stupid tourists do right? And so we went for a dinner with Apsara dance performances. The performances were almost non-stop, and we only paid like USD7-8 per person, so why not?



After absorbing all the heat from the big hot sun, it makes sense to eat ice-cream right? The Blue Pumpkin ice-cream is really good, with some exotic flavors like ginger and black sesame! The only problem is that the ice-cream also melt very fast... DOTZ...



We've heard so much about the USD14 Le Meridien afternoon tea from all the Taiwanese blogs that we just have to try it. Although it was only 3 tiers, we couldn't even finish it lor! I think the savory sandwiches are too little (only on first tier) and the rest too sweet and jerlat... But it is a good place to relax, and it came with free flow of coffee and tea too!

White-chan in Siem Reap - one big yellow lake called Tonle Sap

Day 3: Bakong - Lolei - Preah Ko - Lotus farm - Tonle Sap



The Tonlé Sap is the largest freshwater lake in South East Asia. Its flow changes direction twice a year, and the portion that forms the lake expands and shrinks dramatically with the seasons. So from November to May during Cambodia's dry season, the Tonlé Sap drains into the Mekong River at Phnom Penh. And then when the year's heavy rains begin in June, the Tonlé Sap backs up to form an enormous lake.

So which is why when we were there in March, the lake was super low tide and super yellowish... Still, we had to pay USD15 per person to take a small ferry to tour around the lake. White-chan hopes that at least a portion of this super ex boat fee is given to the poor people living on Tonle Sap, not all makan up by the big rich Korean ferry company...

White-chan in Siem Reap - One whole field of lotus flowers

Day 3: Bakong - Lolei - Preah Ko - Lotus farm - Tonle Sap



On our way to Tonle Sap, we came across a lotus farm/field/pond. With some little donation, the owner allowed us to walk about to take pictures. And I must say, the scene was simply breathtaking! I've never seen such a large area of lotus flowers before! It's just... WOW lor!

And for those of you who don't know, lotus is one of the main produce in Cambodia, just like palm sugar. That's why you can find lotus tea, lotus seed titbits, lotus-whatever dishes all over the place! Cambodian people use lotus for praying too!

















Talk about palm sugar, again on the way, we passed by this woman cooking palm sugar and then putting them into little circular tubes to be solidfied. As a kind gesture, I bought some from her, anyway its a good alternative to sugar to be used in cooking. It is not as strong as gula Melaka, but it gives a hint of freshness.

White-chan in Siem Reap - Last day of temple visiting!

Day 3: Bakong - Lolei - Preah Ko - Lotus farm - Tonle Sap


No, the Roluos group is not yet another real estate company with property agents pestering you to sell your flat. It is a group of temples located at the Roluos, which was the first capital of the Khmer Empire.

Surprisingly while these temples are supposed to be the oldest, as compared to other temples that King Jayavarman VII built, most of these temples are built with bricks instead of stones.

The Bakong is the first temple mountain made of sandstone and was the official state temple of King Indravarman I. Although most of the statues are already very wornt out, lions become like sheeps, elephants become like pigs, the temple structure itself still looks strong wor!











Lolei was once an island temple, which means it used to be on an island surrounded by water. But of course now the water is all gone and it is only surrounded by tourists lah! Lolei consists of four brick temple towers grouped together on a terrace. King Yasovarman I built Lolei for his ancestors. One for his grandfather, one for his grandmother, one for his father, and one for his mother. Very filial wor!







Preah Ko was the last temple that we visited in the Roluos Group, and also the last in our trip in Angkor (FINALLY! Phew~)! When King Indravarman I ascended to the throne, he actually ordered the construction of Preah Ko first among the other temples. The six towers at Preah Ko were dedicated to his three forefathers and their respective wives. Because this temple is also dedicated to Shiva, there was a bull placed at the entrance of the temple.

White-chan in Siem Reap - Sun set at Phrom Bakheng

Day 2: Angkor Wat Sunrise - Banteay Srei - Banteay Kdei - Neak Pean - Ta Som - East Mebon - Preah Khan - Phrom Bakheng Sunset



Phnom Bakheng is Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva, and a symbolic representation of Mount Meru, home of the Hindu gods, and this status is further emphasized by it's location on top of a steep hill. The temple was built in a pyramid form of six tiers and used to have 108 small towers around it at ground level and on various of its tiers. But now, most of these small towers have already collapsed, and tourists only know of Phnom Bakheng as THE place to watch sun set.

And when I said tourists, I mean buses and buses of tourists all squeezed onto this small hill top to see sun set. So this means we had to be super kiasu and go up the hill at least one hour before sun set time in order to get a good spot! So in the end, we got more than just a sun set. We got sun burn.













Alamak! Got clouds!