Cambodia Part 3

It was right after lunch that we figured out about the rope. You see there was a really long rope lying on the ground at some point between the vendors and the ruins. This rope seemed to be a stopping point for the children & women that were trying to sell us things. It was amazing…as soon as we hit that rope they would stop, turn around, and find another tourist to sell their stuff to.

I think that the next set of ruins were my favorite. When we first got there, there was this enormous tree…I don’t think I have ever seen a tree this large!

The ruins were in total disrepair, but it felt like you were exploring it for the first time & that you were able to discover new things.

Not to mention the fact that there were trees growing out of most of the ruins!

As we were walking back, we came across a small band that was playing music. Most of the members were missing limbs and they had a sign in front of them that said they were victims of mines. It took me a little while to realize that they were not the victims of coal mines (or silver mines or any other type of mine that we have back home) but were victims of LAND mines. They were really good & were selling their cd for $10, but that was way too expensive for a Peace Corps budget. (We saw quite a few similar bands during our time in Cambodia).

We went to one more temple and then the tuk-tuk brought us back to the guesthouse. It had been a long day, so we relaxed for a while then set out for the old market area for dinner.

Old market was amazing! They had all of these wonderful restaurants & bars. They were all so neat & fun…I really wish that someone would do something like that in Chaing Mai!

We liked Old Market so much that we decided to go back the next day. It wasn’t that far from our guesthouse, so we decided to walk. On our way, we came across a “7/Twenty.” Now they have 7/11’s in Thailand, but let me tell you why the 7/Twenty was so much better than what you find in Thailand…they had Mountain Dew, Dr. Pepper, and Skittles! I miss Skittles!

We spent the day shopping as there were a whole bunch of souvenir stands, and then headed back to the guesthouse to relax & shower before dinner. Again, we headed out to Old Market for dinner & it was excellent! We walked around and stopped at a few bars for drinks. At about 11:30, Kerry and I got tired so we decided to head back to the guesthouse & Melanie and Maria decided to stay and watch the football (soccer) game that was playing at the bar we had stopped out. Kerry and I took a tuk-tuk back and I was just about asleep when Maria walks in the room and tells us that Melanie just got robbed. Apparently they were walking back from the bar and a guy on a motorcycle drove by and ripped her purse out of her hands. They called Peace Corps Thailand and were told that they would have to go to the Embassy the next day to get a passport…well, the Embassy is in the capital…5 hours away.

We ended up splitting up & Kerry and I headed back to Thailand & Maria and Melanie went the other way to work on getting a passport. By the time that Mel & Maria got to the capital, the police in Siam Reap had recovered her purse…so they had another 5 hour ride back. Melanie got her passport, id’s, credit cards (although she had already cancelled them), house keys, and purse back…she did not get back her money, camera (with ALL of her Peace Corps photos), phone, or glasses.

All in all, it was a wonderful trip…it was just tainted at the end. I know I learned a lesson on safe travel that I will remember for a long time to come!