cambodia--siem reap

In part 2 of my Cambodian adventure, I present: Siem Reap. Siem Reap was probably my favorite city of all the places we visited this summer. It had such a laid back vibe to it, and we had such a good time there. And the food... mmm, yummy.

For starters, there was this little vegetarian restaurant we stumbled across our first day in Siem Reap. It was in "The Alley," a shaded little alley near the city center that is lined with nice restaurants.


Our appetizer (fresh bread with a creamy, spicy dip) was fantastic, and the presentation was lovely, but the actual entrees were only so-so, so we only ate here once. Too many other wonderful places to explore!







We had several nice, super cheap meals at this no-nonsense kind of place on the main tourist drag in Siem Reap ("Bar street") called Soup Dragon, and then of course we had to visit the famed Dead Fish at least once.


While we waited for our food, we wandered around the restaurant and were treated to 1) free internet, 2) traditional Khmer dancers, and 3) crocodiles. Apparently the crocodiles are not for eating, but have been rescued from somewhere or other and are now kept "safe to live out long and happy lives," aka as a tourist attraction. I guess it's better than being eaten, but it still seemed like a pretty sad life for them to me...



While at Dead Fish, I got to indulge my favorite vegetable discovery of the trip: morning glory. This morning glory is not related to the trumpet-shaped climbing vine that Americans at least mean when they say morning glory. Rather, it's a green vegetable that grows in water and has a deliciously mild flavor, sort of like a mellower spinach except it also had crunchy, broccoli-like stems. Anyway, I loved this stuff and ate it every chance I got:


Siem Reap is also, of course, the town from which you explore the temples of Angkor Wat, so here are a few pictures from our several days spent visiting the magnificent temples.

This is the overgrown temple where they famously shot part of Tomb Raider:



Here's Bayon, which was my personal favorite:





Angkor Wat at sunrise:


Around Angkor Wat:






We also went one afternoon and visited this artisan's collective in Siem Reap. We started at the branch in town to see the paintings and carvings done there, and then hired a tuk tuk to take us to the branch out of town, where they make silk. As vegans, we've always wanted to know a little bit more about how silk is made and why they have to kill the silk worms in the process, so this was pretty much the most educational experience we could ask for:


Here are the live worms eating mulberry leaves:

These are the cocooned worms, which they bake in the sun to dry out the cocoon and kill the worm:


And here they are spinning the cocoons into silk:


Here are some of the center's artisans being trained in how to spin, dye, and weave the silk:


And finally, a finished scarf:


I think we came away from the experience with a deep and sincere appreciation for the incredible artisans making this silk, but still feeling that since silk is not necessary for us to have happy, healthy lives, we would rather not buy and wear it. I'm really glad we went and saw the process first hand, though, because it was amazing and we really learned a lot.

Siem Reap itself and the temples of Angkor Wat were absolutely the highlight of the trip for me, so if you ever get the chance to go, don't hesitate! We also got two or three lovely $6/hour Khmer massages at pretty upscale massage parlors, so that definitely helped foster friendly feelings toward the city, as well.

I've got one more South East Asia post up my sleeve yet... Next stop, Thailand!