Siem Reap, Phnom Penh...your favorite experiences?
 

Hi all. I'm heading over to SR and PP in Oct or Nov and was wondering which non-temple experiences (i.e. restaurants/food, markets, coffee shops, bars, etc) did you find especially memorable or enjoyable when in these two cities. I'd love to hear your recommendations, thanks,

Kurt

Well, for me, I went to SIEM REAP for the TEMPLES..Three visits this year,a total of 14 days there. However, there is the silk farm out near the airport and the stone carving workshop down near the French quarter. (Both Artisons d'Angkor).
However, if you go out to the ROLUOS GROUP, you will find another stone carving workshop there, opposite PREAH KO. This workshop does some unbelievable carvings at relatively inexpensive prices.

I used to cool down at the ANGKOR restaurant opposite Angkor Wat for lunch with banana smoothies :-)

Red Piano bar is a favorite with many people,and I went there with a friend. 5 beers and a coke US$ 7.50..So inexpensive.

In Phnom Penh (which I did not like), there is the FCC club/ restaurant overlooking the river.
Naturally, I visited KILLING FIELDS, S-21 PRISON, and the NATIONAL MUSEUM at Phnom Penh. I had three days in Phnom Penh,and,in my opinion, that was one day too many.

I really enjoyed SIEM REAP, and will go back again next year.

Massage at Frangipani in Siem Reap. Western prices but excellent.

The reason 99% of people go to Cambodia is to visit the Angkor temples so I suppose that is a given, but they are now extremely crowded. When I visited in March 2007 I was shocked by how much SR had grown since the last time I was there in 1996. The town has expanded and the number of visitors has grown exponentially to the current levels. Definitely worth seeing but but choose your timings carefully to avoid the crowds. As you are in Oct /November which is the cool wet season, the crowds will be reduced and you will have the added benefit that the place will still be green and lush great for photos.

Tonle Sap is definitely worth a visit - hire a tuk tuk driver for $14 a day and get them to take you there and elsewhere round and about the countryside of SR. We stopped off at Artizans de Angkor on the way back and bought some great lacquerware (not cheap but amazing quality).

Unlike the previous poster, I liked Phnom Penh a lot. There is a lot of poverty there and I think that can put a lot of people off somewhat. The Killing Fields at Choeung Ek and Tuol Sleng prison are both very moving places and worth a visit. The Central and Russian Markets are both great (if you are into that sort of thing) and you can still get some great bargains there - I am still using a Lowe Alpine day pack I bought there for $2 after 13 years of quite intensive use. Orussey market is geared to locals but still worth a visit.

Friends cafe is a great place to eat and serves the most amazing (but expensive) fruit juices and support a great cause in helping the street kids. FCC on the riverside on the riverside is a great place to hang out for a drink and take in the view and watch the world go by. Malis on Norodom Boulevard is a great place for khmer food, but there are so many good restaurants around you will be spoilt for choice.

Al Rokoff, the journalist portrayed by John Malkovich in the Killing Fields movie, lives in Phnom Penh. My DS and his GF, then newly-minted college grads, spent a dinner chatting with him and some friends of his a few summers ago.

Travel experience likes and dislikes are so very personal. My favorite things tend to be those random "local" encounters that I seem to fall into as some one who often travels solo.

I enjoyed PP. I visited the typical sites (Killing Fields, Genocide prison, National Museum and Palace) as well as spent time wandering the side streets, local markets and the area across from the Palace along the river. Two days is

Had I had a little more time I might have done a local cooking class, they can be fun.

In SR the temples, Tonle Sap, the night market, the museum, etc. are all IMHO worth the experience. If you have the time to see one of the more remote, less visited temples I would do it as well.

The travel experience that I have most appreciated (I've traveled extensively in Asia, Canada, US, Central America and some of Europe) was the time spent with the schol children that the Ponheary Ly Foundation supports. Check out www.theplf.org. The work is remarkable and I feel so fortunate to have had a chance to spend time with them the last two trips I made to SR. It's an amazing and powerful experience.

BTW, early morning is a lovely time to walk around (quietly and respectfully) Wat Bo.

Thank you all very much! (especially gearsau, crellston, and cjbryant for your voluminous and informative responses).

While the temples will be a significant part of the trip, its good to know of the special side attractions. Thanks again,

Kurt

We enjoyed the Apsara and folk dances performed at the La Residence d'Angkor hotel....also, ice cream breaks at the Blue Pumpkin cafes (one's across from Angkor Wat)....lunch (or dinner) at Sugar Palm restaurant.

I forgot to mention Banteay Srei. It's about 30 km or so out of town, and this temple has some of the best sandstone cravings in the region. Best time to visit is either in the morning, or, after 3:00PM , when the western side is lit by the setting sun. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banteay_Srei

Nice scenice ride out there by Tuk Tuk and its about an hour each way.

Another interesting place in Beng Mealea, which is 70 km by Tuk Tuk, so, its a two hour run. I was there about 10 days ago. This temple is quite large, but, in a state of ruin. Its not swamped by tourists either, unlike Ta Prohm, Bayon, Angkor Wat etc.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beng_Mealea
You actually go past the ROLUOS group on the way to Beng Mealea, and can see the interesting stone carving workshop which is located about 300 meters off the main N6 highway . Right opposite Preah Koh.

Ta Som is interesting, as it has a tree growing over the eastern entrance. Not as popular, but, definitely worth seeing. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ta_Som
I think I covered most temples at Angkor during my three trips there this year.

Hope this helps..

Thanks, Barefootbeach.. will definitely try :D

Helps a lot, Gearsau! I appreciate the many leads here :) Take care..

gearsau, Ta Som was one of our favorites. We were the only visitors and sat in the silence of the ruins for a good hour. We decided to revisit it our last day, and there were crews doing stabilization and reconstruction. I wonder how much it has changed since our visit 10 years ago. Here are our photos of Ta Som angkorwat.marlandc.com/TaSom/index.htm

Katie,
Ta Som really has not changed a great deal since your photos were taken. Still has the tree over growing the entrance. As its a small temple, and a little bit off the beaten path, its not as over run with tourists, compared to the circus which is Ta Prohm now...

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?ai...0&l=c9617d96c0

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?ai...0&l=0cf0cba939

Thanks, gearsau. When we saw the restoration work in progress we worried that it would be changed for the worse. I'm so glad to hear that it has not.

Hello Mr. Mango

My favorite thing to do in Phnom Penh is to get on a bus heading OUT. :)

Siem Reap Reatsurants and Bars:
http://tinyurl.com/srchow

The list is mostly restaurants. Other bars I've been enjoying are the Giddy Gecko (shisha bar) and Little Pari.

Be sure to go to Touich (in the list above) and have one or five khmer mojitos and for sure the snapper. Getting there is half the fun, especially after a good rain. :)

Keep your eye on this space:
http://www.siemreaplife.com

Go out on the microlight:
www.skyventure.org

Rent a bike, get your ipod and follow the river away from Angkor Wat.

Ride a horse.
Take a quad tour.

Go to Kompong Khleang, walk through the village market up to the Pagoda and down to the boat dock. Take a boat out to the Tonle Sap.

Thank you, Offwego. I will try out your recommendations here, for sure. Btw, what do you mean by getting OUT via bus? Sorry if I'm being a little thick here! Thanks again..

Such a wealth of info in your links, Offwego! Cheers

Great info for me to Lori.I am definitely going to try Touich

Phnom Penh - not a "must see" - maybe one day to cover the major attractions and then move on to Angkor Wat. A long drive from PP, so I'd fly into Seim Reap if given the choice.

Mango7, I've never met a temple I didn't like, so my reaction may be somewhat skewed, but my favorite experience was returning to my favorites a second time for a more relaxed, in depth visit.

The big draws -- Angkor Wat, the Bayon -- rightfully deserve their reputations and are somewhat overwhelming on the first go. They can also be literally overrun by our fellow travelers. My approach was to try to get an overview, an orientation as it were, then to return a day or so later to absorb the details.

I loved riding around in tuktuks and sometimes just asked them to make the circuit around the archeological park as an opportunity to relax and take in the breeze. I usually stayed out during the lunch/siesta break when everyone else when back to town for a rest. I am told that this is not SOP however so be sure to clear your plans with your driver first.

Four days just wasn't enough to do everything and the only foray I made outside of Angkor proper was to Bantey Srei. This is a jewel of a temple, but by 9:30 a.m. it was mobbed. Go early!

Lori's suggestions for restaurants were A+. Abacus was my favorite.

Thanks a bunch, marmot. Will most definitely use your advice here. I would think a nice tuktuk ride all over would be enjoyable in itself. Regards..