Siem Reap is more than Temples

Its nice to know that if "Temple Fatigue" sets in; there are lots of things to do here

   Festivals and Events Calendar 2007

 Siem Reap Town

Psah Chas Market

Old stone Bridge

Moto Cart or Tuk Tuk

Here are just a few things to do away from the temples:

• Enjoy the old French Colonial atmosphere in and around the restaurants and bars and the Psar Chas Market.

• Wander along the riverfront and absorb the semi rural atmosphere to the east of the river.

• Take a look at many of the hundreds of butterfly species in the Butterfly Garden

• Visit the Silk farm and enjoy the unspoiled countryside on the way.

• See Angkor from the Air from the Angkor Balloon

• Cruise on the Tonle sap and see the fascinating life on the lake.

• Relax on the small beach on the Western Baray.

• Take in an Apsara Dance Show.

• Visit the Land Mine Museum

• Take a short stroll to see Angkor In Miniature

• Plan your trip to take in one of the many festivals in Siem Reap

A few random Photos from around Siem reap Town

                                 The Kings Palace                        Downtown street 

                   

                       

                     

Siem Reap Pagoda                     Fish Market                  Signs of the times  

 

     

Siem Reap Corner                     Grand Hotel D'Angkor                   Catholic Church

 

                           

Shoe Stalls                                        Money Laundry 

Jayavarman Children's Hospital:

This hospital provides very high standards of care for children only.

It is a charity and welcomes support. Dr Beat Richner plays weekly concerts of Bach on cello and talks about the wonderful work done here and at the the other similar hospitals around the country.

No Charge for entry but please give generously

Jayavarman VII Hospital

   Cattle cart

Village house

Silk Farm: 16 Kms to the west of Siem Reap; near Pouk village the silk farm is a worthwhile place to see a slice of Cambodian rural industry.

Set amongst fields of mulberry trees, the silk farm is a working factory farm, producing some of the finest silk in the country

A new visitors centre was opened at the end of 2005.

Entry is free of charge

cocoons

Land Mine Centre Run by Aki Ra an ex army Land mine casualty. He has turned the garden of his home into a museum of mines and other ordnance. You will see dozens of ways to maim, injure or kill.

They may not have been Weapons of Mass destruction; but hundreds of thousands were seriously injured or killed by  these instruments. Sadly  the injuries are still continuing today.

Entry is free of charge.

Please support his organization by giving generously as they have no government support.

For more info on see Angkor Association for Disabled  webpage and Aki Ra's Land mine centre website which I can  highly recommend.

Angkor Wat In Miniature You do not have to stray far from Peace of Angkor Villa to find this small  but interesting attraction, round the corner from us.

The Sculptor Dy Preung has created replicas of a number of Temple sites in the garden of his home. There is a lot of photographic interest in his yard which apart from the replicas is full of atmospheric stonework and part completed figures their is a viewing platform which gives an "aerial" View of Angkor Wat

Balloon flights over Angkor: If you want a real Aerial View of Angkor; a very spectacular way of appreciating the vastness and splendour of Angkor is to take a tethered balloon flight. At $15 the short flight can be one of the highlights of a visit to Angkor.

Angkor; Aerial View  from balloon

The Western Baray

This vast man made reservoir, 8.5kms x 2.5Kms was built by hand  800 years ago.

The photo shows the small dock  and beach resort, where you can get boats to the small island temple at the centre

   Festivals and Events

Throughout the Year Siem Reap has many special events. The Bon Oum Took Boat Festival October/  November; is one of the biggest events attracting tens of thousands of Khmers for the Boat racing which is held on the river close to our villa. 

In September or October The Spirit Festival is a celebration of  the ancestors; where offerings are made to the spirits. this happens in Buddhist Pagodas all over the country.

From November 25th to December 1st, 2006, there will be an Angkor Photo Festival. This takes the form of various Photo Exhibitions round town  It is jointly sponsored sponsored by the FCC Angkor and many other  Organisations.

On December 17th  December the Angkor half Marathon is Held  It raises money for disabled and  attracts hundreds of able bodied and disabled runners. It is a fun run and has routes round the Temples for any ability.

At Khmer New Year (mid April) The whole country is given over to Partying for 7 days . There is  also a Silk Festival in the Royal Gardens in April. 

The Biggest event of the year will be the Angkor Gyeongju Cultural Expo a Joint  Cambodian and Korean cultural fair is to be held in a purpose built exhibition site North of Siem Reap. Running from Nov 21st to Jan 9th 2007, it will showcase Korean and Cambodian dance, kite flying, fashion. films art and food. 400, 000 are expected to attend.

       Spirit Festival in Pagoda               Boat Festival; Siem Reap          Sprit of the  Angkor Marathon

Apsara Dancing, no visit to to Cambodia would be complete without seeing one of the many Traditional Dance shows around Siem Reap (or Phnom Penh).

The floating dance style, music and themes were influenced by  the music and dance of South India. The Thais also adopted this dancing style; though its roots are firmly Khmer.

There are regular shows in various restaurants in town. Our favourite is the Angkor Mondial on the river.

If you are lucky You may find concerts going on at Angkor Wat or the Bayon. I have added pics of recent Bayon Dance Show in May 2006; left and below.

Apsaras

Peacock Dance

three apsaras

Fisherman's Dance

Cambodia Cultural Village

This new Theme park opened in 2003, It houses a cultural exhibition centre set in pleasant gardens with models of famous sights in Cambodia .

Intended for local Khmers rather than westerners; it gives a rather bland, but  idealised view of Cambodian life. It is no substitute for the real life that surrounds us here and in rural Cambodia. 

The Admission fee  of $12 does not encourage foreigners  to enter! (it is $2 for Khmers)

Shopping There are tourist markets and shops around the  Psar Chas (old Market) and Central Market in town.  Also anywhere that tourists gather there will be someone selling something.  The Artisans d' Angkor is a good place for quality (i.e. expensive)  gifts.

Silks and small wood or  stone carvings are of good quality. Clothing and baggage is on sale at good prices, there are branded products at cheap prices. CDs and DVDs for a few dollars (avoid Software in Cambodia as the pirated stuff will probably not work) . Most Guide books on sale are cheap copies so be careful what you pay as rip offs are not uncommon.

Crocodiles and Snakes

If you are into seeing men playing with detoxified cobras and wrestling with crocodiles then there is a place on the road to Angkor Wat. Otherwise the proprietors of the fish farms on Tonle Sap Lake may offer you the chance  to handle a 3 metre Boa Constrictor  (they don't let you play with their crocs though!) There are number of crocodile farms , the biggest in 3kms south of Siem Reap, on the road to the Lake.

The Zoo

Not being a fan of Third World zoos; I have not been to the Angkor Zoo. It is situated off  the road to Angkor Wat if you are interested.

Massage After a day at the Temples one might want to have a traditional Khmer style Massage. there are many Massage parlours here. As in neighbouring Thailand some can offer special services beyond a normal massage. The Blind Massage places are probably the best available here.

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All images and text © Dave Perkes 2006 www.peaceofangkor.com

Peace of Angkor Villa  0133 Slorkram Village, Siem Reap, Cambodia    PO Box 93125      Email us ( 855 (0)63 760 475