When to go to Cambodia?
Answer
Choose low or high season, hot or rainy, off peak or on peak,
Go before a national holiday or during a national holiday. The next national holiday is Cambodian New Year Starting April 13th 2017. The streets of Siem Reap, the second city whose main attractions are Ankor Wat and the other wats or temples.
What to see? The streets already have strings of bunting in the national colours of red and blue and other street decorations.
New Year Street Games
In the street they are playing a circular chasing game which looks like rounders played without a ball at primary school. The youngsters are gathered in a circle in the street and a smaller number are running around the outside of the circle with much hilarity. Apparently, it's a New Year game.
Read about the New Year games in Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambodian_New_Year
We saw the dancing right next to our hotel driveway.
Hotels
You can book a modestly priced hotel in the city centre such as where we stayed, Lemon Grass and Ginger. They arranged for us to be collected at the airport. When we arrived at the airport, like at Heathrow, lots of hotels had sent drivers with placards.
The Airport
It is hot. Not sticky heat like Singapore, hot like an oven.
Transport and Tuk-tuks
We followed our driver outside expected to see the hotel's pickup vehicle would be a car. We walked past the only car in the second parking lot to the street outside and found our driver had an open sided tuk-tuk. A large motorised bike pulling a kind of canopied cart, which appeared to be a two. Ours seated four we realised later, but the back seat was pushed forward to hold our suitcases. We could not stop laughing.
The driver donned a helmet. The open side created a breeze and my hat tugged at my hair. I grabbed my hat before it could blow off. A good thing I had had the forethought to sew ribbons on all my summer hats. But even the ribbons were not secure enough. Is stuffed my hat in my handbag.
We bounced along, no seatbelts. I thought we were going to be thrown out as he did a U-turn. But it was hilarious. We laughed and laughed. What a wonderful 'local' start.
Lemon Grass Hotel
I was disappointed with the size and position of the swimming pool, but cheered up when given a glass of lemon grass drink with a piece of lemon grass in it.
Our hotel, Lemon Grass and Ginger was set back behind the high street shops. The swimming pool was raised in front of the hotel next to the car park. Not big enough for laps. But apparently people like to take breakfast there. You are right int the centre of the nearest high street shops.
Next challenge. We were on the second floor (ground, first, second - what in Singapore would be called third). No lift. But far above the city traffic noise.
I was amused by the en suite shower room which had white pebbles down one side. My eye went along and I realised the white pebbles were filling in a gap in the floor tiles. Clever! I must copy that idea if I ever have a gap in a bathroom floor. (Works best if the wall or floor tiles or basin are white.)
Next challenge, getting a second backless stool so two of us could use our computers in the bedroom. I asked for a dining chair. No such luck. (If we had been in a bedroom on the first floor - second floor if you count the ground as first floor as in Singapore) I might have sneaked out to a table on the first floor dining area. If you are over seventy and not keen on stairs, ask for a lower floor bedroom. Or opt for a hotel with a lift.) To be fair, even three, four and five star hotels worldwide think that two people can share one dining chair (or one piece of chocolate). Sorry to say this, but a small round stool has scarcely room enough from one large Western size rear, certainly not two.
Meanwhile, we were immediately offered tours for the week, and opted for the evening's dinner and dance show. More photos and news about this in a later post. I have dozens of photos and videos of this one event. Highly recommended.
A family we met at the dinner and dance show in Cambodia had booked their entire stay from London through Beyond Tourism. Their trip was well organised. Their English speaking guide came t their table to collect them from the restaurant, reminding them they were to get up at 5 am to see Ankor Wat at dawn.
How would we get home to our hotel from the dinner show? Would we have to call our hotel's taxi? Our hotel's tuk-tuk driver was waiting at the kerb outside.
Goodness - I had delayed talking to fellow Brits, unwittingly delaying our driver. Did the driver wait all evening or go off, eat, sleep, and come back? ''Not our problem; that's the way it's done in these countries. We are giving him employment and an income," I was told by my companion.
Off we drove through the magical streets, all festooned ready for the coming New Year. Sadly we were going to miss it. Maybe you can catch it this year. Maybe you or I can catch it next year.
Cambodia, yes, love it, must go there again, see more, see the capital, definitely different. Happy New Year to everybody in Cambodia.
What were the best things we packed?
Mosquito repellent.
Tips
Check out:
TripAdvisor Cambodia
Lemon Grass and Ginger Hotel, Siem Reap, Cambodia
Porcuisine Restaurant (dinner and show), Siem Reap, Cambodia
Siem Reap, Cambodia
Anker Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia
Cambodian New Year
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.
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