January 28, Wednesday – Travel from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap

Destination: Siem Reap – Accommodations: Angkor Paradise Hotel

I was behind a little bit in posting because I want feeling great, so make sure you read Monday’s post that I posted yesterday.

Also, if you notice, I haven’t mentioned about how the Khmer Rouge regime affected our two local guides and their families. This was done intentionally since my blog is in the public domain.

I woke up and was feeling a bit better and was able to eat some cereal and a banana. A few of the folks on our trip have been plagued with intestinal issues, so I guess I picked it up as well. I wanted to try to eat because it was going to be a long bus ride
to Siem Reap. We have a new local guide named Nin who will be with us and Are until we fly to Vietnam in a few days.

Even though the drive was long, we made many stops along the way. The first stop was to pick up some lotus pods from a countryside stand. The pods are the seed heads of the lotus flower. These pods develop after the lotus flower has bloomed and shed its petals. They are very delicious and we ate them right out of the lotus and then we tried some that had been roasted. They make a delicious snack. We also had roasted cashews.

Our next stop was a little bit more dicey. We visited a local woman who hunts for tarantulas, cooks them, and sells them at her village’s market. YIKES!

We all got off the bus and walked with the lady through the forest in search of tarantula holes (I know…double YIKES!!!) and after finding one, we watched as the lady coaxed the tarantula out and then she took out its venom. She said she has gotten stung by tarantulas and she uses garlic on the sting which lessens the swelling and the pain. (I’ll have to take her word for that.)

And then things got really crazy! The lady put garlic, Knorr’s chicken flavoring, and some oil in a hot pan and sautéed a number of tarantulas, crickets, and grasshoppers. Then we all were invited to taste. My stomach was still not doing that great and the thought of eating a tarantula was not on my bucket list. But Allan merrily crunched his way through all of the insects and so far has lived to tell the tale.

The lady made a brew of rice wine with scorpions, tarantulas, fruit and tarantula and scorpion venom. Lovely!!! Allan drank a glass and I had a sip. It actually tasted pretty good. She said people drink it to get rid of back pain from working in the rice paddies.

We had lunch at a local restaurant and it was way too much food. I ate a little, but my appetite still isn’t up to par.

Our next stop was Kampong Kdei Bridge. Built around 1,400 years ago, the structure holds its title as one of the world’s longest corbeled arch bridges. It is one of the few Khmer empire era bridges to have survived to today. The bridge is made of laterite and decorated at one end with a carved image of Asura and the other end has the image of Deva.

We arrived in Siem Reap late and had dinner at the hotel. The hotel is gorgeous. The woodwork has old world charm and the reception desk and lobby are stunning. Dinner was delicious, but again, I wasn’t very hungry. Tomorrow will be another busy day.

When we returned to our room, Are and Nin arranged for a huge plate of bananas to be delivered for me, knowing that last night it was all I wanted to eat. They are really so thoughtful and the best tour guides!