After our ship returned to Singapore, we had our hotel store our bags and we headed to the airport to catch a two hour flight to Siem Reap, Cambodia. We arrived and checked in to our beautiful hotel.
We had a relaxing night swimming and getting massages and our guide met us in the lobby at 7:00 am the next morning. Violet and I didn’t realize we couldn’t wear tank tops to the temple complexes, so we had to wear very uncool t-shirts all day. Our first stop was the huge temple complex on Angkor Wat. We crossed the moat on this temporary floating bridge…
…and caught our first glimpse of the temples.
Built between 1113 and 1150, the temple was originally Hindu dedicated to the God Vishnu, and converted into a Buddhist temple in 14th century.
The carvings on the walls depict historical and allegorical stories. The detail is amazing.
After learning all about Angkor Wat, we headed to the next temple group Bayon, or temples of the smiling faces.
These were incredible!
The steps down from the temple towers were super steep and treacherous.
Our last stop of the day was Ta Prohm. This was my favorite temple complex because it is almost completely overgrown and engulfed by massive trees and the jungle itself.
I am so glad we decided to add Cambodia on to our itinerary. We learned so much - not only about the ancient way of life, but also about present day Cambodia. All throughout Southeast Asia, we have been so grateful to all of the wonderfully kind people we have met. This part of the world is definitely worth visiting and I can’t wait until we are able to come back again.
Tomorrow, we are spending our last day back in Singapore. We are planning to go to Sentosa Island and have dinner at the top of the iconic Marina Bay Sands’ Skypark. This has been one of the greatest trips we have ever taken. We all feel so fortunate to have had the opprtunity to explore these beautiful countries.