Afternoon in Phnom Penh

 In the afternoon what I should have done was go and visit the palace and the silver pagoda with its solid gold Buddha encrusted with diamonds and gone to the traditional dance performance. But as I thought I would be able to go the next day and I wanted to avoid my tuktuk driver, I decided to rest for the afternoon at the hotel. I drank tea and had a foot massage.

In the late afternoon I was rested enough to go out for a walk. Though I had told the tuktuk driver I wouldn't need him, the moment I stepped outside he was waiting for me but I told him I was walking. I said he could pick me up at 7pm at the Palace but I wouldn't have wifi to let him know.

I did actually contact him using the wifi of the place I ate the night before. I had a full body massage booked at the hotel at 8 O'clock. He hadn't come to meet me, he had stayed at the hotel. by the time he would have driven to where I was and back I would have walked there, so I just walked.

Walking was much nicer than I imagined. The roads are very noisy and crowded when you are in a tuktuk. the roads I walked along were quiet. I had to cross one very busy highway but there were traffic lights, though they will still run you over if you aren't confident and walk with right-of-way.

Sometimes during my walks the locals would help me cross, that was handy, and once a policeman at the very busy intersection. And if I told anyone I was walking they warned me to be careful and to to guard my bag. I had bought a plastic recycled back-pack with an elephant on it. Fortuitously, I had tied a piece of pink ribbon onto my cabin luggage to secure my favorite pillow. I used this to tie the straps of the back-pack around my chest so it wouldn't fall off on the motor bike when I went Kulen Mountain. Now it was doubly useful as a security measure. No one tried to take my bag though.

I always walk down dark streets in rough cities. No one has approached me yet. If I couldn't handle myself, I wouldn't be walking there.

I walked along side of a park with a golden dragon flying in the centre and when I came to the corner I discovered a wide six lane road blocked off to traffic. A few people were walking along. It ran along in front of the Royal Palace which was all lit up with sparkling orange lights and looked out across another big park with people playing and selling food and monks walking. 

It was so pleasant with no noisy traffic and wide open space and no one trying to make me ride in a tuktuk.

I walked around to where I had seen restaurants the night before and found a street food restaurant that looked fine. I prefer to sit with locals and get the authentic flavor of a place rather than sit with a bunch of tourists.

I walked back in time for my massage. It was only ok, but I was starting to feel better from so many.

9 Hour bus trip to PhnomPenh

The food at Sonalong village was really exceptional. For dinner I had fish amok. Fish amok is a fish mousse with fresh coconut milk and a khmer curry paste made from lemongrass, tumeric root, garlic, shallots and ginger and served in a bowl made from palm leaves. It was super delicious.

I talked with the girl who works there. Her husband works there too and they have 2 children. Her mother in law looks after the children and they all live together in a small house with her sister also. They have a stall at the market.

They work very hard but she said it makes her sad that the mother-in-law has to work so hard looking after everyone. I told her that the mother-in-law works so hard because she wants to help them all because she wants them to be happy. So the best way to repay her is to be happy. If she feels sad then the mother-in-law is failing at what she is trying to do.

I told her that the best thing she can do is to show her gratitude so she knows she is appreciated. I suggested buying a washing machine, but that would take them a long time to save up for.  So little things, like taking her flowers or a plant or giving her a hug.

I wish I had realized that I had worked out my dates wrong. I could have stayed another night and spent the day relaxing by the pool. I really regretted it.

Anyway. I couldn't sleep so I got up early and packed and was ready to go bright and early the next morning.


The trip was very interesting, except when we got caught up in the election traffic. And even that was exciting, though we were stuck on the bus for nearly two hours watching the people drive around the round-about on their motor-bikes.

Not many people in Cambodia have cars, but they all have motor-bikes. And they mostly live in simple wooden houses up on stilts either in the jungle or agricultural land. I suspect the stilts are to help keep the houses cool as much as keep them out of floods.

The bus trip was very enjoyable. I nearly botched the lunch stop. I thought it was just a toilet break and stayed on the bus. When I realized I just had time to get a take-away pad thai, which was great, because I couldn't eat it all and had some left for when we were stuck in the parade of people.

The election was obviously extremely important to the people. They have had a terrible past with civil war and genocide.

It was difficult to speak to the people, partly because only some speak English but also because if I made any movement towards them they wanted to sell me something. Usually a tuk-tuk ride. I felt like saying that I have legs and can walk. They wouldn't have understood why I would walk I think. No one walks. They ride their motor-bikes, same as in Thailand.

The hotel was a tea house.

It had a pool and spa but as they couldn't give me an appointment for a massage that night, the reception recommended a place called Bodiea and I got a tuk-tuk there.

Travelling in the tuktuk in the traffic made the city seem squalid, dirty, frantic, and unpleasant.

The spa was serene and gorgeous; curved wooden walls and delicious fragrance with a warm greeting. My masseuse washed my feet with sea salt and limes. I stepped into my massage room across stepping stones over a pond. It was a good massage.

The tuktuk driver was my ill-fortune. I had told him I was going to dinner after the massage but he spotted me when I came out and took me to a place to eat. It was a bar. It had a view of the river but I felt really out of place. I didn't want a drink, the food wasn't nice and I paid too much. I would have been happier walking in the opposite direction and finding a cheap Kymer place that suited me rather than one he thought tourists would like. I did exactly that another night and paid $2 instead of $7.

He was only young but he kind of ruined my time in Phnom Penh.  He told me I would be able to go to see the traditional dancing and the palace on Sunday but they were closed because of the election. I could have gone on Saturday but he wanted to make money by taking me on a tour.

We went to silk island.

It was so poor.

I didn't really have a nice time but the photos make it look awesome!

The tuk tuk came on the ferry to drive me around. A woman accosted me on the ferry.  She is exactly why I couldn't trust these people, but a review on TripAdvisor had warned me. I knew she as just pretending to be interested in making conversation. She said she would tell my driver to follow her to her house where they do silk weaving.

I knew there is a community silk place. I told my driver I did not want to follow her. I asked did he understand I did not want to go to her house. He said yes but he followed her and made me get out at her house to see a girl working at a silk loom. They tried to make me to buy a scarf, they pulled them out of a black plastic bag. They had not been made there.

I said "thank you for showing me that" and got back in the tuk tuk.
I said "I don't want to buy one. I don't have to buy the first thing I see."
I was not going to let them shaft me.

Then we went for a ride around the hot and steamy island. Lots of greenery and some agriculture, a few cattle.

He took me to a few temples, they weren't kept very clean and they weren't open. But I liked them. One was in a brightly painted complex with statues of hindu gods around                                                                   the courtyards and a replica of a long long canoe.

Another one was very old and being repaired. It was open and no one was there so I sneakily took some photos of me being a Buddha again. I left a small offering. The ceiling was painted with a mural, I hadn't seen that before. It was really cool with a giant gold Buddha statue behind a big chair with some mats on the stone floor. The floor felt clean. I'm sure I was very naughty to sit in the big chair, but I am a Buddha after all.





The community silk farm was a great experience. It was in a lovely setting under cool palm trees with the people working on shaded platforms. There wasn't a guide to show me around but I knew a lot from when I had silk worms when I was growing up.

The silk before it has been spun feels like rough old woman's hair. after it has been spun it feels like fine princess's hair.

Then it is dyed and spun from the spools onto a bobbin which is put inside a bob-kin to be used at the loom.

It was facinating to see the process. I bought a skarf as fine as silk

Working at the loom must be mind numbingly boring. to keep track of the pattern must be so hard.

There is a park with shady huts where you can rest and have a picnic



On the way back across on the ferry I was pounced on again by women wanting to sell me scarves. They wanted $8. I said $5 and wouldn't budge, especially when the pushiest punched one of them in the chest. I said I didn't want it and sat back in the tuktuk. Then the one who got punched said ok, $5 so I bought it so they would go away. It is pink and blue with elephants.

My room at the hotel was quite dull so I hung all by scarves and and sarongs around the room to brighten it up.

Temples and travelling

What did I do yesterday? I don't remember. It involved a lot of Jungle and walking around temples. I got hot.

I slept only a few hours last night. I got up about 2am and packed and went for a night time swim.

I was all ready by 6:30am to go down for breakfast.

The hotel organized the bus for me to travel down to the capital, Phnom Penh. It's going to take about 7 hours. I can watch the country side go by through the window. It's exciting. 

(It's actually going to take longer than 7 hours because the roads are blocked due to a political campaign. It's quite exciting. I'm in Phnom Penh but stuck stationary on the bus watching a flood of people in white caps on motor bikes across the bridge. In the center is a carving like the giant heads in the jungle.)

The direction we came was very different to the direction we went in to the waterfall. It is less ramshakle with sturdy houses, the shops along the road side are solid. The cattle are well fed from hay stacks, the fields neatly turned and I haven't seen any escapee chickens or roosters yet.

There seems to be a political celebration for the Cambodian People's Party. Truck loads of people are gathering, they are wearing white shirts and caps with matching emblems. There is music, the people are dancing and waving flags.

Yesterday Bunna took me on the big circuit around the jungle temples.

The first one was very tall with high stepping  stairs going straight up. I'm glad I'm fit and have strong quads, I made it in one go.

That is, after I fought my way through the hawkers selling guide books, paintings and scarves. 

"Lady, you want to buy my scarf? Beautiful silk. From Cambodia." 

"No thank you," I said

"You sure lady? Beautiful scarf," she said.

"Yes I'm sure thank you," I said.

"May be you buy on the way back," she said.

"No, I don't think so," I said.

"I will remember you lady," she said.

"I still won't buy the scarf," I said.

"May be you will change your mind," she said

"And may be I won't," I said. 

And with good humour she stopped following me.

She did actually remember me on the way back and didn't ask if I would like to buy her scarf.

The temple was built for changing life. It was the funeral temple where they did cremations. It would be quite easy to slip off the top and continue the tradition. The jungle looked wild from the top. It was taller than the tops of the trees. Once there would have been magnificent lions gurding the staircases but they had been reduced to half-lions.

The next temple was probably my second favorite after the Tomb raider temple and it was very quiet. Not many people and nestled into the jungle with it's giant faces and overgrown trees.

As I stepped through the door way I came across two asian girls sitting amongst the ruins fixing their make-up, as you do in the middle of jungle.

I found a hidden alcove to meditate in. First I tried one side of the transcept, but it was a bit cold and damp and the rock was too small. Besides there was an enoooorrrrmous centerpede crawling under my bag. So I moved to the other side where rays of sun shone down through holes in the roof and I could look up to see green leaves above

It was only a tiny temple. I walked around the rubble of fallen walls and massive trees with buttress roots, like the buttresses that have been constructed to stop the walls from falling.

I did some yoga. I'm glowing so much I became translucent. If I'd had no clothes on I would have been invisible.

I walked underneath the stone guardian of the temples back entrance with his giant stone face with sprouting hair of leaves growing from the crown of his head. Down his back were the massive trailing roots that engulfed the gateway, like giant dreadlocks. The blue plastic that protected the poor villagers stalls looked incongruous, peeping through the dark entrance way

I walked through, by now holding in my annoyance of the constant barrage of these people trying to make me buy their wares.

I've bought magnets and postcards. "You buy? Only one dollar," in winey little voices that all sound the same. They follow, me constantly harassing and won't take no for an answer. From these little girls I bought 2 pretty fans. But I can't buy something from every child in the jungle. I feel like someone is exploiting them in any case.

The only time I liked buying from a little girl was when I could see her with her family at a retaurant and she was sucking on a chup'o'cup. Pity she couldn't understand that I wanted to buy a lolly pop. The worst was a tiny boy who pounced on me after I'd bought postcards from another little boy. He followed me singing unmusically "you buy my post cards? Only one dollar," till I escaped into the toilet. 

It's giving me the feeling that these people are greedy. Greedy is wanting more than what you have. Greed does not align with being virtuous which is waht you need to be if the universe is going to provide for you. If you are grasping and wanting you will never have enough and will never be content. 

The whole of Siem Reap is geared to fleece the tourists. Food is expensive compared to Chaing Mai. But it is very delicious.

I also bought a beutiful temple rubbing from a young man with bare feet. We agreed that travelling alone and being free is the best way to be.

We went to a couple more temples. To get to one I had to walk a long long way across a wooden bridge. There wasn't much there. May be once it was a beautiful fountain. It's just worn out now, sitting in a swamp. With ants and birds and insects.

We had a leisurely lunch. I had a nap in a hammock and bought 2 more pairs of the pants I like. They were hard to find in Siem Reap.

Then after lunch Bunna took me to Ankor Wat.

And on the way home I had a Chai Japanese oil massage at the best massage place Bunnah knew of in Siem Reap. It was pretty good.

When i came out Bunna's little family met me. It was so nice to meet them.

Out into the country side

My bum is pretty sore. I spent all day on the back of Bunna's motorcycle. We drove far, far away from Siem Reap to visit a big waterfall at Phnom Kulen - Mountain of the Lychees.

When we got to the national park and started climbing into the mountains the road tuned into dirt and bumpy stones. Bunna is good driver, we didn't go over many pot holes, the ditches were the hardest.

Along the way I saw many small stilt houses and ramshakle shops on the road-side. I wonder how they secure the stuff at night? Maybe they pack everything up.

There were many flooded fields. It is the rainy season, though the weather has been amazing while I've been here. The sun just came up and is shining on my face as I sit on my porch up amongst the tree tops with the sounds of birds and the hum of insects.

One afternoon the heavens suddenly opened up while I was inside having a massage. When I came out all the streets were flooding. It has tropical heat that makes sweat run in rivulets down my back and soak my clothes. The dye in the blue pants I bought came off and turned my skin blue.

Last night I went to buy more pants to wear today. I can't believe how dumb I am. When I got back, I had bought the same colour! I must have that colour on my brain. I'd been wearing them for two days. I had to get a tuk tuk back to change them over. I have a purple pair to wear today now.

In the flooded fields, sometimes there were buffalos and grey Brahman bulls & cows, sometimes grazing, sometimes working. People were hoeing and fishing wearing coolie hats to shade thier face. In the jungle people were hacking down small trees near the road and building picnic structures from the saplings.

As we climbed the steep mountain road, the view opened up to see the long valley far below, cleared of jungle with magnificent rocks left strewn about. While above us was huge sun halo. It stayed with us forever.

The first we went to was a special magical place, the birth of the Kymer Kingdom, it's first city with a reclining Buddha carved into the top of an extrodinary rock.

We climbed up a long, stone staircase flanked by statues of two golden tigers, beggars, some chickens , medicinal plant sellers, and other statues. There may still be tigers hiding in the jungle on the mountain above the temple.

There is an orange shrine with much incense burning, musicians playing under an over hanging rock, like an open cave. There is a shrine with Buddha's deep foot print carved into the rock. He has a giant foot. I let a money bill float down into the soul as an offering. There is a bright orange statue of Ganesh to match the Ganesh t-shirt I was wearing and a statue of Hanuman for me to do leaping monkey pose with (& no officious guide).

There is also magic water to wash your hands. I couldn't understand what Bunna was telling me till later when we went to a stream and where they have 1000 squares with circles inside representing male and female fertility, called the Thousand Lingas at Kbal Spean. I don't want any more fertility, but maybe the magic water will help with my love life.

To reach the reclining Buddha we climbed up a steap stone staircase. A wooden shrine is built around him as he lies with sleepy eyes, stretched out along the top of the mountain. There is a teeny tiny bone fragment from his finger encased in a glass case. Just like the tiny piece of Mary's bone I saw once under a St Mary Magiore Basilica in Rome.

I am truely blessed and humbled by all the Gods to be constantly in their presence in sacred places. It is an amazing life's journey. l could compare this place with Uluru, with the incredible sacred rock rising up out of the ground. The heart of Australia and the heart of the Kymer Kingdom.

From the Preah Ang Thom Pagoda we went on to the waterfall. I wouldn't like it in peak season, nor visiting the temples. Crowds would spoil these places.

I swam around for a while, the water is not clear and crisp. There is a lot of it though, falling from high up and very broad.

I accidentally swallowed a little but I had two slightly cooked cloves of garlic with my delicious roast beef dinner. I'm hoping that will counteract a germ.

I was a bit hungry by now. Bunna took me to a restaurant. I had fish & vegetables. It was soooooo good! Later Bunna told me it is a very fanous restaurant. I should be! the food was awesome. Though I tried 3 tables before I found one I liked. The first had a little trail of ants marching across the tablecloth from a spot of food left behind by a previous dinner. Lucky ants who live here. I ended up sitting by a pond with big gold fish looking through the tropical garden.

Then I went to Banteay Srei, an 11th century Hindu temple, also known as the Lady Temple. There was a policeman/guard sitting at the entrance. He asked if I would like a guide. I wasn't going to but reconsidered when I heard him say "You don't want to know the history?"

He looked quite startled when I turned around and said "OK". I had to convince him to come with me.

He was awesone. The temple has perfectly preserved carvings deep into the stone plinths depicting so many stories of the  Hindu Gods. He told me so many things. And he took some lovely yoga photos for me. He knew all the best spots. I had a wonderful time. And learnt so much.

I am very curious to find out who brought the Hindu and Buddhist religion to Cambodia.

Temples in the Jungle

Off into the jungle in a tuktuk.

I started off with breakfast in a simple restaurant setting in the jungle. I had fresh coconut! and an omelette. It was yummy.

My tuk tuk driver dropped me off at Bayon temple. I haven't been feeling myself lately, I needed some time in an ancient Buddhist temple to reconnect with the universal energy.

I clambered around the ancient carvings, through many low stone doorways and along a myriad of corridores that seemed to lead nowhere in particular and through tiny cramped rooms. I climbed steep stairs up to the very top of the amazing 13th century ruin, built as a Mayahana Buddist temple by Jayavarman VII.

Jayavarman VII was only the second Buddhist king of the powerful Khmer kingdom. He obviously wanted to bring the Buddhist way to his people. Later it was converted by other kings back to the traditional Hindu religion honoring Vishnu & Shiva. Which makes it all the more strange that the female guard stopped me doing yoga.

I was in Humanasana, leaping monkey pose. Hunuman is the General of Lord Rama's army. He vanquished many demons to rescue his wife, Sita. He is patron god of martial arts, meditation and scholarship.

"No," she said, "We do not do that style here."

I looked at her increduously, "Yoga," I said, "you do not do yoga her?" I wanted to give her a lesson that yoga is to attain union with God.  But I think she didn't have a clue.

Up the top of the temple are 200 giant heads carved into rock. Tbey are the head of Lokeshvara, the Bodhisattva of compassion.

I found a little Buddha alcove. Seeing the giant heads with the jungle behind from a Buddha alcove in an ancient temple through half closed eyes mesmerized me into meditation.

I was deep in meditation in a little triangle in the wall where a Buddha statue might have been, or flowers or offerings. It fitted me so perfectly. I didn't think anybody would be able to see me because I was in a sort of dark stone cave.

I saw duality with the door inbetween. It was as steady as the rocks that enclosed me and as unmoving as the heads that had been watching the jungle change for 800 years. I saw the people move from one side to the other through the door. They seemed unaware.

But some of them did see me. They kept calling me a living Buddha and wondering if I was a statue. I think they took photos but I was too focused to be affected.

It helped me alot. I often feel that people at home don't recognize me. I liked being recognized, it only seems to happen when I am abroard that people see my inner self. I like being a Buddha. I feel so much better. I feel like myself.

Bahaha, luckily I had finished my meditation but I hadn't gone from my spot, I was still absorbed in the moment. The same woman guard came along and told me to stop being a Buddha. "No meditating in the temple," she said, "only for the Buddha," she said. 

"I know" I said. I wanted to tell her I am a Buddha, but she must have only been doing a job, not understanding spirituality. I wonder if that is why people don't see me at home. Perhaps you have to be connected with your own spirituality to see it in others, or at least searching for spirituality. Perhaps. I don't know what her problem was. But it doesn't matter, that's her problem and I had a pure experience.

I had a lovely talk with my tuk tuk driver, swinging in a hammock. One of my travelling friends, Amy put me in touch with him.

Then we went onto the Tomb Raider Temple. 

Years ago, I watched Tomb Raider. I wanted to be like Lara Croft, but for real. Now I'm a black belted yogi who learns sword fighting, visiting Cambodia and the Temples in the jungle.

Ummm. I might have to meditate on that.

I loved this place. I came to get tree energy and the spirits in the tree here are so strong and ancient. I'm pretty full and glowing again. 

The trees have taken root on top of walls and stone structures. But the walls are so strong they support the trees and massive roots wind their way down into the earth.

I got into trouble here too for sitting up on a high wall with the trees. But it was an amazing feeling. Looking out from inside the temple into the jungle high amongst the trees. It's exactly what I said I would do. Meditate in the jungle. I sat with the spirits of the trees and absorbed.