Cambodia cycle tour - day 6 of 16

Sama: Hi Everyone. 

We have finally made it to the Mekong River in the laid back town of Kampong Cham. 

We spent our first 3 days in Cambodia touring the temples, villages and waterways of the north-west regions. 

Angkor Wat and its surrounds were a spectacular sight, although riding around the nearby villages we found many other smaller ancient sites that hardly get mentioned in the brochures, that were equally interesting and with far fewer tourists.

Sunrise at Angkor Wat

Sean inside the temple.

Sama cycling through the main gate to Angkor Thom,
the ancient city for which Angkor Wat was the temple. 

One of thousands upon thousands of stone relief carvings.

Sama at the gate to the Bakon temple.

Cycling has been very enjoyable in Cambodia. So far the roads have been smooth and flat, and we have hardly even needed to change gears, except to negotiate the odd bridge (many of which have large kangaroo logos).  Our only difficulty has been the sun, which by 10:30 on most days has been quite oppressive.  We've started to leave each morning at 5:30. It's still dark at that time, but it allows us to cycle 4 to 5 hours and reach our destination before the heat drives us (and everyone else in Cambodia) in search of a shady place. 

A modern day Cambodian temple. 
Although many were destroyed during the civil war,
there has been a large rebuilding program.

Everywhere we go we are welcomed with broad smiles and a chorus of friendly 'hello's from both children and adults. Even people passing us on motorbikes often slow down for a chat.  Many Cambodians seem quite surprised to see us cycling, which we are told is something they would only do if they couldn't afford to travel any other way.

Thats's all for now.  More news soon

Sama


Cambodian public transport is often very crowded,
and this guy was still touting for more customers