Siem Reap revisited

I already miss it. Four nights and it wasn’t enough. No time for the temples this visit - just walking around, lounging by the pool and enjoying the nightlife. The Old Market was the best place to buy souvenirs I’d seen since the night market in Luang Prabang. Cool stuff for sure - especially all the recycled wallets and bags. I couldn’t decide which wallet I liked best so I bought three different styles. And I didn’t know who to buy for and when I’d see them next so I didn’t buy anything else. Other than edible goodies.

The area near the Old Market with all the restaurants and bars was reminiscent of both Khao San Road in Bangkok and Bui Vien in Ho Chi Minh City. However compared to Khao San, it was much smaller with fewer backpackers abound, probably because most cheap accommodation was located elsewhere. That helps. Compared to Bui Vien, also fewer backpackers, a hundred times more classy and a more international feel, that due to the number of Japanese tourists and number of other languages I heard spoken. Definitely dug it. Nice vibe for sure.

The most lively street was Pub Street with nearly every other establishment having Anchor draft on offer for 50 cents a glass. Hard to beat that, even at the convenience store. You could sit nearly anywhere and take it all in over a frosty mug of local brew for fifty cents. Or you could go to the minimart and get a refrigerated can of the cheapest local brew with a tinny aftertaste and walk around and feel like a backpacker. It was an easy choice.

Perpendicular to Pub Street was the food vendor street, where all these tarped, temporary restaurants popped up and sprang into action at around four in the afternoon. Walking past in the evening you would get a sales pitch from nearly every person holding a menu outside of every stall. Fruit shakes for 75 cents to a dollar, fried rice or noodles starting at a dollar, a lot of BBQ - if you’re into that. Overall a great place for people watching, meeting new people and cheap eating.

Just at the end of the food stalls, assuming you had turned right at Pub Street, another street intersects diagonally. Looking to the left, one will see signs for the entrance to the night market and signs for massage nearly everywhere. Go down there. Foot, shoulder & back, full body, whatever massage. 15 minutes $1, 30 minutes $2, one hour $3. You might pay $5 for an air-conditioned room. And fish massage is also everywhere. $2-3 for 20-30 minutes plus a free beer or soda. I could do a 15 minute foot massage every day.

And then just across the river from the Old Market is the Hip Hop club, which to my recollection, didn't actually play any hip hop. But whatever. It was a scene to be sure and with no cover, a minor pat-down at the door and one dollar mugs of Anchor draft, it was a place worth going - at least once. Mostly Khmer clientele with the occasional foreigner strewn in, free back massage while you’re using the urinal – get your hands off me! – and slow dancing. Yes, slow dancing at Hip Hop. When was the last time you did that? Felt like a teenager again.

Of course, this isn’t the real Siem Reap. You have to get outside the center a bit and see the way most Khmer people live. Or see the incredible number of tuk tuk drivers on every corner hustling for a dollar. A dollar could take you nearly anywhere it seemed. Or if they were lucky, you'd commit to an all-day affair - perhaps to the temples or the shooting range - for a mere $10 or more, if you haven’t done your homework.

Anyway, back in Saigon now, but I know that Siem Reap will be revisited yet again. For the temples, for the beer, for the food, for the people, for the massage, for the culture, for the vibe. For all of it.