Feb. 27 Siem Reap

Feb. 27 Siem Reap temple ruins

Full plane from Japan, 747 which means half the population of Chicago had to unload and get through customs - I finally made it to my hotel at 1:15, got up at about 4:50 to get to the airport. I think if I do this again I'll allow a full day and two nights for layover on late arrivals. Flight to Siem Reap very nice; I had a window seat and could see the rice paddies right next to the airport, other features along the way. This is the dry season so rivers are ribbons of bright green in a landscape of browns and yellows. Immigration in Cambodia is interesting - new depths in bureaucracy. You hand your passport and forms to one person who passes them down a line of people, about a dozen in all; each person does something or another with it.
To my dismay the guide I had arranged did not show up, so I ended up touring today by Tuk Tuk (see below). I have arranged for a guide for tomorrow, though; just too much to get on your own. In spite of short hours of sleep and a quick change in plans, I really enjoyed this day. I like Cambodia, in spite of its well-known shortcomings, mainly poverty, and I like all the Cambodians I've met, except maybe the immigration bureaucrats. There is a certain chaos to life here that is actually pretty interesting, and the heat is not as bad as I feared.
Transportation: There are cars, of course, but by far the main modes of transportation are motor bikes and regular bicycles, mostly beat-up 1 and 3 speeds (fortunately the ground is very flat). The motor-bike has been used in a variety of inventive ways; it's sort of the personal computer of motor vehicles. First is the Tuk Tuk, a motorbike with a 4 seat open carriage attached. A very civilized way to travel - no need for AC; there is an awning to provide shade, and if the Tuk Tuk is moving over 5 mph there is plenty of cooling breeze, even at 2 in the afternoon. Second is the "family car" - I have seen many families, as many as five, riding a single small motorbike; Mom on the seat behind Dad, an older child and sometimes two small children squeezed between them, and Mom clutching an infant in her arms. I have also seen Motorbikes propelling a kind of cart down the street, both towing and half-attached to the side of the cart.
Traffic: I'm not sure I've seen a stop sign. Nobody goes very fast, nobody stops if they can avoid it; at intersections traffic somehow crosses, beeping all the while. Nobody seems impatient or excitable. I have seen my Tuk Tuk passing a motorbike that was passing a bicycle while a small van passed the Tuk Tuk, all with oncoming vehicles doing much the same.
And - the bill for a whole day of sight-seeing by Tuk Tuk? $18 US.
A lot of people have commented on the ubiquitous hustlers, wanting to sell you water, a guidebook, post cards, beer, whatever. I don't find them all that annoying - a firm "no thank you" will probably have to be repeated 3 or 4 times, but then they leave you alone. Each parking lot is also filled with kids hustling. Some are obnoxious but most are cute. I had 4 or 5 swarming all over me while waiting for my driver, Snake, at one stop. The oldest, probably 16, spoke good enough English to flirt and tease - asked where I'm from, then said "I'm from America. President Obama is my dad," then giggle and switched to some other outrageous nonsense. At first she was seriously getting me to come to "her place" for beer or water, but when I made it apparent I wasn't going to she turned it into a game.
The temples themselves are magnificent; I will try to get pictures posted soon as I can sort through them.