Siem Reap

After way too many airplanes, way too many airports, and way too much mediocre lounge food, we finally touched down in Siem Reap. We were prepared for a bit of hassle going through immigration as the names on one of our visas was reversed (note to self, check the visas before leaving home), but without barely looking up, the officer waives us through and we are on our way in near record time.

As we are arriving after dark, there isn’t much left to accomplish for today other than checking into our hotel and hunting down something to eat. Since Siem Reap is a big tourist destination, it is the once city in Cambodia where the brands my fellow traveler so enjoys have a presence. For the next 5 nights we’ll be setting up shop at the Hyatt, which we’re told has the perfect location in the city.

Just a few blocks down the road, we do run into the infamous Pub Street. We have arrived in Siem Reap at the beginning of the Water Festival (celebrating the end of the wet season), and it is a heaving mass of humanity. With the loud music and neon lights it feels like Bourbon Street during Mardi Gras, but without the perks a handful of cheap beads gets you. There are also plenty of street carts, from which we cobble together a meal of pork buns, fried noodles and banana pancakes.

Given the long flight and the time change, that’s about all we have in us for today, so back to the hotel for a real night’s sleep in a comfortable bed.