Tuk Tuk Tour

The official tour ended yesterday, and we are flying out today, but not until 11 at night. I wasn't going to let a day in Cambodia so close to such an amazing location. Everyone else was exhausted, so I got a tuk tuk for myself and headed back into Angkor. Forgoing the slow pace we have kept up during this trip, I visited Preh Kan, Neak Pean, Ta Som, Pre Rup, and East Mebon, and was back by 2.

I don't do selfies very well.

Teddy and his tuk tuk.

 Preh Kan was one of my favorites. It had the beautiful overgrown look of Ta Prohm, but far fewer people. The next was Neak Pean, the island temple. There was nothing to walk through here, but you could walk part way around the pool the temple was in. The following two were--I can't believe I'm saying this--standard, and I went through them rather quickly. The last was a very tall temple with lots of stairs. From the top there was an amazing view across the jungle canopy.

Natural framing.

This is more my type of selfie.

I loved the long halls in this temple.

One of my favorite Buddha engravings.

This could be Seattle if we would just abandon it. Of course, I doubt it would stand the test of time quite as well.

I love this tree; it was amazing.

I had to cross a large pond and marsh to get to the Island Temple.

More natural framing. Yeah, I tried to get artsy again.

I got back to the hotel much sooner than I had expected, so I took a walk around town. I didn't find any place that was very interesting to explore--not because there are none, but because I just didn't know where to walk to. After arriving back at the hotel,  we decided to take a tuk tuk to lunch. We had a pretty good meal as our last in Cambodia, and then took a tuk tuk tour of the city. On the tour I found the market, and Sarah and I may go back there later tonight.

Now I am sitting on the veranda of David and Anita's room, right next to where people are arriving for the big New Year's Gala. I'm sure the ticket prices were around $75 per person, but we are not staying here tonight so we do not have to attend. However, I can reach out and touch the nearest table, and from the veranda I have a better view than some who did pay. I just don't get the food and drinks. My next post will be a travel post, and then it is back to the real world. I do have a couple of days to recover and readjust to the time change before heading back to work. Honestly, I would be happy to live here, but my commute might increase a few more minutes.