We rushed back from Angkor Wat Sunrise to get changed for our cooking class with Lily’s Secret Garden. Tuk Tuk Bean waited for us even though this wasn’t part of the agreement. But he and his excellent photography skills were the reason we were running late, to begin with. It turned out well because the […]
The Iconic Angkor Wat
Angkor Wat is the iconic temple that is shown on the national flag of Cambodia. We ended our Small Circuit Tour here approaching it through the quieter east entrance. Angkor Wat was built as a Hindu temple representing Mount Meru with its five mountain peaks, and the 200 m wide moat representing the ocean. It […]
Angkor Small Circuit with Tuk Tuk Bean
I’ve recounted before how I found and coordinated trips with Tuk Tuk Bean and ended up choosing to do the Small Circuit with him. The tour guide he provided for was Nak (Chap Vachanak) who was waiting for us in our hotel lobby well before the appointed 6:30 am start. Nak was also in a […]
Angkor Grand Circuit with Somondy (Angkor Guide Sam)
We did the Angkor Grand Circuit (also known as the Big Circuit) on our first full day in Siem Reap by car with Angkor Guide Sam. Our driver was Ravi and our tour guide was Somondy. They picked us up promptly at 7:30 am as arranged and took us to the ticket office to buy […]
Cambodia Landmine & War Museums
Cambodia today continues to suffer the consequences of its wars. We stopped at the Cambodia Landmine Museum on our way out to Banteay Srei on our first day of temple-hopping. We then squeezed in the War Museum as one of our last activities in Cambodia. Sobering. Cambodia Landmine Museum The landmine museum was founded in […]
Siem Reap Sights with Tuk Tuk Bean
Siem Reap in Cambodia is about an hour’s flight from Bangkok, Thailand. Our hotel, Memoire d’Angkor provided complimentary airport pickup and were waiting for us upon our arrival. Cambodia is a poorer country than Thailand having just come out of a prolonged war. Our plan was to not only visit the famed Angkor Wat complex […]
Sacred Dancers of Angkor – Apsara
We skipped the buffet Apsara dance performances held at many Siem Reap hotels opting to see the Sacred Dancers of Angkor at the Divine Sala instead. An Apsara is a beautiful elegant young feminine ethereal being in Hindu and Buddhist mythology. Apsaras entertain both gods and kings with their dance while seducing mortals with their […]
Luxurious Supanniga Cruise
I booked us on a luxurious cruise on Bangkok’s Chao Phraya River, the Supanniga Sunset Dinner Cruise, more so for the cruise than for the food. On both points though we were not disappointed. We took a Grab Taxi from our hotel through about 30 minutes of evening traffic to River City Pier Two. It […]
Bangkok Temples & Phahurat Market
We planned to be in Bangkok just one day so the main highlight of the day was to visit the three most prominent temples. The oldest and largest temple in Bangkok is Wat Pho (Wat Phra Chetuphon), the Temple of the Reclining Buddha but we did not start there. We started at the Grand Palace […]
Arrival into Thailand
When booking our flights to Thailand a few months ago we decided to forgo the cheap < $500 round trip tickets on Chinese airlines that would include layovers in Chinese cities. With the current 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) outbreak, I’m glad we didn’t book those tickets. Instead, we flew Qatar Airlines, though also problematic initially […]
A lover of mangoes. A woman - smart, without pretense, lefthanded, Afropolitan - navigating this thing called life. An unapologetic believer in social justice and karma. Choosing to radiate positive energy and be true to myself. Here, my musings.