We spent almost a week in Siem Reap, five days of it at the retreat.

• Angkor Wat: This is the famous temple of this city and this country: it’s even the central image on the Cambodian flag! They say it’s the largest religious complex in the world, actually. We didn’t go at sunrise, like many recommend, because we’re both too old and too young for that. The most surprising thing about it is that it is possible to find portions of it undisturbed by tourist crowds! We found several places to sit and walk that were completely or almost deserted. Given the size of this place, these stops made for nice breaks, especially on a sunny day. The very right side of the complex has the actual, active temple on the site, which is significantly more mundane than the attraction. The back and left side of the property have park land and pretty gates, along with some wandering monkeys. The front has many children and vendors trying to sell things in a very persistent way. The temple itself has many entrances, engravings/wall carvings, and those red stones stacked on top of each other in ways that seem to defy gravity. Speaking of gravity, there was a white hot air balloon attached to the center of the temple – presumably to collect meteorological data? It really is a unique style of architecture and interesting to see. This was B’s favorite temple, though it was a bit too busy for me.
• Angkor Thom:  This temple’s focal point is the Bayon Temple, well known for having hundreds of faces chiseled into its rock formations. There are actually these same faces at the other temples as well, but only one or two: this is like a stone face crowd. Though it’s a fairly square building, it manages to be a maze of corridors. It’s not so much that you get lost, but that you want to go through it all, looking for hidden shrines or carved walls or ‘sky lights.’ The rest of the complex is big, including several temples with steep steps to the top and famous gates, with things carved into them. Though Angkor Wat is officially bigger, this feels like it takes longer. It could also be because less of it is in the shade.
• Ta Prohm: This temple was my favorite, though I can imagine that some people don’t enjoy it at all. In essence, this is a destroyed temple. Its sandstone rocks have been scattered, laying in broken clumps; its cement has been pushed up or down by strong tree roots and branches. (In fact, many people call it the ‘tree’ temple.’) The message it sends is that even the most ingenious human construction is no match for time and nature. Some people may see this as depressing, but I think that it’s realistic – and the trees are gorgeous, giant things. I mean, how do trees even grow into stone??
• Night Market: This is a market almost exclusively for tourists, so go into it knowing that. There are a lot of souvenirs and t-shirts for sale, at prices most Cambodians consider ridiculously high, but that tourists consider ridiculously low. The items are pretty good quality, and they have pretty much every pattern in every color imaginable, so you can be picky. Also here are overpriced restaurants, and a lot of $5 per hour massage places that put dozens of chairs outside to boost foot and shoulder rub demand. They also have indoor options, which are more relaxing, if that’s what you’re after.
• Hariharalaya Retreat: This is a place that holds yoga and meditation retreats of five or ten days. All classes, meals, and amenities (e.g. pool, art supplies, game room, bikes) are included, though there is also an emphasis on attending every single retreat event. I will describe this unusual experience in more depth in a separate post.

What We Missed:

• Shooting Range: Going 40 minutes outside the city to shoot a gun similar to one I can shoot at home seemed kind of silly – especially given the unique temples in this area. And throwing a grenade or setting a mine in this recently-besieged country just seemed wrong. No thank you.
• The Circus: This is a rare circus group in the country, focused on giving the kids a vocation and tourists a laugh. Unfortunately, we only had one true evening in town, and we spent it at the Night Market.
• Angkor Silk Farm: I want to appreciate the artistry of these people, but I don’t want them to get their hopes up, because I can’t fit anything in my bags!
• Landmine Museum: I didn’t know about this until after we left the city.
• Happy Ranch Horse Farm: Horseback riding in the blistering sun is not my idea of fun. Also, not so unique as to pick that over the temples.