is the capital of Siem Reap province. It’s located in northwest Cambodia. In the past Siem Reap was touristless but thank to courageous backpackers who wanted to ‘fight’ with the tortuous road from the Thai border on the tailgate of a local pick-up truck to reach that city, it becomes now the major tourist destination in Cambodia. Besides due to its proximity to the world famous temples of Angkor , people from all over the world come to Siem Reap for exploring the world famous heritage site of the Angkor temples.
The name of the city has meaning ‘Siamese defeated’, Siam is now Thailand. It was named referring to the victory of the Khmer Empire over the army of the Thai kingdom in the 17th century. Cambodia as a country had a huge spectre of the brutal Khmer Rouge Regime (this regime is remembered for the large number of deaths through execution, torture, starvation and forced labor). Cambodia began to rise up from the ‘ashes’ in the mid-1990’s after Pol Pot’s death (a leader of Khmer Rouge) in 1998. Nowadays hotels, guesthouses, budget hotels, bars, pubs, cyber cafes, and all kind of nightlife stuffs have mushroomed in Siam Reap.
It took me much enough time to decide whether I would go to Cambodia or no. I wasn’t that certain to go there, my head was filled up with a thought about how dangerous that country is. Honestly I cannot say much about Cambodia in general because I only visited one of its cities. But I can tell you (based on my days spent there) that Siem Reap is such a cool city.
Before arrived there I worried about several things:
Before arrived there I worried about several things:
Money? - I know it's not easy to get Cambodian currency. Even in my country (mine is also located in Southeast Asia) I couldn’t find any money changers or banks where I can change Rupiah (Indonesian) into Riel (Cambodian). Don’t worry !! You can always pay for everything in U. S. Dollars in Siem Reap.
Language? - In Seam Reap you can speak English with almost every local people. From kids to grannies. ^_^ As long as you don’t look like them physically (like I do), they won’t speak to you in Cambodian.
Climate? - Cool season (Nov-Mar / 23-29 °C) Hot season (Mar-May / 27-37 °C) Rainy season (May-Oct / 24-33 °C).
Transportation? - You can move around town on foot, motorbikes, or by Tuk-Tuk. Those two are the common and less expensive transportation modes.
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| our tuk-tuk driver who speaks english so well and a really friendly person |
Visa? - Visitors are now able to obtain the Cambodian visa upon arrival at the airport (Pochentong Airport - Phnompenh, Siem Reap Airport - Angkor Wat Region). It is no longer necessary to get the visa stamp at the Cambodian Embassy before our visit (except for those who come from Afghanistan, Algeria, Arab Saudi, Bangladesh, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Sri Langka, Sudan, and Nigeria).
We only need prepare these following requirements:
We only need prepare these following requirements:
- a passport photocopy
- 1 photo (3x4)
- USD 20 + USD 5 (processing charge) cash for tourist fee (paid directly to the immigration).
Or by land through Aranyapathet-Poipet Border and Trat-Koh Kong (border of Thailand) and Moc Bai - Bavet (border of Vietnam).
Cambodia have signed such agreements on visa exemption with most of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) members:
Brunei (not yet)
Cambodia
Indonesia
Laos
Malaysia
Myanmar (not yet)
Philippines
Singapore
Thailand (not yet)
Vietnam
I can say Siem Reap is a nice small gateway and worth a visit town. Fortunately even though that city has transformed itself into a major tourist hub. Siem Reap and its people have conserved much of the town’s image, culture, and tradition.
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