Thursday, December 4

Travel day!  We checked out about 4:30 and waited while they verified that we didn't destroy the room :)  and got our deposit refunded, minus the charges for water and electricity. Not bad.  The red taxi was here so we loaded the luggage and headed to ChiangMai International Airport!

Met Chap and Mam and got through security and all.  55 minute uneventful flight to Bangkok and their old (and smaller) airport.  Changed from Thai Lion to an Air Asia flight to Siem Reap, Cambodia which took about an hour.

The Cambodians do like paperwork!  We had to fill out four different forms before we landed, including a visa application, and then stood in line for quite a while for security, passport control and visa,  complete with photographs & finger prints.  Had to get two taxis to the hotel because they are quite small.  Many run on natural gas and have huge tanks that take up a good bit of the trunk!

Arrived at hotel Angkor Paradise which is 8 stories and very nice.  Lovely entry and nice outdoor sitting area with a gorgeous pool.  Rooms are nice as well, with big showers, mini fridge, coffee maker, etc.  The staff is large, well dressed and extremely friendly and polite.  Learned that there are several schools in the area which train hospitality staff for Cambodia and they do a good job!

 Sue, Mam, Chap and Greg in the lobby.

 Lotus flowers, a sign of hospitality.

View from our 4th floor balcony

Sam from New Zealand

Our rooms weren't quite ready, so we had lunch here.  Cambodian food is similar to Thai from what we can tell, but not spicey.  Curries, fried rice, noodle dishes etc.  Some western dishes on the menu also, but we didn't try those.  We arranged for a driver and guide to Angkor Wat for tomorrow morning $40 for a van and $40 for the guide, for all of us.  Greg struck up a conversation with neighbor Sam from New Zealand from the balcony.  Settled in our rooms for a bit and then met for a walk to central part of the city - about 6 blocks or so.

The tuk-tuks here are basically motorcycles with hitches that pull little carts.

 We walked for a bit, and Chap and Mam cut their walk short because Chap isn't feeling too well.  He took some medicine and went to bed. Tom and Sue and Greg and I continued to walk but then the clouds overtook us and it began to rain.  Waited a bit but it didn't let up, so we flagged a tuk-tuk who rolled down zippered plastic around the seating area to keep us dry - felt like an Amish buggy with a motorcylce instead of a horse!  Back to the hotel.

Met in the lobby bar area for drinks, followed by light dinner in their dining room. There is a marathon going on here this weekend so things are fairly busy.   Food good and presentation excellent.  Service great, with someone there to pull out chairs, refill water, etc. all the time. Lovely linens and table settings.  Lots of orchids and lotus flowers throughout.