Today we drove from Bangkok to Poipet to cross the border into Cambodia. An early start to the drive meant watching the sun rise over the city as we drove out. The four hours to the border went quickly, and we passed through the border pretty smoothly; with the added pleasure of sampling 'self flush' crouch toilets for the first time (luckily I had enough faith in myself to get it wrong and hence removed every item of clothing I was wearing from the waist down first because my aim was as poor as I predicted; something to work on...)
On the other side of the border the difference between Thailand and Cambodia is immediate and stark. The second we entered the country the streets were suddenly adorned with children in rags, begging for food and money. It's advisable to not give money to the children because in doing so you encourage the continued use of children as a means of income for adults, but sometimes it is really difficult to say no to and it tugs a lot at your conscience.
Like Thailand the road system is somewhat alien to anything one might expect to see in the west; but everything is more exaggerated. The helmetless triplets that you might have seen tearing about on mopeds in Thailand suddenly have animals, poles, lengths of wood, kitchen sinks etc strapped on (or balanced precariously on) for good measure.
From the border we drove two hours further into Siem Reap, had lunch in a nice restaurant and then made our way back to our hotel/home for the next two nights; welcomed with fresh cold towels, a glass of orange juice, and a spotless, comfortable and modern room fitted with air con=sweet.
In the evening we took tuk tuks to a village very close to the centre of Siem Reap where we were greeted by a local family who showed us around.
A girl of 20 (who looked significantly younger) talked to us in perfect English all about life in the village; how they grow crops, where they go to school, family life, the animals etc.
Every person we passed smiled and waved, and then sent the children over to say hello.
After spending some time walking around the village and taking in the smells, sounds and sights of it's daily life we went back to the home, washed out feet and hands, and went to eat in a covered area sitting on the floor with mats and pillows. The food was realllly delicious and more than enough, and after dinner the children all came up to play with us...spending most of their time looking at our cameras and phones. All of the children were happy, confident and affectionate, and it felt really special to spend time with them.
After dark we took tuk tuks back into Siem Reap and went to explore the night market, before heading back to the hotel room for some much needed sleep!
