I'm having a holiday today. The group got up at the ungodly hour of 4.30am to see the sunrise. This year they didn't come back to the hotel because everyone wanted to see the sunrise. Syden organised packed breakfasts for them and so, after they saw sunrise come up over the towers of Angkor Wat, they ate breakfast and then they continued with the tour of the three major temples. People say they are going to Angkor Wat but that is actually the name of the main temple. There are 400 sq kilometres of temples; some of them not even studied properly yet. They go to Bayon, which is famous for the Buddha heads that are on every tower at the temple. The one I like best is Ta Prohm which is the temple the archaeologists left to nature and so trees are growing in and out of the large stones used to build the temple - this temple appears in the movie, "Raiders of the Lost Ark". They came back to the hotel much earlier than usual which meant they missed the hoards of Chinese tourists who descend on the temples. I wonder if they behave the same way wherever they go? In my mind I can't see them doing in London what they do here, which is climbing all over the statues and making so much noise.
I had a leisurely lunch with Rina who is Syden's youngest brother. He manages a hotel called "The Wooden Hotel", which is very traditional and owned by a local man. I'd like to stay there but it's far beyond the dentists' budget. I've known him for 17 years so I've watched him grow up from being about 9 years of age. I see him for one hour, at lunch time, whenever I'm in Siem Reap which is usually a couple of times a year. He helps Syden by providing him with tourists who want to tour the temples.
I didn't do much during the day, just reading and writing so it was a lovely relaxing time as I didn't have to think about finances and receipts.
In the evening we went to a huge restaurant that has a traditional dance performance. We had an excellent table, near the stage, as Syden books at least two months in advance. The group sat down and started studying the drinks menu and chatting. I told them to get up and get their food. It's always a shame when people have to get food when the dance performance is going on. I've seen it 15 times but I still find the slow motion, traditional Khmer dancing, almost hypnotising. The evening cost us $12, which is cheap for an enormous buffet and the performance. I never eat much and I get fed up with the long lines of people queuing for food.
Another one of Syden's brothers (Rottana) is a tour guide and he'd brought over 100 people for dinner; they were mainly from Poland and Moscow. He's quite a chatterbox so we had a good visit. He's building a school in his village and he's been getting some financial support from people from Utah. I knew straight away they were members of the Mormon church. I had to laugh as they are trying to get him to go to the church but he's refused; they even bought him a special pair of shoes so he could go. He's a devout Buddhist so there's no chance of that happening.
After dinner, people went off in all directions - some went to the famous Pub Street, which is where all the food and entertainment is located. No traffic is allowed in the evening so the streets are clogged with people. Others went to the night market. I decided to go with Boroith and Thornin for a massage. I really don't enjoy the standard massage, by the young ladies, as they are a bit rough at times. I opted for something called 'romantic massage'. I was put in a room on my own and the lights were turned off so it was pitch black. There was no music and eventually a man came in to give me the massage. It was lovely and relaxing and I was glad the lads had suggested two hours. He couldn't speak any English but he was able to keep saying, "Sleep!" After one hour they came into my room and asked if I'd finished. I said I was enjoying it too much and I was happy with the two hours. They weren't happy because the young ladies had left them shortly after starting the massage and they were replaced by two ladies who they said were older than their grandmothers. I paid $20 for the two hours so it didn't break my bank.
I slept like a log.
