At the Pepper Plantation

It becomes obvious that Jeff is no Peter Piper and will not be picking
any pecks of pepper, pickeled, or otherwise.

Tuk tuk through the countryside

We piled into a tuk tuk for a trip out to an amazing cave mountain and
a pepper farm. We followed an underground passageway behind a Buddhist
temple into a mountain and after a walk through a cave, popped out in
a hidden valley with a small temple (complete with reclining Buddah)
in the center of the mountain. Khmer school children gave us a tour of
the rest of the karst mountain. It was a mini Shangri-la. See the
video on Facebook.

All's well that ends...

So the night bus let us off at 6 am to stand in the mud and rain
waiting for transfer onto the second to last bus in the series that
delivered us to Kep. Happily, we found a sunny, flowery cluster of
bungalows to stay in. This heaven even included hammocks, toucans
swooping through the jungle above and this kitten for company.

More Night Bus

Here is Jeff in the bunk he gave to me when My bunk had exhaust
leaking into it. We were promised pillows, blankets, free water
bottles and a toilet on the bus. We were given only blankets with waxy
residue and told that the driver would stop if we needed a restroom.
When we stopped, the passengers stormed the W.C. of any nearby stand.
When we stopped in the middle of the night in a dark stand of huts we
squatted next to the road. Good times, good times...

Night Bus Torture

We took this bus between Siem Reap and Kep on the southern coast.
There were three rows of bunks and you were to sleep with your torso
raised and feet out straight. The bunks were covered with thin foam
pads enveloped in vinyl. Lexi is in the top bunk.

Lonely Wat

Today was our last day in Siem Reap. We visited this wat off the
tourist track, hidden behind a temple and monastary.

Banteay Srei

Here we are in front of our last Angkor site, Banteay Srei. It was a
beautiful, small wat. We stopped in at a wonderful wildlife sanctuary.
They actually had a pangolin that had been rescued from poachers.
Pangolins are a critically endangered mammal somewhat similar to the
armadillo. Our last stop was at the Land Mine Museum. That was a tough
thing to face. Unknown to most Americans, the US carpet bombed
Cambodia during the Vietnam War in an attempt to drive the Viet Cong
out. That bombing cost 600,000 Cambodians their lives and in many
ways, ushered the Khmer Rouge into power. Cases were filled with land
mines and unexploded ordinance dropped or placed by the US, Russia,
China and Vietnam. Behind the museum, children missing limbs played
soccer.

Kbal Spean

This was one of our favorite Angkor sites. Also known as the 'River of
a Thousand Lingas,' it is a carved riverbed. I am standing next to a
carved stone frog above a pretty waterfall.

Angkor Wat's all the green crap?

This is the Angkor Wat of our visit. Veiled in green tarps for her
restoration, she's not looking her best these days. Many of the other
temples have also had major cosmetic surgery going on.

Wat of a Million Stairs