First of all, the experience was not far off compared to Vietnam Ho Chi Minh City, however the remarkable difference was in the temples which the local Cambodians, who called themselves Khmers were proud of. The only other country that can claim heritage of having built such temples - called Wats would be Thailand - which inevitably lead to the recent border dispute.
Siemreap was the area for the visiting of all the Wats. The greatest of all the Wats would be Angkor Wat - making all other Wats dwarf in comparison to its immense size. The time I spent at Angkor Wat was perhaps 3 times more than any other Wats I visited. The most disappointing moment was when I reached the 2nd last tier of the temple only to find the highest point is under renovation.... a project that will drag into year 2009. Angkor Wat was build by Suryavarman II (refer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suryavarman_II)
The other Wats also had their own distinct features and showed a splendour in their days of glory. Most well remembered (I really meant well remembered caused its either a lot of walking or a lot of climbing) would be the
Phimeanakas (Khmer: ប្រាសាទភិមានអាកាស, Prasat Phimean Akas, 'celestial temple') or Vimeanakas - the place where the then king had to spend a night on top of the temple with a Naga (snake or reptilian) girl every night. Otherwise either the kingdom would fall or he would die. (refer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phimeanakas) One must remember that such myths or folklores are severely exaggerated at times.
Since King Jayavarman VII (7) was someone that was prominent enough to be found in the history textbooks I read before, it was no wonder he was a traditional hero to local people. He was the one who brought the Khmer Empire to the peak of its power (according to both local and foreign sources). Angkor Thom - which was preceded by high walls guarded by statues of guards - was said to be his playground (refer to http://i-gotta-go.blogspot.com/2008/11/angkor-thom-king-jayavarman-viis.html) . He also build Ta Prohm in honor of his mother and Preah Khan in honor of his father. I had the fortune to visit all three and take pictures of them.
Enough of Wats, I visited so many I lost count of them... as well as most of their names. Most of the Wats are undergoing reconstruction - or I should say projects that aim to strengthen the structures without too many changes as much as possible. The life of the boat people (which I visited on the 3rd day) was both interesting but also a reflection of living standards of most Cambodians. The Tonle Sap Lake was so massive that I felt like I was at sea!
Phnom Penh turned out the be the least interesting place of all. Even the museum itself felt stifling. The Killing Fields and the School (known as S21) where many were tortured and killed for crimes they never committed is worth one look (I really meant ONE) as you can read up the rest of the story yourself. I missed the video at the school which airs at 10am and 3pm but I don't really felt I've missed much as I've bought a related video years back by myself. Despite knowing what had happened, it was still chilling and eerie to be there particularly when it was close to evening.
Another great place was the beaches of Sihanouk Ville. Just imagine you are visiting Phuket in its early stages before more tourists and human activities corrupted the place. I was literally looking at fishes on the beach and crabs running across my feet! Its a great place to nua.
If you're going Cambodia.. brings lots of US dollars... these people do not seem to holdtheir own money in high regard. Their money is better used as small change - e.g. USD 0.25,0.5 & 0.75.
