Slept in KL, woke up in Siem Reap.

So, I finally saw Angkor Wat. Taking into account my port of embarkation, the trip was long and tiring but overall, worthy.

May 03. Took an afternoon CebuPac flight from Cebu to Manila. Upon arriving Manila’s NAIA Terminal 3, transferred to another CebuPac plane bound for Kuala Lumpur.

May 04. Arrived around 1am at Kuala Lumpur. Looked for some place to sleep and shower. We had no prior reservations elsewhere because we anticipated nearby hotels to be many. Right after buying some Ringgit at the airport's currency exchange center, we asked the employee for hotels near LCCT (Low Cost Carrier Terminal), and she recommended Tune hotel -- cheap and is just 10 mins walking distance from LCCT.

To our dismay, it was full. The receptionist directed us to a small travel agency office -- in the same building -- that can help us find an alternative. The travel agent appeared jolly enough for such an unholy hour to entertain us. He shared his fondness over FPJ, and took pride of himself as half-Filipino while offering us two hotels. We chose the less expensive one, and had Malaysian breakfast buffet after 4 hours of sleep.

Still May 04. Arrived at Siem Reap mid afternoon, and we were greeted by our official tuk tuk driver, Sona [pronounced as ‘Snaaa’]. There was little time left to do so after checking in at The Villa Siem Reap, and exchanging pleasantries with Sokah (our tour guide), we began our itinerary. He accompanied us at the Old Market for souvenirs [quite early to buy one but we did anyway]; prearranged a tour for us around Angkor Artisan's school/workshop -- where they made those intricate Buddha and bas-reliefs;

Angkor Artisans

Then climbed our way to Phnom Bakheng in the hope of getting a good view of the sunset. Due to the cloudy skies, we didn’t get to see the sunset but the dilapidated temple looks amazing.
 

Phnom Bakheng

souvenir shops at Siem Reap

That evening, we went to see Apsara show at some restaurant with buffet dinner. The food was delicious. I must say, it didn’t fall short of my expectations.

May 05. It was the official whole day of temple exploration. Our call time was 5:15am and headed to Angkor Wat to witness the sunrise. Again, it was cloudy that a few gold flecks managed to surface. I was hoping a no rain for the whole day so as not to ruin the tour. And yes, I got what I hoped for but in exchange for no rain, I got an almost cloudless weather with high humid temperature. The sun was so harsh that it burned my back, and my face turned red and scaly.

Angkor Wat

Ta Phrom

Ta Phrom

Angkor Thom

bas-reliefs

May 06. Before we left, Sona (our tuktuk driver) toured us around the New Market, and to Siem Reap’s small killing field-slash-prison during Polpot’s reign. The said prison is now a monastery.

Still May 06. Arrived at KLIA around 4:30pm. Had 10hrs of transit to waste; so, we left our bags at the airport and headed to KL via KL Ekspres. It took us less than 40mins (in total) to reach KLCC [where the iconic Petronas is located]. There, we dined and took photos.

May 07. Left KLIA past midnight and safely arrived in Manila around 6am. We had breakfast at a coffee shop inside NAIA Terminal 3 while waiting for our flight for Cebu. Finally landed Cebu soil, tired and sleepy, at 9am.

I am amazed how rich Cambodia is –- in terms of culture that records way back 900s; and at the same time, sad of its ghastly history during Polpot’s reign. Currently, the country –- judging from what I saw -- is still striving. Their government can’t solely maintain the temple remains that foreign assistance is needed. I could see that most temple maintenance and restorations are teamed with foreign organizations –- which is a good thing.