A Change of Guard

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Saturday 15 November 2008

Budget Travel, Water and Moon Festival @ Siem Reap, Cambodia

Posted by: steviegoh

It has been a while since I last updated my blog as I could hardly get the time to write blogs as I was in Cambodia. Anyway I am now back in action with some tips and guide for people who intend to travel but still have budget constraint. This will be a great destination for you.

Below is a list of DO’s and DONT’s and some tips when traveling to Cambodia (Siem Reap):

The ideal number of people traveling in a group to Siem Reap is 4 people as this will be more cost-efficient in terms of sharing on food and transportation.

Weather and Climate:
November to February is the “cool season”, which is dry and not too hot (is around 15C - 20C). During this season the morning breeze is cool and chilling. In April it gets really hot (approximately 30C - 35C), but not rainy. Starting around June it gets rainy–and still hot. It rains off and on all the time, so roads are muddy and some areas are impassable, and it stays like that until November, which will be cool & dry.


Customs and Dressing:
Try not to wear shorts to the temples (such as to Angkor Wat). In fact, few men in Cambodia wear shorts unless their job nature require them to wear so. But since foreigners are often seen as different as always, they can get away with this odd behavior and dress to an extent. Certainly lighter dressing is fine during exercise (You will get a lot of hiking and jogging on the trip to Angkor Wat). Sandals (not leather) are good for rainy season in the city–the mud and fecal matter just rinses right off! Try to smile more, always act respectful, don’t raise your voice or your eyebrows, and smile at everybody. It really works for me.


Festival and Events:
If you are planing to see a happening event and to catch a glimpse of all walks of life in Cambodia, you should be there during 11 Nov - 13 Nov. These few days are Cambodia’s National Holiday. It is the Water and Moon Festival (”Bun Om Tuk” in Khmer). The Angkor era was based on the success of harnessing the reversal of the Tonle Sap’s waters and the Water Festival is the ancient way of paying respect to this phenomenon. Hundreds of thousands of Cambodians flock to Phnom Penh or Siem Reap to watch huge dragon boats each propelled by up to 70 men (or women) race for the honour of their village. Fireworks light up the night sky as revellers party for 3 days non-stop. It is a grand festival for Cambodians.

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