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Hello All, Just a quick note to say that I haven't been blogging here for a while because Peter and I decided to get our own doma...
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10 Things to do in Siem Reap
This blog post is typed entirely on a plane from Manila to Bangkok in an effort to be more productive.
I've shelves the books I'm trying to read or study now in an effort to make this trip an entirely travel-related one.
10 things to do in siem reap:
1. Eat a luk lok.
It is a Khmer dish which you could get in either beef, pork, or chicken. You canget this anywhere in Cambodia but the one near Pub Street (forgot the restaurat name) is the best one I had.
2. See the sunrise at Angkor Wat.
If you are ok with hoardes of other tourists vying for a spot near the left side of the Wat (this is where the pond is. The right side is mostly a dried up pond with an amazing white horse roaming freely). It is worth doing at least once. My favourite spot is in the temple itself where there is a structure outside and you could feel the heat of the sun as it rises. Amazing stuff.
3. Touch the boobs of one the Apsaras in Angkor Wat.
Hey, everyone does it, right? Maybe for good luck or otherwise? Why do you think they're shiny?
4. See the Bayon temple.
Trust me, this is a site worth seeing. I "kissed" one of the stone faces. You should too!
5. See Preah Khan.
This is one of the most amazing temples for me. A Greek temple in the middle of the Asia, huge trees destroying the structures, walking among the rocks of ruins. Amazing.
6. See the temple which looks like a fountain.
For the life of me, I cannot remember the name right now but going there, you have to walk through an elevated walkway which passes through water. How in the heck was this discovered, I will never know (until I google).
7. Party like crazy in Angkor What? Bar.
Get a t-shirt when you buy two buckets. They are potent but worth it.
8. See the Giant Puppet Parade.
If you are in town in one lucky February day, its like one big street party in Pub Street. Amazing!
9. Buy elephant pants at the Central Market. Eveyone (well, nearly everyone) is wearing one so join in! It will be useful when you need to go to the temples and don't have pants! (Well, i only brought one pair with me so dress appropriately girls!)
10. Pub Street.
Shops, restaurants, bars. 'Nuff said.
So there you have it, my top 10 Siem Reap things to do. Do you have a list of your own? Share them :)
Shanghai Day One: Pudong & Pearl TV Tower
As you step out of the Metro stop, an overpass will greet you. It's for pedestrians only and you need to pass through it if you want To go to the Pearl Tv Tower or the Super Brand Mall.
The first stop on our iti was the Pearl Tv Tower. The entrance fee to go in is fairly steep: the higher up you go, the more expensive you pay. It's basically measured in the height of the three pink ball type things. The first level will set you back 130, second is 150 and the highest is 180. You could also opt to take a cruise for 100. Bought the tickets for the second level and up we went!
The selling point of the tv tower was the view of Shanghai from the second ball, plus the observation deck has see through panes that you'll walk on. They aren't that clear (it's full of scratches) so it didn't really give me the feeling that i'm about to fall to my death.
That's pretty much about it. If you're done taking photos of the view or of yourself lying down on the glass panes, you board the elevator to go down to the first ball. The first thing you will see is an arcade (full of games and a kiddy rollercoaster which you could ride for 5yuan). The windows are psychedelically purple in colour. Not much of a view there but a flight of stairs down and you'll be on an open air observation deck. The view is slightly obstucted by the wires but it's cool nevertheless. It shows a different perspective of the buildings around the One of the highlights of the tower was the glass elevator ride down from the first ball- it made me feel like I was falling down! It was soo quick too! At the bottom most part of the tower is a museum which is part of the entrance fee you paid for the ticket. Go to the second floor where there are models of what Shanghai was like in the old times, complete with mannequins. There's also models of prominent houses and gardens around the area.
It was definitely something that I needed to experience albeit the ticket price was a bit expensive but overall worth it!
Shanghai Day One: Touchdown
I had no clue what to expect from Shanghai, other than it used to be a colony of my beloved England, and that I watched a show on the travel channel about it. I just know that I need to have a visa to get in the country (ahh yes another obstacle I had to get through).
The flight arrives at 12mn in Shanghai and to save on costs for the hostel and the taxi from the airport, we decided to find a quiet place to stay and sleep.
I did not get enough sleep on the plane ride to Shanghai so when I found my spot to sleep on, I just put on my eye patch, my socks, and the sarong and Zzzzzzzed.
I woke up at around 5am (slept around 130/2) because the sound of the hoover cleaning the floor was quite annoying. It was also surprising for me that their sunrise is very early! Sleeping in the airport could be a good experience too, something I would definitely do again.
After changing our money (bloody hell, you have to pay a 50rmb service charge for any foreign exchange transactions done in the airport) - such a shame too as my ATM is not being recognized by any foreign bank at the ATM! Gaaah!
Got a Shanghai Metro card, then boarded a metro line 2 to East Nanjing Road. It's quite overwhelming as there are obviously a lot of people in China! The metro also takes forever to get from the airport to the city center with an interhange somewhere so watch out for that and allot ample time to get to/from the airport.
After finding the hostel of my friend - Blue Mountain Bund Youth Hostel at South Shanxi Road (near Exit One of the East Nanjing Road Stn), dropping off our bags and off we went to explore the city.
First stop was to just find breakfast! I was really, really hungry at the time and we ended up at KFC in East Nanjing Rd: something that's familiar to me, and was the first restaurant we saw! Got a burger of sorts plus an egg tart (for around 20RMB), and off we went to explore East Nanjing Rd.
Initially, I wanted to go and walk around the Bund area, but we ended up on the wrong direction and ended up at People's Square!