Mango Rain: A Week in Siem Reap

Pub Street

I'm getting ready to head back to America for a visit next month. Before then, however, I needed to go on one last visa run. I flew out to Siem Reap, Cambodia, the sleepy little town at the "Gateway of Angkor", and one of my favorite places to visit due to its proximity to Bangkok and fun, relaxed atmosphere. I've been to Siem Reap more times than I can count. If Bangkok is my second home, Siem Reap is something of a third. I've gotten to know the tiny town and its attractions, especially the tourist areas around Pub Street.

quiet Siem Reap

I like Siem Reap precisely because it is so comfortable. I've been so many times that I don't feel pressured to go out and see any sights. It's not a big city like Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, or even Phnom Penh, so there's not so much to see besides Angkor Wat.

a remorque, or tut-tuk

Instead, visiting Siem Reap (besides being a $50 and 35-minute flight from Bangkok) is a quiet and relaxing getaway from the bustle of the big city. The air there has a certain quality. It's very clean and fresh (and perhaps slightly smoky due to the local practice of burning garbage and fields), and I always feel better when I'm there. I've visited Siem Reap at least once a year since I first moved to Thailand six years ago.

wooden bridge Siem Reap

I've seen and done nearly everything that there is to do and see in Siem Reap (except for taking a helicopter ride over Angkor Wat, which is something I've always wanted to do), so I checked in to the Mango Rain Resort where I had stayed with my family when they visited Cambodia with me a while back.

Khmer-style statue

It's always pretty quiet around Siem Reap, but this time, the town was nearly empty. It's the beginning of the Rainy Season in Southeast Asia, and it's the low season for tourism.

Year of the Pig!

In fact, for the first few days, I was the only guest at the Mango Rain Resort! I had the whole place to myself! Every morning I would sit alone in the garden restaurant, enjoying my breakfast and coffee.

at the resort

In the afternoon, I would take my Kindle outside to read with a glass of Angkor Beer.

my reading spot

When it wasn't raining, I took full advantage of the nice swimming pool at the resort.

perfect time for a swim!

Other than that, I really didn't do too much. I had several classes to teach online while I was there, and spent a lot of the week working. I did wander through Pub Street and the old French Quarter quite a bit, and enjoyed several delicious iced Khmer coffees.

delicious Khmer coffee

I did do some on-foot exploring of Siem Reap, and wandered to parts of the town that I had never been to before. I came across St. John Catholic Church. It's the only Catholic church in Siem Reap. Back when Cambodia was a part of French Indochina, there were once two grand cathedrals, one in Phnom Penh and one in Battambang. Both were destroyed by the Khmer Rouge. Now, Cambodia again guarantees freedom of religion. The small church in Siem Reap looks very much like a traditional wooden house built in the Cambodian style.

St. John's Catholic Church

I also stopped by the Royal Residence. While the real Royal Palace is in the capital, Phnom Penh, there is a small palace in Siem Reap as well. In the Royal Gardens, I came across the City Shrine.

the city shrine

a shrine at a traffic circle

Cambodia has had a long and turbulent 20th century, but after the ousting of the Khmer Rouge and the re-establishment of the monarchy in 1993, the kingdom is on its way back up. 

from left to right: King Norodom, the late King Sihanouk, and the Queen Mother

The only thing I really did, aside from enjoying the resort and exploring the town, was buy a ticket to see Phare, the Cambodian Circus. I have written about this before, so check out these previous posts to learn more about that. It's a great show with an excellent gift shop, where proceeds go to support the promotion of Cambodian art, culture, and traditional handicrafts.

Khmer handicrafts at Phare

And, of course it's not a visit to Siem Reap without a slice of brick oven pizza on Pub Street!

it's not a real vacation without brick oven pizza

Coronation Week

This week is a BIG week for Thailand!

Back in 2016, after seven decades on the Thai throne, King Rama IX sadly passed away. There was an extended period of mourning, in which 98 year-old General Prem, the former Prime Minister from the 1980s and current head of the Royal Privy Council, served as Regent. After that, the late king's son, Rama X, officially took the throne. It was a very sad time for Thailand, because the late king was so deeply loved and respected by his subjects, and was seen as the "Father of the Nation". After his death, he was officially awarded the title "The Great", along with King Rama I and King Rama V.

signing a book of blessings for the new king at Siam Paragon mall

Thailand was in an official period of mourning for one whole year. Eventually, however, the kingdom must move on. It's been two and a half years since the passing of the great king, and now it's time for a new chapter in Thailand's history.

a display inside the metro station

This week, the new king will have his official coronation ceremony! It really is a generational event, and one which the entire kingdom has been preparing for. It's going to be a beautiful ceremony! Over the past few weeks, water has been collected from every single Thai province to use in the ceremony. This will be the first coronation of a Thai monarch in modern times, and almost in living memory. It's the first time to be photographed and filmed in color. Though I'll just be watching on TV, I can feel the excitement. It's a good feeling to be witnessing history!

royal flower displays inside Siam Paragon shopping mall

After more than half a decade in Thailand, I do feel like the kingdom is my second home. While I don't think I'll ever be able to obtain Thai citizenship, I do feel a close love and attachment for my "second country". Over the past few years, I've come to regard the Thai monarch as "my king". It's a time of change, and I'll be supporting Thailand for whatever the future holds.

Long live the King!

Coconut Ice Cream

Gosh, it's hot.

a hot, sunny day at the Bangkok Airways Building

This is only my second summer to spend in Thailand (usually I visit home in April), and it's the first time I've spent the whole summer here. It's hot. It's very, very hot.

Luckily, there's a very nice Thai treat that helps to cool you off when it's this hot outside: coconut ice cream!

coconut ice cream stand at a market in Bangkok

 This very Thai dessert is made from coconut milk instead of milk, and tastes lighter than regular ice cream. It's just about perfect when it's so hot outside. The best part is, coconut ice cream can be found all over Bangkok, and it usually costs less than a dollar.

a scoop of coconut ice cream

 You can also get lots of great toppings! From top to bottom, left to right:

- fruit jelly, - orange jelly, - pineapple pieces
- coconut jelly , - red beans, - a Thai dessert that I don't know how to describe in English
- taro root, - another type of (purple) taro, - papaya

Sometimes the coconut ice cream is also topped with sweet corn or sweetened condensed milk, but you can add whatever flavors and toppings you like. Personally, I only ever add pineapple and coconut jelly.

lots of toppings!