For those of you that aren’t familiar with Angkor Wat, it’s a massive collection of temples in Siem Reap, Cambodia covering about 402 acres. It was constructed in the early 12th century under the rule of Khmer King Suryavarman II. Considered the largest religious monument in the world, it was designed as a representation of Mount Meru, the place where Hindu gods resided. Later in the second half of the 12th century, Buddhist additions were made to the complex as well. All of it is part of the greater Angkor Archeological Park, which was once the capital of Khmer Empire.
Now, on to my story……buckle up (don’t worry it’s not that crazy)
The Beginning
Before I start I just want to say this trip took place years ago, and regretfully, I lost all my photos and videos from my adventure here and the rest of my time in Siem Reap. Also this blog isn’t a guide in any way, rather a personal reflection of what I experienced after I visited the temples. I hope you can get something out of it.
My tour around this grand UNESCO world heritage site was amazing. Two friends I made from my hostel and I were referred to a tuk tuk driver who would end up driving us around compex, which is spread out. We explored all the coolest temples and enjoyed every minute of it. It completely lived up to the hype. I loved all the trees and shaded grassy areas as well.
At the end of our ‘tour’ is where the real journey began for me. We were invited by our tuk tuk driver to have a meal at his home. It was actually part of the deal when we paid originally and was one of the reasons we chose him as our guide. So on that hot muggy day we took about a 30-45 minute drive away from the turistic paradise to the ‘real Cambodia’.
The Middle
The drive was down one main road the entire time, slowly passing by more residential living. Looking at decrepit conditions of small bungalow type homes/dwellings and little stores struck me. This was the first time in my life that I was seeing legit 3rd world poverty, but it was just the beginning. The drive seemed never ending, and I remember second guessing the idea of going to the tuk tuk driver’s house.
Where the hell were we going? Later we would have to take the same long ass ride back to the temples and then to our hostel. I was even blaming my friend who planned everything. I wouldn’t have agreed to do this if I knew it was so far away. Eventually we arrived though, and that struck feeling that I had originally consumed me even more.
We parked in front a dingy one floor house, exited the tuk tuk and walked down the side of the house to the backyard with a hard clay/sand ground. There was a tiny beat up garage and trash scattered all over the place back there, with a somewhat large pile of it further in the back. Out of the garage walked our driver’s girlfriend and a small child. That was where the family lived. I was thinking like “holy shit”. I couldn’t fathom how anyone could live like this. It was hot, dirty, and ugly. I took a peak from outside and saw a mattress on a bed frame in there and a mosquito net of some sort but that was it.
I was completely blindsided by the situation, perplexed by the amount of filth that I was seeing. I didn’t judge though. I was more intrigued than anything. I was in Cambodia! This was an experience of a life-time for me. For our driver and his family, it was normal (or maybe not). I never asked how they felt living there, but thinking back it would have in nice to hear their story. Who knows how they ended up there or how typical it was.
To detail what happened next I’m going strictly off memory (FYI my memory is HORRIBLE) but it went something like this….
The End
It was lunch/dinner time…
First we dined on some grilled crickets and maybe worms too if I’m not mistaken. They were tasty and crunchy. It was a great start. We enjoyed discussing the flavor and appearance of the burnt creatures.
Next came the garden snakes, a level up in exotic-ness. They were also grilled, skinny and short, maybe the length of your hand at the most. The skin had to be peeled or the snake was slit down the middle, revealing a tiny bit edible meat. It tasted exactly how you would imagine, like river swampy reptile, and also quite difficult to eat. Not bad at all though because the experience of trying new food is routinely enjoyable.
At this point I was kind of mesmerized, not only by what we ate in itself, but the fact that it was brought by some random neighbor or vendor, which was then cooked and ate on the spot. This felt like real life, far from the sweet 1st world Disneyland that I grew up in with regulations and rules. Just real and raw. This was the world that the cameras don’t show you.
Last but not least came….. the duck.
Such a moment is not to be forgotten. The same man that had brought the snakes came a little bit later with a live duck, and handed it to our tuk tuk driver. We all knew what was coming next.
Before the unlucky animal tragically met its demise, the friendly driver asked playfully if one of us wanted to do the job. We stayed seated at the little picnic table and gladly turned down the offer. He even granted us the choice of filming the killing if we’d like, but we declined once more.
Next, the driver proceeded to slit the throat of the duck as I watched with no thoughts in my mind. I zoned out. One friend turned away completely as he couldn’t bare to watch it. The duck’s blood spilling out was drained into a bowl for later use in a traditional soup, which we ate. Now, I don’t remember any of our conversations that day but I do remember laughing and saying to my friend something along the lines of “if you can’t watch this, you don’t deserve to eat meat every day like you do.” Honestly I don’t feel wrong about saying that either. Most people in the modern world have no connection to what we eat in any real or spiritual way. I wish it was different.
Anyways….
We sat in the backyard just talking, waiting for the duck to be prepared and cooked. Honestly we really weren’t even interested in eating anymore, baking in the hot sun, but the time passed and eventually we ate. Afterwards, I don’t know what words spoken for the rest of the day. AlI remember is the quiet, long ride back to Angkor Wat. I had a greater appreciation for my own luxuries, but at the same time I left confused, bewildered by life.
Why do some people live in such conditions and I don’t? What made me special? Part of me felt guilty. That day left me with a puzzled mind.
This is what traveling does to you sometimes. It tests what you know and believe, whoever you are.
