I'M IN: Siem Riep Cambodia, having skipped Phnom Penh
NEXT UP: Greece, by way of Bangkok
I've been the busy bee the last few days, and had lots of fun. First of all, I am now a certified open water diver! If you haven't SCUBA'ed, I'd highly recommend it. I can't think of a single person I know who wouldn't love it. The first day of the three day course was all classroom and theory. Due to the night before being long on fun and short on sleep, I wasn't at my highest brain power but managed to do what I needed to to get into the water the following day. Day Two involved two dives, both of which I enjoyed. There were some skills to learn (breathing through the regulator, equalizing pressure in your head, learning to find your regulator if it comes out of your mouth and, my least favorite - taking your mask off and putting it back on). But we saw lots of seastuff, too. This being my first dive experience, I was glad to see any fish/coral/sea creatures at all. Some of the fun divers also on the boat were less thrilled (apparently the "vis" (visibility) was pretty low). Day Three was three more dives wherein a giant bat fish followed my instructor and I for about ten minutes, among other neat experiences. Although I have taken some slack for it from fellow travelers, I am glad I waited to Cambodia to dive. First of all, my excitement for diving was totally peaked. Second, Cambodia is the antithesis of a dive factory (a la Koh Tao in Thailand). I had the dive instructor completely to myself, which was incredible, and didn't see a single other diver the entire time we were underwater. Looking forward to more diving soon - perhaps in Greece or Turkey? And hopefully can get my Advanced certification in Egypt this winter.
On Saturday I dragged myself away from the beach to come to Siem Riep, the town of the Angkor temples. I have been anticipating Angkor for a long, long time (since I first started thinking about this trip years ago) and really, the temples are magnificent. I hope to get my pictures updated this week. The groovy experience here has been somewhat dampened by the hordes of children selling/begging and their constant cries of, "Hey Lady!" which constantly makes me think of a certain génie comique. I thought Angkor was considered one of the seven wonders of the world, but apparently there is little consensus on this issue. I could see how Angkor would qualify, in any event.
