Lotuses and Temples in Siem Reap

What do Lotuses and temples have in common? Plenty! They are found in one of my favourite parts of the world- South East Asia!

Fortunately for me, I’m able to travel to warm climes in the midst of an Ontario winter! This past February, I travelled to Siem Reap, in Cambodia and Luang Prabang, in Laos. Additionally, I spent a week at the Elephant Conservation Centre, in eastern Laos.

Siem Reap, which I visited for the first time 10 years ago, is an easy, walkable town, with many shops, restaurants and markets. And foot massages- divine! One of the highlights of my week in Siem Reap was a visit to the Lotus farm. A young local couple navigated our small boat through the Lotuses. Beautiful bouquets of Lotuses were picked for me. And the young man created a hat from a large Lotus leaf!

At the education centre of the Lotus farm, we saw a demonstration of the many steps taken to convert the stem of the Lotus plant into a very strong thread, that can be woven- amazing!

I visited the Apopo centre, which has trained large pouch rats originally from Mozambique, to sniff out TNT. By the end of 2023, APOPO’s efforts had led to the removal of a total of 31,739 landmines, 90,140 explosive remnants of war (ERW), 36,205 small arms and ammunition and 2,731 cluster munitions.

https://apopo.org/support-us/apopo-visitor-center

One of the Apopo rats with it’s handler

The Gem of Siem Reap, indeed Cambodia is Angkor Wat

This Hindu-Buddist temple complex is one of the most important archaeological sites in South-East Asia. It covers over 400 km2, including forested areas. The Angkor Wat complex contains the magnificent remains of the different capitals of the Khmer Empire, from the 9th to the 15th century. It is considered the 8th Wonder of the World.

https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/668

Walking in the city of Siem Reap, I felt very safe. People were friendly and helpful and as a solo woman traveller, I would recommend visiting this delightful place!

IN MY NEXT POST, I will be writing about the continuation of this trip, which lead me to the amazing Unesco World Heritage city of Luang Prabang. As well, I spent a week at the Elephant Conservation Centre, in Sayaboury, Laos.