Krong Siem Reap, Siem Reap Province, CambodiaWelcome to the Legend of RySa: Angkor Quest. In which our two plucky heroes, Ryan and Sari, attempt to navigate the elaborate mazes of ancient temples, invoke the spirits within to gain knowledge, power, and solve quests to defeat evil and save the world. All before lunchtime.
If there isn't a video game like this yet, there really should be. Here's how it would go:
Temples day 2: The Grand Circuit
Our two heroes woke up this morning at a far more humane hour, after a blissfully good night's sleep. Health score restored to maybe 7, strength to 9, heart to 10. After a filling hotel breakfast, we were as ready as we were ever going to be to take on the Grand Circuit Tour of some of Angkor's major temples.
Mr. Saroth picked us up around 8 and whisked us away on the magical tuk-tuk, back into the park. We passed the major temples of yesterday, including Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom, and drove further out to some of the ones that are slightly off the radar of the single day tourists. This meant fewer crowds and almost no tour groups, making them almost more enjoyable than yesterday's temples.
Level 1: Preah Khan, The Elixir of Life
Preah Khan, the first level of our quest, turned out to be one of my favourite temples we've seen so far. It was still pleasantly cool outside when we arrived, and there was almost nobody around, leading to a certain stillness that felt almost otherworldly.
Our first task: Tugging on the snake, churning of the milk. Yes, you read that right. Preah Khan's entranceway is adorned by statues pulling on a giant snake, depicting the mythological churning of the ocean of milk, a Hindu belief that generates the elixir of eternal life.
Elixir points earned, we were free to enter the temple itself, navigating our way through its maze-like corridors. Along the way, we encountered many Aspara for knowledge and life points, a number of headless statues that we had to defeat to gain access to the next chamber, and puzzles to be solved in order to gain valuable treasure. There were brightly coloured red and green carvings in several courtyards. And of course, we had to ring the giant bell of good fortune to level up.
Here, we encountered multiple doorways that required magical keys entered in just the right sequence to open them. We also were able to battle several lion-like mythological creatures to gain strength points. With each key we gained and each battle we won, we grew stronger.
Towards the end of Level 1, we came across the Lake of Algae, which we feared we'd have to swim across, until we found the magical bridge. From there, we gained access to the temple of columns, which had several useful items and treasures that would be helpful in later stages of our quest.
Level complete. Onwards and forwards.
Level 2: Neak Pean, The Water Temple
Next, we were taken by magical tuk-tuk to a long bridge over a large lake, which we had to cross to reach the next place: Neak Pean, the Water Temple, home to a magical stone that would give us great powers for our quest. The lake was filled with water lilies and bright pink lotus flowers, which looked quite beautiful. Though be careful: Eating them may be poisonous.
After crossing the outer lake, we came nearer to Neak Pean. It's actually a very small temple built in the middle of water, which you can't enter or even get all that close to. At least, not without the magical flippers and the ability to breathe underwater, which we sadly did not have. We contemplated swinging across on a vine from a nearby tree, but that plan failed to work. We briefly enlisted the help of a fellow quester from Finland who knew Santa Claus, but alas, her sleigh only worked in frozen temperatures, and the lake was far too warm for that.
Nearly ready to concede defeat in our quest to gain access to the Water Temple, we stood for a while admiring its beauty. And then finally realised, that was the trick: It was all about willpower. Namely, we had to mentally will the stone from the temple into our possession. Mustering our mental strength, we gathered enough focus to achieve this. The stone was now ours, and we were ready to move onto the next phase of our quest.
Level 3: Ta Som, Temple of Strength
Next up: Ta Som, source of the magical boots of strength, which we needed to find in order to gain enough power to defeat the upcoming challenges. To gain entry, we needed to pass through a gate where a large face came to life and asked us to solve a complicated riddle. This took some time, but we finally figured it out and were allowed to pass.
Inside Ta Som, we found more brilliant intricately-coloured carvings, towers, and difficult strength-related tasks. At first, these were quite challenging: Ever try lifting enormous rocks with just your bare hands? However, after a bit of searching, we finally located them: The boots of strength! Ryan stepped into them and was deemed worthy, and, as such, gained all the power that they were able to provide.
The brightly coloured walls and doorways of Ta Som presented us with a number of additional riddles that needed to be solved. Here again, Ryan proved his worth by solving the code to open doorways to earn additional life points. We both battled creatures large and small as we made our way through the Ta Som complex.
The Ta Som temple has an exit gate that is completely surrounded by nature in a stunning way: The tree of life provided a chance to earn some bonus points by climbing it to pick the magical fruit within. I took on this task and was able to successfully pass it, earning us each an extra life in the process. Level 3 complete!
Level 4: East Mebon, The Magical Sword
The next temple was quite small but important: East Mebon, site of the magical sword that we must locate and retrieve, which will allow us to defeat the big boss and save the world. This temple came with an added level of difficulty, as the Evil Day Star had emerged in full force, trying to murder us with the strength of its rays. Luckily, we were well armed with hats, sunscreen, and cold water, ready to take on the challenge.
East Mebon was guarded by a number of heffalumps, magical creatures with trunks that stood on each corner. Defeating the heffalumps was our biggest battle yet; we at first tried to fight them, but they were too big, too smart, too quick. Instead, we realised that all we had to do was feed them, constantly. They really like sugarcane and banana trees, as we'd learned in Chiang Mai.
We had to climb a bit, but then found ourselves on a large terrace containing multiple towers, each with their own door that had to be entered as we searched for the sword. Some doors were open already, but sadly had been stripped of their treasure. Others required items to create special keys to unlock the doors, and these proved more fruitful, leading to a number of magical objects that would be useful in the next level of the quest.
Finally, we came upon the highest tower, where the door required all our acumen and strength to open. Success! The magical sword was inside, retrievable only by the worthy. Luckily, Ryan had proven himself and was able to acquire the sword. Level unlocked, and we were ready for the final battle.
Level 5: Pre Rup, The Final Quest
The fifth and final temple of the day was Pre Rup, a large high temple built on three levels, up a giant set of steep stairs. The first part of the quest involved climbing all the way to the top in the hot sun, preferably without falling down. Not as easy as it sounds.
But we made it, ma. Top of the world! Now the last battle to save the world, rescue the princess, slay the dragons, and so on and so forth, could begin. We had the Boots of Strength, the Magic Stone, the Elixir of Life, the Magical Sword, and all the other treaure, items, and strength points we'd managed to accumulate along our journey. Would they be enough?
We began our battle on the topmost level of Pre Rup, moving from tower to tower, visiting the various towers and fighting the evil spirits contained within. Our resources were nearly depleted several times, but we never gave up. We fought on valiantly, knowing that nothing was more important than this quest.
And at long last, the final battle with the big boss, which seemed to go on forever, was over. With one final slash of the magical sword, the evil boss was evaporated into dust and blew away like the wind, giving way to a magical chamber that opened right before our eyes. I entered with trepidation, wondering at what I'd find. I fear I cannot tell you. Nobody can. You'll just have to complete the quest for yourself to find out.
But the point is, victory was ours! We had completed the magical quest and ensured that the world was once again safe. We could now return to Siem Reap, living to fight another day.
A hero's lunch and home for a rest
Mr. Saroth drove us back to Siem Reap, where we headed to a restaurant just up the street from our hotel for lunch. The place was quite upscale, and seemed to cater more to big tour groups. But all that meant was we got cloth napkins instead of paper, and main courses cost all of $7 instead of $5. Ryan ordered some khmer soup and I had a chicken curry and rice. A true hero's feast!
Then, back to the hotel for the obligatory hot shower and rest and relaxation. After all, fighting all these quests at temples is tiring.
Some chocolate, some beer, some crocodile?
A couple of hours later, refreshed and rested, we headed back into town. First stop: The Wat Chocolate workshop, which was closed when we tried to visit on Monday. Since their Phnom Penh store was also closed on Sunday, I was about ready to give up. But hey, third time's the charm: They were open, in full production mode, and happy to give a tour and some free tastings. Wat Chocolate has been in business since 2019 and is Cambodia's first real bean-to-bear chocolate maker. Using locally sourced Cambodian chocolate -- itself a relatively recent crop in the country -- they produce bars with locally-inspired flavours. They seem to be well known mostly to tourists, as craft chocolate isn't really in the price range of most Cambodians. But, as they say, there's potential here.
The chocolate we sampled was all very creamy, balanced, and they make an 100% bar that's actually a decent rival for Marou's award-winning one from neighbouring Vietnam. Ryan and I sampled a bunch of chocolate and bought some to take home, assuming it survives these scorching temperatures. And I left Wat Chocolate feeling a sense of accomplishment for having found and tasted craft bean-to-bar chocolate in all three southeast Asian countries we visited on this trip. I suppose that's another side quest completed today.
After that, it was still a bit early for dinner, so we had some time to kill. Ryan and I wandered up to the market stalls and souvenir shops that surround Pub Street and the riverbank here in Siem Reap. It's all the usual tourist stuff that you'd expect, repeated at stall after stall. Here in Cambodia, unlike in Thailand or in Laos, I've found that the vendors are much more in your face and eager to make a sale. It may be the hard times due to the pandemic and reduced tourism numbers; I bought a shot glass at one souvenir shop, and the lady working there told me it was the first sale she'd made all day and thanked me for bringing her good luck. So I don't blame them or anything. But it's less fun to browse market stalls when you're constantly approached by people trying to make the hard sell.
Pub Street is everything that defines the tourist trap: Overpriced bars catering to western tourists, silly bar names, neon lights, people hawking goods or begging for change. It's glitzy and ridiculous and over the top, and visiting it is kind of a must while here in Siem Reap. Since we had some time before dinner, Ryan and I figured, hey, we're tourists, so what the heck. We found a seat at Temple Bar -- yep, we found Temple Bar here in Cambodia, equally catering to young drunk tourists. Unlike the Temple Bar in Dublin, though, at least there are plenty of actual temples here in Siem Reap. And this one advertises the best crocodile burgers in town, so there's that. We ordered 75 cent draft beers and did our best to people-watch, though most of it was fending off the touts and the street vendors. Hey, it's all about the experience.
For dinner, we sensibly got a bit out of the Pub Street tourist trap area and walked a few blocks to a well rated local Khmer food restaurant that was cheap, cheerful, and crowded. Here, anything crowded is a good sign, especially given the low tourism numbers right now. Ryan ordered traditional fish amok, and I got some chicken and vegetable stir-fry with cashew nuts. We washed it all down with a beer. Quite tasty.
After dinner, we wandered a few minutes more, but there really isn't a ton else to see in Siem Reap unless you plan to get up to no good. Since we have another early start tomorrow, we decided to head back. It's been a day full of successful quests, and there's still more to come.
MOM
2023-01-04
What an adventurous day……where is Steven Spielberg when you need him…..
Ric
2023-01-04
The smile of the Hero that saved the world (with his side kick the Mighty Sari) Hail Ryan