David: Siem Reap, the gateway for the Temples of Angkor. Some even say that visitors to Angkor Wat are struck by its imposing grandure and, at close quarters, its fascinating decorative flourishes and extensive bas-reliefs. Holy men at the time of Angkor must have revelled in its multilayer levels of meaning in much the same way a contemporary Doctor Who enthusiast might delight in exploring the significance of phrases like "silence will fall".

…What was Caroline's favourite part of our trip to Siem Reap? …The Blue Pumpkin cafe!

Caroline: Thanks for that . Make your wife sound completely uncultured, why don’t you.

…I can’t lie though, after a morning full of exploring temples in the ever increasing heat, spending the afternoon in the BP’s upstairs cool lounge is pure HEAVEN. Air Con; bed-like sofas covered in white sheets, with plush pillows; cold towels on arrival; the best, and largest, watermelon fruit shakes I have EVER tasted; and lets not forget, chips (how amazing are chips after a week of noodles!?)…Wat’s not for a girl to love!?

But in all seriousness, the Temples of Angkor are well worth a visit. We dedicated 3 days to them which was just about enough time. After all, the temple complex is simply enormous.

DAY ONE:

Choosing to start with some of the smaller, outer temples, David selected parts of the 'big circuit’, which includes the Buddhist-Hindu fusion temple of Preah Khan and the ornate water temple of Neak Poan, a petite tower set in a lake surrounded by four smaller pools — as Lonely Planet aptly put it, if Vegas ever adopts the Angkor theme, this will be the swimming pool. Also on the list was Sra Srang, once the royal bathing pond.

A good start to the tour, even if we had to be quite insistent with our Tuk-Tuk driver that we really didn’t want to start with Angkor Wat .

DAY TWO:

No Mr. Tuk-Tuk driver we still don’t want to go to Angkor Wat…

Today’s venture was Angkor Thom, an immense fortified city that is home to the enigmatic Bayon. Many visitors I am sure will insist there’s no building bigger or more beautiful than Angkor Wat, but in Angkor Thom the sum of the parts adds up to a greater whole.

Walking the wall is a great way to appreciate the magnitude of the place; as well as to get a bit off the beaten track, which helps to avoid the bus loads of morning tourists (they bus then in first thing, and then transport them in and out for meals). However, today’s itinerary did take a while to explain, as multiple Tuk-Tuk drivers kept assuring us that this simple 1.5km trek was a really long way! And were we sure? Anyway, starting at south gate, at the less-visited southwest corner, you can admire Prasat Chrung, one of four identical temples marking the corners of the city . It’s a bit of a trek but you will be escorted by butterflies all the way.

David: Well that sounds unrealistically idyllic! Top tip: while keeping your eye on the ground, trying not to disturb the lines of marching killer ants… occasionally look up to avoid walking straight into the MASSIVE spiders hanging from above!

Caroline: And if you head down off the wall (it’s a bit hidden, down a muddy track… yes, trapped with ‘killer’ ants), you can see the water outlet of Run Ta Dev, as this once powerful city was criss-crossed by canals. Then once back on the wall, we continued to the west gate before heading down into the heart of Angkor Thom.

Veering north into Baphoun we wandered to the back of what Lonely Planet calls the ‘world’s largest jigsaw puzzle’: passing through the small temple of Phimeanakas and the former royal palace compound — an area of towering trees and tumbling walls — we continued further north to petite but very pretty Preah Palilay, before heading back to the more mainstream walk through the Terrace of the Leper King and along the front of the royal viewing gallery, the Terrace of Elephants .

David: And you’re wondering why our Tuk-Tuk driver got bored and left us?! I am sure our readers have an idea…

Caroline: Ok, so we took 4 hours, when we told him 2. But he didn’t leave us, we just couldn’t find him (much to the ‘horror’ of the other Tuk-Tuk drivers around…apparently you just DON’T loose your tourists). You could just tell, when we got back to the hostel how much the rest of the staff were going to take-the-mick out of him for that one.

DAY THREE:

Saving the biggest and best until last, we attempted to experience sunrise at Angkor Wat (it was a little overcast and, instead, just got steadily brighter). It is weird though, it was overrun with tour groups at sunrise (although some people need a bit of a lesson on what constitutes ‘sunrise’) and then they all disappeared for breakfast, leaving it nice and quite for us to potter around .

In the afternoon, we explored Ta Prohm — nicknamed the Tomb Raider temple. This was our favourite. Nature has run riot, leaving iconic tree roots strangling the surviving stones. One small downside… it is currently resident to a small army of builders. Surely that’s cheating? Anyway — after feeling a bit disappointed — nosying around the marked “unsafe areas” we suddenly realised we were being quietly chaperoned by one of the workmen. This made my visit. He started pointing out the best areas to investigate; directing us to literally scale the ruins (well out of the reach of the reconstruction work, and other tourists) to get the best photos. Lara Croft, eat your heart out.