February 15- Jennifer Becomes Fearless

Today we biked to Angkor.

Bicycling in Siam Reap is an extreme sport. There's no such thing as biking on shoulders or sidewalks. There's no such thing as a bike lane. As a cyclist in Siam Reap, you are a motorist surrounded by tuk tuks, cars, tourbuses, motorcycles, scooters, and slower cyclists/pedestrians pulling huge carts of goodness-knows-what. Throw in the fact that the streets are packed, and motorists driving small vehicles can't seem to pick one side of the road over the other, and you've got yourself a gong-show!

I just pretended like I was on a scooter (in my mind that gave me more of a right to be on the road). I even went through a round-about! All of these vehicles were whizzing all around me, and it honestly didn't phaze me. I was fearless (yet alert, except for one time when I lifted my head to see a motorcycle barreling towards me on the wrong side of the road. But I swerved and was okay).

From 9am-6pm we cycled all over Angkor, taking in Angkor Thom, Ta Phroem (sp?) (where "Tomb Raider" and "Indiana Jones:Temple of Doom" were filmed) and all sorts of other smaller lesser know wats (wats=temples).

While we had a fantastic day (Cambodia and I have resolved our differences) the HEAT!! Oh my goodness. You know that stupid question people sometimes ask? (When they're six I suppose): Would you rather be hot or cold?

Well people who can answer that question haven't been REALLY hot or cold. I mean, so hot or cold that you think, "I can see how people can die from this". Anyway, the answer is: neither. I'd rather be temperate (I was really afraid I was going to get a wicked sunburn, I was sweating so much that the sunscreen was just slideing off of my skin, but I was fine).

Thirty-forty kilometres later, we were zonked. After dinner we had massages from blind masseurs and fell into bed.