Cambodia Day #3 - Pool Time, Angkor Museum, Exploring the City, & Fried Bugs!!

in #travel6 years ago

Just a Relaxing Day Here in Cambodia

My plan for today was to relax and take it easy... and I did... somewhat. I really needed to relax in order to recover from this cold/cough I've had for the last 8 days. This constant coughing is getting SO FREAKING OLD!

Anyways, we started off with a nice breakfast at our hotel, which was complimentary with our $25/night booking. I'm still shocked at how cheap this place was.

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After breakfast we ran over to the pharmacy across the road to re-up on my meds. I was telling complaining to Kristen last night that this country really should get some Tusin or real medication to treat coughs and colds. Because the stuff I've used so far hasn't really helped at all.

Lucky for me, Kristen is super observant. While we were at the pharmacy today, and about to check out with some more of the same old medicine, Kristen noticed a box on a back shelf behind the cashier that read "Tusin". Could it really be!? I've never been so excited to see a box of medication in all my life! LOL

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Turns out the pharmacist had been holding out on me this whole time. They really did have the good stuff but were giving me ivy leaf extract and Tylenol. She said it was for kids but the ingredients on the box were exactly what's in American Robitussin. I just need to adjust the dosage for an adult.

Finally... I may get rid of this cold yet!! 😁

Much Needed Pool Time

We've been so busy here that we haven't even had time to jump in the pool for a swim. But today that's exactly what we did right after breakfast. We lounged by the pool for a couple of hours which was really refreshing. It's one thing to walk around in this hot (and damp) weather, but when you're in the pool it feels great!

After a while we decided to get cleaned up and go explore the city a little bit. One place we've been wanting to check out is the Angkor National Museum which has exhibits and information on the history of the nearby Cambodia temples.

But first we had to find some place to eat. I'm not sure if you know this or not, but Kristen and I are both vegans when we're at home. When we travel we slip into vegetarianism... and sometimes I even eat fish. But we try our best to eat as healthy as possible while we're away and today we found a nice vegetarian restaurant near the museum we were headed to.


Mediterranean Veggie Wrap w/ Sweet Potato Fries

As with all the food we've had in Asia so far, it was delicious!

Angkor National Museum

Finally we made our way to the museum. But unfortunately we weren't allowed to take pictures inside... which was really a shame because there were so many cool pieces of art I would've loved to share with you all.


I did get a shot of the lotus pond inside. I know, I'm such a rebel! 🤣

We learned a lot and got to see a bunch of artifacts that were recovered from Angkor Wat and other temples in the area. Plus, we gained some more knowledge on the history of Hinduism and Buddhism in Cambodia and neighboring countries. Honestly, we got a lot more out of this museum than we were expecting.

The Siem Reap Old Market

The Old Market is really more of a place for locals to come and buy fresh local fruits, vegetables, meats, clothes, or just get their hair washed and cut. It's basically like an old mall right in the heart of the city... but without AC.

We did buy a few things here. Some souvenirs for our families and Kristen bought a shirt. But that was about it. We were just killing time waiting for the night market to open up at 8pm.

The Night Market & Pub Street

On the other side of the bridge (from the Old Market), an entirely different scene was taking shape. Loud westernized music was blaring from the speakers, bars and clubs every where you turned, and more upscale restaurants that we had yet to see in the main city. And you might have guessed... LOTS of Americans, Europeans, and otherwise familiar faces.

We also got our first taste glimpse of the infamous Cambodian fried insects, scorpions, and spiders. I told myself before leaving for this trip that, if given the chance, I would try the fried tarantulas. But... I changed my mind once I saw them LOL. It still might happen but not in this blog post. 😉

We managed to find a relatively quiet, vegetarian restaurant right near Pub Street. Kristen and I both ordered the Cambodian Curry with Rice. The spices and veggies blended together nicely and really gave us a taste of what traditional Cambodian cuisine has to offer.

Now, here it is about midnight Cambodia time and we're headed to bed. Another day in the books.

Tomorrow we have a tour scheduled for Kompong Khleang, the largest floating village in Siem Reap. It's located about 55km outside of the city, and the villages are home to over 10,000 people, many of whom have been living there for generations. On the tour we'll get to try Khmer sticky rice and take a ride in a boat to the village of stilted homes and a school. We'll get to meet the people there and experience their way of life which should be really cool!

Anyways, off to bed now. I appreciate all of you guys who take the time each day to read through our daily recaps. I look forward to sharing more with you tomorrow. Until then, have an awesome day!

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thanks for sharing the journey brandon!!!! each image and each post...has captured so much life and color! so much for the senses...to take in!!! feeling like i'm right there next you!!!

Glad to share and thanks for following along! Btw, you won the random upvote on this post. :)

It'll be coming in the next voting round.

nice!!!!!! thank you brandon!!!!!!

Dude these photos are professional quality and your post is so detailed and well structured, it was a pleasure to read, wish more people took the time.

And the place you are staying looks epic. Not too mention that food, wow next level!

Its so crazy how far USD goes in south east asian, eh? When I was in Thailand we ate amazing healthy, homemade meals for $1 or $2 USD.

Enjoy. Get well.

Thank you @infidel1258! Some days I'm worn out and just want to head to bed but I know that some day I'll want to look back on this trip and what better place to store it than the Steem blockchain :)

And that's great to hear! We'll be headed to Thailand in the next couple of weeks so I'll be looking forward to that. It really is amazing how far the USD goes here. That alone makes it a nice vacation from home.

My fav memory from Thailand was an overnight train ride from Bangkok to Chaingmai, in the north. The temples and countryside were very impressive.

Enjoy!

I know you chickened-out on the tarantulas, but did you try any (other) bug at all?

Awesome Brandon! Each post is making me more and more jealous! LOL The food pics definitely have me salivating! Well except for the fried insects, no thanks! LOL But you definitely should eat the scorpion or tarantula...and let me know how they taste...LOL

Haha, the food really is great here. And if I try them I'll definitely let you know!

hahaha nice!!! Insects are pretty much pure protein right?? Just do it! Do it! Do it! LOL I wouldn't do it. LOL

I know you from you YouTube / your helpful videos in regards to Steemit ~ nice to see more of you now for the first time :)

Ahh, I'm so glad you found me here. And yes, over the next few weeks I'll be traveling all over SouthEast Asia and sharing my journey here. Let me know if you have any questions about Steem or Steemit though, I'm happy to help!!

Thank you very much ~ I look forward take you up on your offer ~ 🤗💛 ~ And to further follow your journey :)

I have found my question now ~ 😄 ~ but it may be a rather difficult one as by investigation I found no absolutely clear and rather contradictory information... So the question would be if it is legal / allowed / completely fine to use all ˋfree to monetize´ music to be found on the YouTube-library on D-Tube as well...??
....Perhaps I should post my question it in a blogpost as it would probably be interesting to know for many... ~
Anyway...! From what I see your travel is magic and I would quite wish to be in your shoes ~ 🦋 ~ !

I would not survive there with the local cuisine.

Lol, not even with the tarantulas and scorpions!?? 😆

What kind of Internet speeds are you getting there? If it's decent, I might go there for a month and work remotely.

The nerve of that pharmacist not to realize you were a kid ... lol.

Back in my uni days, I was a vegetarian and even a vegan. I was studying nutrition at the time and so I really took care of my diet but I just couldn't get a solely plant-based diet to work for me. What I have since learned about lectins, this makes sense to me now. However what we eat is also about emotional health and philosophy. I understand this but the body can have other ideas.

Colds can't be cured with medicines. Although symptoms can be alleviated. Colds require glucose to proliferate in the body. For a few days, I would stick to those eggs, greens, a small amount of fruit, and maybe even some of that seafood you were talking about. Seafood tends to be high in zinc and so that will help your immune system fight off the cold. Plus the protein will help. Stay away from those starchy and sweet carbs until your symptoms are gone.

LOL ... the fried insects might be just what you need. Bon appetite!!!

LOL yeah trying to give me that grown up stuff! haha

I think I've figured out the source of my cough and it's actually not a cold at all. It all started in Shanhai and there's this thing called "Shanhai lung" which is really just a funny name for a cough caused by the air pollution. I really should've opted for the mask while I was there. My body now thinks it's under attack by allergies (which I suppose it is) and is creating a post-nasal drip to force me to cough it all up. Isn't the body fascinating?

The issue now is that I haven't exactly gotten "out of harms way" here. Vietnam & Cambodia air polution isn't much better than China. So I'm probably going to have to get me one of those funky masks. 😷

Haha ... you will look so cool ... make sure you take pictures and post:)

Oh I definitely will. Maybe I can find a cool one with a rad camo pattern 😎🤣

I vote for a lipstick mouth

@brandonfrye just watched your first video from YouTube on steem and open steem to check your blogs.
I read your blog and it was really very interesting as i never read such a lengthy blog before this, but i couldn't stop myself to stop reading this.
Combodia really a nice place and the view of the hotel is also awesome and what a cheap and good hotel. It is just really like value for money deal. And the pictures you clicked is also amazing. Seems like you are a professional photographer.
And at last just want to say that get well soon and enjoy ur trip of combodia.