blog break

finally a holiday...

back from siem reap yesterday and it was quite relaxing...didn't tax ourselves with over ambitious plans to visit all the 'wat's or the markets...spend more time at the massage parlour - hehe!

on the 1st day ...plane delayed...cheap ticket...service like tat la...evening...we went to Bakheng hill to enjoy the sunset, erika love the short jungle walk up the hill and also climbing the steep neck-breaking steps up the wat...going down is another storyla...up no problem! there were dark clouds looming and very windy...after the climb...up on the wat...it was great with the strong breeze and the view of the sunset over the lake...we didn't bother about the handicraft or cultural centres(too touristy for us)... dinner came with the apsara dance performance. erika enjoyed the costume...anything shiny she likes...the music i should say is an aquired taste....the one hour performance was a little too much for us to bear.

2nd day - we did the angkor wat thing...aiyoo a lot of walking...daddy said we have walked an-18 hole run! and we only did that for half a day...it was hot & humid and the photos show erika starting the day all smiles but soon the smiles turned upside down and she was in a bad mood from all the walking and the heat...cannot deny the ancient city is beautiful...after lunch...cannot move anymore...straight away check-in for a foot massage....then erika did her most fave. thing...play in the bath tub then snooze till dinner time.

3rd day...off to see the tonle sap lake and how the people live on the water...the children were amazing, with just a round bathing pail and a paddling stick, they are able to paddle and push water out of the pail & also ask for $ all at the same time...back from lake...a little shopping at the market...then more massage session, we actually planned for an hour body massage..but erika slept, so we did another hour of foot...when she woke up...we were all refreshed and ready for dinner. had dinner at the famous pub street...ate khmer food...then ordered a "happy herb pizza"...the happy herb suppose to make u "highly" happy from intoxication...but the happiness didn't seem to kick in...the pizza was nice...& not cheap US$10 for a large one.

4th day...tapau baguette home from the street stalls...not that special...& it was wrapped in recycled photocopy paper...i would say overall the food was nice, edible...it's like a cross between thai and vietnamese cuisine...with french influence. alcohol was cheap...cheaper than fizzy drinks.

the biggest impression of the place for erika must be the children...some of them were younger and were either working hard selling souveniers or begging...and they can speak at least 4 languages...jap, english, mandarin, cambodian. erika kept asking us to give them money...but i told her that it was not the right way to help them. we gave a hotdog to a young boy who was begging...and that made erika sooo happy, laughing with him as he enjoyed his hotdog...i guess it made her feel good. erika spent a lot of time just looking at the children. i am not really sure in what way is she curious about them...it could be she wants to play with them, but dunno how to initiate...she looks and talks different from them...or is she sympathetic to them?

she missed ellisa...so did we!

when we got back home, ellisa was sooo happy to see us..and she seem to have so much more vocabulary...she can say..."i wan mi"..."miao miao" for cat..."wo wo" for dog..."tai ge" for tiger...wah...so impressed with my little princess...she has also became a tyrant...spoilt by po po...i say this becoz if she is playing with her plate and spoon...and i touch the plate or spoon, she will go into a fits...screaming and crying that i mess up her things...maybe she is learning to be independant or she just want things HER way or NO way!