Beautiful Siem Reap

After Phnom Penh, we went to Siem Reap, where we went to the temples at Angkor, got some delicious deserts, and did doctor fish.

Ta Prohm was the first temple we went to. We walked in, and it was quiet so quiet I could hear all the sounds of the little creatures. We were the only ones there. There were trees growing on top of the temple, their roots twisting around the temples blocking some of the paths. It was so cool to have Ta Prohm all to ourselves.

We went to the most famous temple, Angkor Wat, last of all so we could see the sun set behind it. I was so excited I had been waiting all day long to see it. We walked through the entrance. I gasped. Angkor Wat, the most famous temple in all of Angkor, had construction on it! I was mad at first, but after seeing the inside I was OK. And there were monkeys roaming around everywhere.

After going to the temples we wanted some dessert, so we went to a place called The Blue Pumpkin. At The Blue Pumpkin, there were lots of delicious ice creams.After we all ordered our ice creams, we went up stairs to the lounge. There were white couches all along the walls. When I sat down I sank into the couch. It was so soft.

After dessert, we went to do doctor fish. Doctor fish is where the fish eat the dead skin of your feet. I was really excited. I put my feet in. And pulled them out. It tickled so bad! I put my feet back in and braced them, trying so hard not to laugh.

Siem Reap was so cool. I loved seeing all the old crumbling temples and the beautiful architecture. I hope I can go back someday.

Ta Prohm

Angkor Wat

Doctor Fish

Welcome to Cambodia

Welcome to Cambodia, a place of temples, dancers, weird food and much more. We went over to Cambodia on a boat, after our tour of the Mekong Delta. We were heading to Phenom Pehn the capital of Cambodia. As we cruised past the river banks I hardly saw any people, unlike Vietnam where there would always be people in boats, fishing, or even bathing.

When we arrived we were swarmed by tuk tuk drivers, all wanting to take us to our hotel. It was like we were movie stars!

My favorite thing we did in Cambodia was visiting an orphanage. When we arrived all the kids rushed out to say "Hello!" They were the friendliest people I had ever met. They walked up to my older sister, Sierra, and asked "How old are you?" She said she was 14. They looked at each other and laughed. I was confused. Then they asked me how old I was. They laughed even harder when I said I was 11. I was even more confused. Then they said that they were 14, 15 and 16. They were laughing because Sierra and I were both taller than all of them.

After talking for a while, the kids asked if they could show us a dance. Of course we said, yes. Some music started playing and the little boys jumped up and started doing a monkey dance. After that, the girls got up and did a traditional Cambodian dance. Cambodian dancers stretch their fingers so that they bend back far. It was cool to get to watch them, because we hadn't seen any real dances while we were there. After everyone had done their dances, we had to go. I was so happy just being around those kids. They reminded me you don't need expensive things to be happy. Everyone waved to us until we were out of sight. I just wanted to take all of them home.

Our first night in Phenom Pehn, we went to a restaurant. There we had fish amok, banana flower salad, and spider! To be exact tarantula! I was afraid to eat it. I opened my mouth to put it in. Then shut it. I closed my eyes opened my mouth and bit. As I chewed I nodded my head. It was pretty good! After dinner, my dad asked what was my favorite thing we ate that night. I thought for a second and said "I've got to say the tarantula was pretty good!"

The Fourth of July in a Foreign Country

After Saigon, we wanted to tour the Mekong Delta before going to Cambodia. And it was fun. We went to many cool places and ate new foods. Plus we got to spend the Fourth of July there. 

While touring the Mekong we did a home stay. That's where you get to stay at a local house. When I walked in I saw that there was no roof over the hallways. As I walked into the room my sisters and I would be sleeping in, it got darker. The only light was coming through the small slats we had for windows. It was dark and I saw something run cross the wall. What was it? It was a mouse! Soon enough we found the lights so it was brighter.

We also got to help make dinner. I helped peel the vegetables. And it was the Fourth of July. When we were in Saigon, at one of the restaurants they had sparklers so my dad got them for us. But the sparklers   were more like candles. It was kind of weird not hearing fire works, but now I can say I have spent the Fourth of July in a foreign country.

At one of our last stops in the Mekong Delta we went to a restaurant. It was an outside restaurant and when I walked in, a waiter zoomed past me. I looked over and he was wearing roller skates. All of the waiters were. We sat at a table and soon someone came to take our orders. We got baby pig, rabbit curry, and pigeon! You might be thinking "why? That would be gross!" But it wasn't. They were very good. The baby pig is one of my favorite things I ate on the trip.

The Mekong Delta was fun. I'm glade we decided to go. I was an awesome experience.