Siem Reap

I just enjoyed a short escape to Siem Riep to eat different food, meet friends and to relax. It is a much busier place than on my previous visits - lots of new bars and restaurants especially around Pub Street. Luckily my hotel was away from all the action, a short tuk-tuk ride from the Old Market.

We met Lina, our friend: author of Move to Cambodia for a dinner at Mie cafe, one of her favourite restaurants in town. It was a very nice place serving modern Khmer dishes. I'd highly recommend this restaurant. After that we headed to Miss Wong cocktail bar for a  few drinks. I love this bar and remember it from years back. Small, not loud music, nice cocktails and very friendly staff. 

I love the old market very much even though it's very touristy. I went there everyday just for a wander, to smell the incense, flowers, spices and food. The way they display their fresh produce is very photogenic. Local Cambodian vendors show a lot of pride in the way they display their food which is similar to us in Vietnam.

I love having a Cambodian massage even though I'm not sure that's what it's called. I visited Master Feet and spent an hour every day for foot and arm massages, usually after walking around for a few hours. In the evening, we had a great experience with Lina and Steven: food tour in Siem Reap. It was so much fun, this is such a great way to see the city through local expat eyes. We went around Siem Reap by tuk tuk and tried heaps of local food. As you would expect, I ate way too much. We visited quite different markets, crossed lots of busy streets to try Siem Reap's specialties and that's the best way to learn and understand the local culture and their food. After the tour, headed to Picasso bar for a couple of drinks before going back to the hotel. Quite a small bar but with great atmosphere, the Picasso Bar cocktails were nice enough according my limited cocktails experience. We had a few drinks there and met up with some new people before a final cocktail at Miss Wong. It was a great night!!!

I don't usually eat at hotels but the Victoria Hotel breakfast was great and I enjoyed very much. For coffee, we were guided to The Little Red Fox Espresso as it's the best coffee in town. I enjoyed the quiet, good coffee and spend some time catching up on work.  We met Lina again for lunch at Olive, Cuisine De Saison. It was weird to eat French fusion food in Siem Reap but it was delicious, quiet and we spent lots of time chatting about the town, business and food. 

I would come back here again in the near future as I love the heat, the people, market, food and the excellent massage.