15 June 09 Monday

We have finally put an end to our Angkor-climbing escapades, though we enjoyed it so much more due to our improved steps-conquering skills that see us negotiating steep steps more effortlessly now and generally visiting the temples earlier to catch the sunrise and later to catch the sunset....

....like the Bayon at Angkor Thom before we adjourned to Angkor Wat again for a futile sunset-viewing which was less derirable than even the day before as the clouds decided to shield the sun from the prying eyes of hordes of tourists....

What we did today was meaningful and interesting in its own way - to the museum for Angkor civilisation (?) with a frills-free yet highly informative exhibit on life in Tonle Sap, next to school for the deaf and blind (until grade 5), which exceeded our expectations with a wide classroom, computer lab, library. This free exhibit stands head and shoulders over the paid (US$11) cultural village which is more like an amusement park with its miniature wats, shows and tunnel where someone will jump out of the darkness to scare you.

Then we were off to the central market selling basically the same stuff as old market but gems stores. We learnt from a 3rd generation Cambodian Chinese how to differentiate real gems (basically using a 'diamond indicator''which rapidly lights up from yellow to red bars when the probe is pressing on the gem ... the technology having to do with the hardness of the material under probe). I bought 2 jade pendants,a jade ring and 2 books (US$2, orginally $5) for US$20. Basically he was willing to shed US$ 2-3 dollars for each. White silk shirts perfect for the scorching weather goes for US$5, while Apsara tee-shirts cost $2