The first half of the day was simply the process of flying from Saigon to Siem Reap in Cambodia and required no elaboration. Siem Reap and it's surroundings on the other hand is one of the worlds major archealogical sites and will occupy all of our energies for the next few days.

Stepping off the plane (no air bridge at this airport) we were hit by 35°C air which set our the weather expectations for our stay.

As usual we met our guide and driver at the airport on arrival and were escorted to our hotel. Driving into Siem Reap we learned that the towns population is about 300,000, that it has grown a lot in recent years and we saw the evidence of this in a new highway from the airport, and many new concrete side streets. Our hotel, Angkor Village Resort is a walled compound close to the center of town with a tranquil water and garden setting.

During the checkin process we discovered that across the road there was the option that evening to have dinner and watch a show consisting of some Cambodian dancing. We decided to skip the dinner but take-in the show.

The dinner/show is set in a traditional style building with a large main hall, with a couple of rows of low tables for those that chose the dinner option. In consideration of the western guests like Nina and I that cannot sit for a long period on folded legs the space under the table has been excavated so that even though the tables are only 2 ft high one can sit at them "normally".

The show consisted of five short dance pieces with cast ranging between 3 and 20 depending on which dance. The dance style was generally deliberate (maybe even slow) with precise and somewhat elaborate hand and foot/leg gestures. Very demanding in terms of control and strength. The costumes were exceptionally elaborate.

Nina did a great job of getting a few photos of the dancers despite the very poor light conditions.