Before coming to Cambodia, I had heard mixed reviews about what it is like here. From some, I had heard that the people are the friendliest in the world; from others, I had heard that it is very poor and the people make you uncomfortable. I preferred to listen to the advice of those who had spoke positively about it and was therefore optimistic that the people really would be wonderful, and they were! Not once did I feel uncomfortable here (well, except for maybe in the markets when the vendors wouldn’t back off…) and the people went out of their way to help us out. Overall, I would say…

Warning – this one is heavy… From April 17, 1975 to January 7, 1979, Cambodia was controlled by the regime known as the Khmer Rouge, led by a ruthless man named Pol Pot. It was the goal of this leadership to push Cambodia to a completely self-sufficient agrarian society, so upon taking power, Pol Pot immediately cleared the people out of the cities, shut down factories and schools and declared all currency and private property obsolete. The people were herded to collective farms where they were forced to work, many of them to death. Others met their deaths much earlier – intellectuals and ethnic minorities were killed almost immediately. The…

Our first stop in Cambodia was to the city of Siem Reap to see the Angkor Wat temple. This is a temple I have wanted to see for a long time, but I admit, I was very ignorant in regards to the extent of the importance of this place. Angkor Wat is an 800 year old temple that originated as a Hindu temple but eventually was transformed to be used for Buddhism. But there is so much more than just this temple! Angkor was once the capital city of the Khmer Empire (9th-15th century) which was larger than the Byzantine Empire at its peak. It was home to nearly 1…