Top Khett Siem Reab hotels
I like pots with plants and flowers on terraces, sidewalks and in pedestrian areas, because they are usually very decorative and give a green touch in stone surroundings. Here in Cambodia and Siem Reap , I was very surprised to see not ´normal´ plants in earth, but water plants in water. It´s nice to see the use of water plants not only in decorative small pounds, but also in rather small pots. Maybe these waterplants have also a meaning.... ?
In the street just east of the Psar Chaa I saw a lot of seats at the sidewalk, all oriented in the same direction. Why.... many people were looking television here. At a closer look I saw there were different sets with each another program. Most spectators were rather young men.Also in the internetcafes I saw not only possibilities for internet and international calls, but also for watching TV individually. Here I saw mainly youngsters watching TV.
During our walk in town we visited the temple complex Wat Dam Nak, a former royal palace, but now the Centre for Khmer studies. The temple was under restoration and partly disappeared behind bamboo scaffolding.We walked around the temple and saw that at one side they were still constructing men were still building the scaffolding and tied up the tiny looking bamboo sticks with rope. The from a distance very fragile looking construction looked at a closer look steady enough to carry the craftsmen.
During our walk in the town at the other side of the river Siem Reap we took a unpaved road into a living area. Many houses are made of wood, but also some of bamboo or stone. Not only houses in the wet areas are built at stilts, but I saw also many houses in town built in that way .The space under the houses is often used as open air living area. During the day families stay in this rather cool place, sometime lying in their hammocks. Sometimes I saw that this space also is used for storage, a small shop or for parking the motorcycle. Outside Siem Reap I saw also often that often cars were parked under the houses.
I don´t know why, but in many cities and countries my eyes notice the garbage or the way of collecting or not collecting garbage. In Cambodia and Siem Reap I saw rubber bins, but I didn´t know where they were used for. During our walk in town in the street of the Craftsmen Training Centre I had a close look at these bins and could see and smell that they are used for collecting garbage.During our short stay I didn´t find out now how and when they are emptied. Later in the River Siem Reap I saw a green boat collecting rubbish from the water and the riverbanks.
Except in wood and stone carving is the craftmanship training centre of the Chantiers-Ecoles in Siem Reap also specialized in lacquer and multichromic gilding of sandstone and wood. The sandstone is coated with numerous layers of laquer and ornamented with copper leaf gilding and natural pigments. This gives the objects an aged look simelar to that of the orginal old artefacts. The wood is degreased before the artisans apply the colours made from natural pigments. Eventually the objects are also adorned with copper leaf gilding. Finally the objects are applied with a layer of laquer, sanded and polished to create the glossy finish. It is interesting to see the process of the work first and later the results in the Artisans d' Angkor shop. After watching the basic techniques an workshops I was really surprised to discover the high quality of the products. I couldn´t resist the temptation...
Les Chantiers-Ecoles, where young people learn the skills of the traditional Khmer traditions have two trainingcentres. Except the craftmencentre in Siem Reap with stone and wood carving, lacquering and gilding which we visited is there also the National Silk Centre in Puok.We didn't visit this centre, where the artisans extract the silk threads from the cocoons of the silkworms and after the treatment also dye and weaven the threads. We did see the colourful and tastful results in the shop Artisans d'Angkor at the craftmenscentre in Siem Reap.Concerning silk the centre in Siem Reap has a workshop for deaf and dumb girls, who learn to make paintings at silk. During our visit the girls continued their work, being very concentrated.
At the school, the Chantiers-Ecoles, in Siem Reap are allready 4500 people trained in the traditional Khmer crafts and construction. Besides in woodcarving the school is also specialised in woodcarving.Annex to the school Artisans d' Angkor is a company which helps the young people to find work in their home villages, allowing them further to practice their crafts and to continue to develop their skills. Like the students in stonecarving the students in woodcarving also learn to make exact copies of the ancient images of Angkor. They have to do their work very precisely. Their teacher marks every millimeter or less they diverge from the original example.
In Siem Reap we visited Les Chantiers Ecoles, providing training to young people. It is possible to visit the centre where the youngsters from the villages learned the traditional skills rooted in the Khmer cultural heritage.Every visitor got a personal guide. Normally I like to walk on my own, but his explanation made our visit of the workshops more interesting.Stone carving is one of the traditional skills the students learn. We could follow the process from the raw pre-cut blocks to the final products. Some boys carved exact copies of the authentic carvings in the Angkor temples. At the drawings we could see how detailed these carvings are.We saw also the results for special orders ready to be shipped to all over the world, like a kind of stupa for France.
Cambodia is gifted with many talented artists...as manifested by their wonderful temples and sculptures that last for centuries! Today, there are still many artisans of this kind around Siem Reap. Take for example the man we found seating at the entrance of Ta Phrom. He is drawing a temple at that time. He is very friendly and let us take pictures of his drawings. He is using different mediums for his work such as pencil, charcoal, crayons, watercolor and even an ordinary baalpen. His drawings depict the ordinary Cambodian life like farmers in the field, children playing and different temple scenes.I would have loved to keep one of his works to bring home but he charges US$30 for each work...a way over my budget. I didn't attempt to bargain with him because I would not like to insult him by asking for discounts for such wonderful work of art.If by chance you see one of these artists,...
La Residence d'Angkor Siem Reap
1 Review and 372 Opinions The hotel is simply splendid. The spa is the ideal manner for relaxing after a long sightseeing of...
Victoria Angkor Resort & Spa Siem Reap
1 Review and 424 Opinions The Victoria Angkor Resort & Spa was our haven during our stay in Cambodia, and it was wonderful!...
The Kool Hotel Siem Reap
1 Review and 514 Opinions Rooms are a quite big size, clean and comfortable. We Stayed at this place for 4 nights. staff are...
Reviews and photos of Khett Siem Reab attractions posted by real travelers and locals. The best tips for Khett Siem Reab sightseeing.
Q: Hello, I'm scheduled to arrive in Siem Reap on November 13 (and leave on November 16, originally to go to BKK, but will have to...
A: My brother who lives in Siem Reap wrote a couple of days ago to say that the flooding has eased in Siem Reap. He runs the Mandalay Inn and had very few guests but he kept...
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