Cambodia was an extra to the holiday at the planning stage.

Back in 2020 during the throes of lockdown I decided that in 2021 I would travel to Southeast Asia once life had returned to normal. Thailand was the destination – I had friends who’d travelled there and recommended it. As this was such a far flung destination I wanted to add in another country to visit while on the trip – who knows when or if I’d get the opportunity to return. Vietnam was the original choice for my second stop – I could picture myself on a boat sailing down the Mekong River. At the booking stage I realised that time restraints meant that Cambodia would be an easier option to navigate timewise than Vietnam. And in particular Siem Reap – the city renowned for its array of ancient Buddhist and Hindu Temples.

The flight from Bangkok took only an hour. After getting my passport stamped with an entry visa at Bangkok Airport, I went to the Foreign Exchange desk to buy some Cambodian Riel. The riel is a currency that only seems to be recognised by Cambodia’s neighbours on the peninsula. US dollars are the preferred currency, but riel apparently offered lower prices. I bought one hundred dollars worth – almost half a million riel.

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