Angkor Wat, Siem Reap (Cambodia) February 11-18, 2020

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With Etihad (unique WiFly on board) via AHU to BKK, then with Bangkok Air to Siem Reap , a seventeen-hour journey. On the plane, I watched the movie "Joker" with a fantastic Joaquin Phoenix, who won the Oscar for Best Actor two days earlier. And rightly so. What a performance. A film that feels like a punch in the gut. The staircase scene where he dances and smokes greedily to Gary Glitter's song "Rock 'n Roll" is in my top five most memorable movie moments of all time.

Upon arrival at the charming, "Buddhist" airport of Siem Reap , I immediately knew this was the right choice. This trip held a lot of promise, and the cost was only slightly higher than, say, a week in Tenerife. So, go for it! I love traveling in the truest sense of the word:

Being on the road. I'm suffering from being away. I'm awaysick . Exploring the world, meeting people, discovering new cultures and history. Searching for stories, mysteries, and wonder. And this trip has the added bonus of an Indiana Jones vibe . Nothing wrong with a simple daily life at home, but sometimes you have to get out. Away with it, Here, I come .

We take a tuk-tuk (€9) to our hotel. At the reception desk, four girls greet us with huge smiles. But then... I said something and saw flashes of panic. Who would handle this? What does he want? Typical. After many awkward exchanges and goodwill, we manage to get out. Nice room, strange hotel instructions: " Don't bring in mangosteens (?) or durians (stench!) ."

We're going to Pub Street for something to eat and drink . You can get shots of tequila and even absinthe here for only €2. And also cocktails (€2.50) or drinks with names like " brain damage", "wet pussy", " orgasm" and " blowjob". I wonder what will happen when you say: I want a wet pussy and a blowjob.

But we're here to eat something. Cambodia is the land of the Khmers . I order a Khmer Style Soup (€4.50): lemongrass, kafir lime leaves, garlic, ginger, galangal, lime, fresh herbs, chili, and spring onions . I'd even pay five times more for this. Succulent!!!! Besides my chili and garlic addiction, I'm also starting to grow one for galangal, kafir, and lemongrass. Another tip: Fried green pepper chicken with rice and fried cashew nuts , a liter of San Pellegrino, and an intense purple dragonfruit shake for €13.50.

Delicious food, but still some questions: fried ice cream roll? And other cute imperfections, like the invention of the egg cup, which apparently hasn't made it here yet, and who the hell puts a keg of sugar at a breakfast egg stand? The straws made from hollowed-out lemongrass stalks are cute, though. Finally, Asia and good coffee: a seemingly impossible combination.

Cambodia is cheap. Hotels, food and drinks, massages, excursion offers... All you need here are small $1 or $5 bills. Our travel visas cost us both €350, partly due to a hefty express price increase. Angkor Wat is practically the largest religious complex in the world, and you'll need days to explore it. A three-day visitor pass costs €62 per person. Rightly so. But suddenly you're seeing European prices.

There are several massage parlors near our hotel . It's nice to hear a giggle from a

massage girl who plays with your feet for an hour (€4.50/hour) until the cackling caress girl starts the real Khmer massage. Squeezing with two fingers. OMG. I swear they could squeeze someone to death with two fingers. Then she giggles and points to my belly: "Baby?" Glancing, whinnying, foot stub. We deal with translation issues, solved with much bowing and giggling.

Massages. I had foot massages, which were wonderful, but also a more intense Khmer body massage (a kind of limited shiatsu with mostly pinching, albeit on a table). Excellent treatment at an average of €7.50/hour. Long live Cambodia! All the girls speak limited English: okay, yes, turn, finish(ed), but they do know all the numbers and the word dollar. Furthermore: thank you. bye bye and they can answer the question: What's your name?

Over Pub Street . In the Red Piano , a corner café owned by Belgians, they play cool music,

There are plenty of terraces and… Duvel (€5), Blue Chimay, Hoegaarden, Fruitesse. My five-week general tour (I started in early January) ends here . They also have vol-au-vent, croque special, and film beef stew, because this was Angelina Jolie 's favorite spot when she filmed the movie Tomb Raider here in 2000. The Tomb Raider Cocktail is touted as her favorite back then. For every tenth sold, you get one free. And every five-hundredth wins €100 cash and… a free T-shirt. Does anyone check that? Commerce exists everywhere.

But this former pub in a century-old colonial building was one of the founding fathers of Pub Street, which quickly evolved into Siem Reap's main food, drink, and nightlife street, full of vibrant street orchestras, dances, and crazy scenes. The exploding heart of the city, full of passionate, genuine ambiance. And it's Valentine's Day week. And did we know it...

Around 2000, "Brangelina" was constantly in the popular media. But she certainly made her mark on the problem of (left-behind) landmines and as a UN ambassador for underprivileged children. "Okon tran" (thank you)!

A special evening. We treat ourselves to a special dinner in the Sky Lounge of

The One by T offers a wonderful view of the ambiance and excesses of Pub Street. A truly out-of-this-world spot . The normally difficult reservation is a breeze. Even better: it's becoming a VIP dining concept, even with an orchestra. My looks and my blah blah blah, I'm afraid. There's only one expression for cocktails and food: to die for . The welcome drink pretends to be healthy, refreshing, and naturally sweetened with a blend of fresh lime and lemon juice, tamarind, and honey. A draft beer costs just €0.50.

Then comes the charming, colorful night market . I buy a hat and a nice pair of shorts, but Nella keeps going, strolling past stalls with handbags, T-shirts, scarves, and local handicrafts ( objects you can "place" somewhere ). Well. For a man, that's okay for a while, but for a determined woman who just keeps going— Ooooh, so cheap! —no! I decide to throw myself into a fish tank. After a delicious dinner, I offer myself as food. To fish. Small ones in large aquariums. Clearly hungry. " You want a break fast ?" I choose the large central tank with the beauties. They immediately attack the dead skin on my feet. Simultaneously. Like wild hyenas. A slightly tickling sensation. The price? Unlimited time including a weak premium beer is €2.70, but what a scrub.

Everywhere we see the familiar plastic high chairs in red, green, or blue, which the residents gratefully use. You do have to accept that your dinner table is on the side of the street, surrounded by mopeds. But, remarkably, everything is clean and tidy. People are constantly sweeping, mopping, and hosing down.

On the other hand, we're amused by amusing observations. " Tuktuk? " is the main greeting here. Ugly: Asians with yellow-blond hair, face masks with Bruce Lee or Lee Cooper on them. A Buddha shrine: the offerings are cold coffee in cups, dry croissants, and a whole stack of counterfeit banknotes. I do approve of the mini bananas and pineapple. Being disabled also turns out to be an advantage when begging. We try to ignore the many beggars. A crumpled man comes to our table. He has a bowl strapped to his stomach, presumably containing some kind of merchandise. To get our attention, he shouts "hello!" loudly, throwing both arms in the air. They turn out to consist of only two stumps from his shoulders down. My question: what do you do then?

A little about the Killing Fields . This 1984 film, with seven Oscar nominations, tells the story

of the terrible period under the Maoist dictator Pol Pot ( what a name !) and the Khmer Rouge . Millions of landmines were planted, and victims are still being claimed. You see it in the streets: many disabled or amputated residents. A painful reminder of that horrific time. A mind-twister .

Thoughts leap. My back feels like a Killing Field , full of pain to be defused. Nanna is ready, small, frail, but that strength between thumb and index finger. I swear again, they can kill. But anyway, she can go on my back . I mean, she does. Go ahead, Nanna. Although. At certain points of pain, I nearly hit the ceiling screaming. So I'm clearly a battlefield to be defused, a killing field . With every cry, groan, scream, grunt, caress, she pushes harder. And then she: Okay? Okay, sir? Wtf. What should I say? Yes? No? Go on? Stooooop? On top of that, I have another little problem. How can you hold back an intrusive fart when you're supposed to be relaxed...

But of course, we're here for the world wonder, Angkor Wat . What is a Wat? What is a Wat? Am I a wat? Essential questions. We're going to answer them here.

From our hotel to Angkor Wat, it's about eight kilometers by tuk-tuk. We first visit the central site in the afternoon and experience the sunset at dusk. Once we cross the moat , I'm overwhelmed by the elaborate, ruin-like buildings, full of twists and details. Overwhelming. It's the largest religious complex in the world (162 hectares), and all around it are other temples and structures, the most remarkable of which are overgrown by the giant roots of impressive trees.

No wonder, it's called the eighth wonder of the world. I feel an energy that speaks through history itself. More than just a destination, it's an experience that reshapes my understanding of time and humanity.

Waking up at four in the middle of the night and tuk-tucking to Angkor Wat in the dark feels rather surreal, but the nightly wait is definitely worth it. As we enter the grounds, we search for a good spot in the pitch black. You sit there, surrounded by the lights of cell phones and locals offering to bring you coffee. A few stalls are set up in a remote corner, and everyone calls out their name, but they're also willing to bring you a paper cup of coffee. And then there it is. The sun. Slowly, the background lights up and the contours of the temple towers become visible, becoming clearer in the changing light until the sun's sphere slowly appears , sliding in. Catching the picture .

Dear reader, I've decided to share only illustrations, photos, and some brief, essential information about Angkor Wat as a whole. Endless descriptions seem pointless to me. I'd rather let the images do the talking. There's so much to see. So much to discover. So much to explore. For three days.

1) The Angkor Wat temple itself. The name means " City that is a Temple ." The design is based on a Hindu form, the mandala . Five towers on three levels in the shape of a lotus bud. It begins with a long approach via a central path, lined with balustrades featuring mythological serpents, flanked on either side by (originally) libraries. The outer wall depicts scenes from the Hindu epic Mahabharata , with warrior figures. The interior walls, in turn, contain reliefs of hundreds of sensual asparas . Asparas were originally water nymphs, but in Indian culture they represent singers and dancers, who provided sensual pleasure. A central staircase leads steeply upwards to the Buddhist shrine. What is remarkable is that Buddhism slowly replaced Hinduism at that time. I can find no explanation for this mysterious religious transition. I am traveling without a guide, but with two travel books in hand. Angkor Wat was the flourishing capital of the Khmer Empire between the 9th and 15th centuries. I find it interesting that this megacity (between 1010 and 1220) represented 0.1% of the world's population.

2) Banteay Kdei . Means Citadel of Chambers , or also Citadel of Monks. It has four entrances and a garoeda (deity, part human, part eagle). In the central gallery, you'll find the Hall of Dancers .

3) The Bayon . Large and important, richly decorated official Khmer state temple (12th century) of a former Hindu king. The central towers are adorned with four mysterious smiling faces . In the Western Gallery, we find a statue of the Hindu god Vishnu with burning incense sticks before it. In the Southern Gallery, beautiful bas-reliefs of everyday scenes attract attention. A visit to the Bayon proves to be a mind-boggling, yet impressive, journey.

4) Ta Prohm . The Tomb Raider setting and in my opinion the most sensational because of the structures of overgrown giant roots, thanks to the French who didn't have the jungle here at the time

kept cutting away. The result: the enormous power and fertility of the jungle. The roots come from the gigantic banyan trees . Their branches produce aerial roots, which, once they reach the ground, create roots and thus new trunks. The main settings in this true maze are the Waterfall Tree created by the strangler fig tree, as well as a dinosaur relief ( probably a stegosaurus ), the Face Tower at the western entrance, reminiscent of the Bayon, the Tomb Raider tree of our Angelina at the central shrine, the

Crocodile tree (another strangler fig) and finally the Hall of the Dancers in sandstone (Bayon style, 12th century) with asparagus bas-reliefs. Essentially, almost philosophically, the insight is repeated that humans eroded nature and dominated it with magnificent buildings, but once, after its decline (15th century), nature took revenge. Jungle revenge. Its growth force overran and, through giant roots, partially pushed aside the spectacular temple structures built by humans.

I want to make a crazy video and have Nella take specific, pre-planned shots. The idea: a video " Tomb Raider 2, Lara Croft revisited ." Instead of starring Bangelina Molly (or Rat Piet), it becomes: starring Uwe William ( Barrel Oak Aged ) Bones. Who'll come up with the would-be puns? The result? This clickable, slightly hilarious video .

5) Angkor Thom with its Elephant Terrace , part of a Royal Palace .

6) Phnom Bakeng . Hindu and Buddhist temple in the shape of a table mountain,

Dedicated to the god Shiva , I visited this temple separately again that evening. It involved climbing a hill and then queuing to be admitted up a steep staircase for a magnificent sunset view of Angkor Wat a little further away. Breathtaking.

7) The fauna and flora . From lush to overwhelming jungle. The "root trees," tamarind trees, beehives, monkeys, and the brown river water where children swim freely and... laundry is done. A wealth of Asian plants. And a people who embrace it.

8) There are more, smaller, other sites I've visited. And dozens more I haven't even visited. Because of too much. But amazing, amazing... Anyone who only visits Angkor Wat (for example, on a two-hour cruise excursion) misses so much.

Unforgettable week. Super impressive sites. Wonderful local experiences.