Phokeethra Country Club, Siem Reap, CAMBODIA

Day 4 (January 21, 2006)

It was time to check out the other golf course in Siem Reap. Phokeetra is the home of Johny Walker’s Cambodian Open. We were truly impressed by Angkor Golf Resort, we had high expectation of Phokeethra.

Zack blazing the trail...

The course is located a little bit out of town. On arrival, looking at the huge clubhouse in the middle of nowhere told us that this was another good international class golf course. The course is managed by the Sofitel hotel group. This 7,145 yard, par-72 course was designed by the Bangkok based Designer Golf Company. Its signature hole is the double- water carry 18th island hole. Between the 9th green and 10th tee, there is a restored Roluh Bridge, which dated back to the 11th century Khmer Empire.

11th century Roluh Bridge. The Clubhouse is in the background

Zack and I started from the 10th tee box as the first was a bit congested. We had the back nine all to ourselves. We wanted to walk but Club regulation makes golf carts compulsory. Each golfer must take one cart and one caddy. All in, the discounted green fees given by Allan at USD93, now swelled to USD130. Pricey!

1st Hole

I was hitting solid golf shots right from the start. The fairways were not as good as Angkor Golf Resort but the greens were championship class. I registered my best game ever, with 8 pars and 1 birdie. The score was still disappointing given a few triples and double that gave a gross 90. I was so happy for the overall game. It broke my long-standing record of 7 pars in a game in Surabaya.

Green on the 9th Hole


Young coconut trees fringing the fairways

When we finished the first nine, a waitress was waiting with 2 glasses of iced tea for us. I was impressed. After we finished the 18 holes, the same waitress was holding a tray with 2 glasses of cold water. I was really impressed with the service. A true Cambodian hospitality! We were beginning to get our money’s worth.

First Class Service. Chauffeur driven with Maid-in-attendance.

This guy sticks to me all the way to the clubhouse

Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, CAMBODIA

Day 3 (January 20, 2009)

We were looking for places to visit other than Angkor Wat. The silk farm, located in the Puok District about 16km from town seemed a good bet. I had never been to a silk farm before. The farm, a complete silk processing cottage industry offers a free tour.

Bizarre Food. Zack tasting boiled silk worms. I did not have the courage.

Spinning silk yarn

Delicate Works

We were taken from the beginning of rearing silk worm to the final stages of ‘tie & dye” and finished products. We also learned how some silk products are smooth and some are not. It was pure hard work that needs full attention. The tools used were basic.

Color worn by Khmer Royalty. Each colour for each particular day starting from Monday on the left.

Somehow, I am not much of a silk fan.

We decided to make our way to Siem Reap’s feature attraction, the Angkor Wat. We had to pay USD20 for the daily entrance ticket.

The Entrance across the moat

View from inside the temple

Typical corridor inside the temple

Writings on the wall

The first time I saw Angkor Wat I was in awe. It is one of the top on my 1001 things to do/see before I die. I was pretty much excited as we walked over the bridge across the moat. It was almost mid day and the sun was really at its peak. There were many tourists, mostly westerners, walking around the Wat.

Story of Hindu God Vishnu on the wall


From inside the Wat

Angkor's many walls

Brief Respite from the Heat

We walked into the main entrance and followed the path straight to the front. The walls were covered with aspara carvings in Angkorian era art, nearly 2000 of them. They depict stories of characters from Hindu mythology and the historical wars of Suryavarman II. I also learned that Angkor Wat was initially built for Hindu deities and later changed to Buddhism motifs. Buddha statues lined the paths but some were in bad shape. Some parts of the temple were in ruins and some were restored. The restoration works were still going on but grinding slowly obviously in need of further financing.

Majestic!

Awesome!

The best time to visit Angkor Wat is during the sunrise. The sun will rise behind Angkor Wat providing a silhouette of Angkor towers against the sky. However we were there during the mid day sun. The sunset, I was told, would be equally fascinating. Unfortunately we did not come back for it despite holding the daily pass.

The ruins of Buddha. Headless & Handless.

As we were making our way back to the car, we detoured to the stalls on the right side where people were peddling souvenirs and food and drinks. It was the same old stuffs. Some kids were trying to get me to buy books on Angkor by telling some pitiful stories of dire need for money to go to school. I bought 2 books.

Been There!

We left Angkor Wat hoping to come back for the sunset. We never did.

Angkor Golf Resort, Siem Reap, CAMBODIA

Day 2 (January 19, 2009)

The Clubhouse

We decided to check out Siem Reap’s 2 golf courses starting with Angkor Golf Resort . The tourist brochure claimed “Spoiled for choice is one of the first thoughts that come to mind when it comes to the long –haul golfing traveler”. With 2 courses, there was not much to be spoilt for choice. After finishing our rounds, we absolutely agreed that this is a must play course for any person who calls him/her self a golfer. However, the steep fees of about USD130 per person could be a discouraging factor.

One of, if not the best golf course in South East Asia

I have not played on a more beautiful course...

The fairways were just like carpets

Angkor Golf Resort is off the National Road 6, the airport road. From there we drove on a dirt road to the entrance of the golf club. From the guard house, we were transferred to a waiting van to the club house. We were really taken aback by the hospitality of the staffs, the course design, and the superb maintenance of the course. In my years of playing around the region, no course matched the level of maintenance of Angkor Golf Resort. The fairways were pristinely kept carpet-like. The many bunkers that dot the golf course were well raked and ready for play. Even the edge of the fairways bordering the cart path was well-manicured. I have never been more impressed. I noticed there was an army of workers keeping the course in par excellent conditions. That explains the exorbitant fees.

The course is filled with bunkers. This huge one is the mother of all bunkers.

Nick Faldo left his signature

Constructed on former rice fields, this Nick Faldo designed course is the investment of an Indonesian casino tycoon, Holic Tandijono. It measures 6666 yards from blue tees (7279 black). It definitely has character, notably the many bunkers en route to the greens and waters flanking the fairways.

I had a good start in the first nine registering boogie-averaged score. Instead of taking a cart, we chose to walk. I was too busy taking snapshots of the course. For the first time, I took picture of every hole on the course. It was too beautiful not to do so. My only regret was that I did not bring a voice recorder to record “live” coverage of one of, if not the most beautiful course that I played.

The palm trees unique to the area fringing the fairways

To me, I had never expected Siem Reap to have an international class golf course unsurpassed by most other courses in South East Asia. This is one course I would strongly recommend for others to at least experience once in their golfing life. If not for the fees, Siem Reap would be a popular golfing destination.

Zack & I, another course to remember

Psar Chas (The Old Market)

This was definitely Siem Reap’s busiest market located in the busiest tourist spot in town. It is open from dawn to dusk. It sells the same old stuffs that you can find in any other market. Silks, the ubiquitous karma (chequered scarf) in different colors, Buddha statues, T-shirts and other souvenir items are very much on sale here. Real hard bargain is a must. I bought a leather sandal that I bargained from USD12 down to USD7. I am not good when it comes to bargaining!
I got a couple more jade horse pendants. Then we were out of the place.

Siem Reap, CAMBODIA

Day 1 (January 18, 2009)

Flying High Above Cambodia

We reached Siem Reap airport around 8 am. The temperature was like that of an air-conditioned room. Cool and pleasant. John, our driver was already waiting for us. We did not know that our hotel, Radius Angkor Star had arranged for pick up. It was a pleasant surprise.

Our Hotel

We came to know our hotel through someone from the embassy who introduced us to the General Manager, Allan Wee. He was there waiting for us. Allan was instrumental in making our stay in Siem Reap memorable. He came from Kepong and spent most of his time running hotels around South East Asia. The hotel is a mid-range deluxe hotel located on Sivatha Street, away from the touristy area near the Old Market. It was most convenient for our purposes. The foods served were halal. The rooms were clean and the prices were reasonable. Allan even arranged for our transport, a Toyota Camry to ferry us around during our stay.

Life Around Tonle Sap

Since it was still early, we decided to visit the floating village at the Tonle Sap Lake. We drove to Chong Khneas, about 15km from Seam Reap passing through villages and paddy fields. Chong Khneas is the floating village located at the edge of the lake closest and most accessible to Siem Reap. It is also where tourist boats dock. We boarded a boat arranged by John, manned by kids for a tour of Tonle Sap Lake and floating village. We rode past floating houses, schools, police station, and even a floating basketball court. There was also a mini floating pig farm where pigs were raised and kept.

Floating House

Floating Kitchen

Floating Basketball Court

From the look of the place I came to conclude that the people were really living with the barest of basic necessities. Their houses were makeshift huts. Water supply came from the murky Tonle Sap Lake. Kitchens were using fire woods which are rarities in most parts in Malaysia. Stacks of woods were left to dry on the rooftops.

To preserve or to conserve?

We stopped at a place, a floating crocodile and fish farm with a souvenir and snack shop. We had a drink before making our way back to the jetty. Somehow I believe taking a boat ride just before the sunset would be a better proposition.

On the way back to our hotel, we stopped at the only Malaysian Restaurant called d’ Wau. The foods were just average. We had “amok” cooked inside young coconut and beef “loklak”.

d'Wau, the only Malaysian Restaurant in Siem Reap

In the evening we toured the Center Market (Psar Kandal). It is located on Sivatha Street opposite Hotel de la Paix. It is exclusively geared for tourists where the only local folks were the stallholders. It sells souvenirs, silks, jewelleries, locally produced handicrafts, Buddha figures and so forth. I bought a jade horse pendant to boost my luck at the mini casino later.

We spent most of our nights at Sokha Angkor Resort casino. It is a walking distance from Angkor Star Hotel. During the day time, we alternated between Sokha and Prince d’Angkor. Once, Allen took us to Soho Club near the old market. The owner came from Penang. We feel that Sokha was the best among the 7 or 8 mini casinos in Seam Reap. The bets started from US 20 cents.