Today is Adele’s birthday, and it’s been a pretty good one so far, I think. She’s currently at a spa down the street from our hotel getting a much-deserved pedicure as I begin writing.

I don’t think I’ve discussed the hotel here in Siem Reap. The Angkor Aurora is a very nice boutique hotel, located on a quiet street, but still close to everything. We’re a short walk from the Night Market, and from Pub Street. The room is large, the king-size bed comfortable, and the air-conditioning more than up to the task. Breakfast is included, and is quite good. They have a happy hour in the lobby from 2-5 pm.

Today we got up at a relatively normal time, feeling rested after an early night. The plan was to visit yet another temple, followed by a visit to Kampong Luong floating village. But Yang decided it might work better if the order was reversed, and I think he was right about that.

We boarded the bus for the hour-and-change drive out to the pier where we would catch the boat for the tour. we had the same local guide, JB, as we had for the tours of Angkor Wat and the Jungle Temple the previous day. He grew up about halfway between the hotel and the pier, and was able to tell us a lot about the area, its history, how people live here, and about the lake and canal we’d be visiting.

As we motored along the canal, he told us how during the rainy season that’s just ending, the water is quite high, and people use canal boats to navigate the villages that line the banks. In the dry season, though, the canals dry up, and the lake they connect to shrinks significantly, both in area and depth. The water recedes inward more than a kilometre, and what was more than seven metres deep becomes no more than one — or about hip-deep. When the water is high, people fish; when it’s low they grow rice and long beans.

There are five Buddhist monasteries along the canal we travelled, and one Catholic Church. We stopped at the largest of the monasteries to tour the grounds before continuing to the lake. JB explained that many children from poorer families become monks to receive free education, food and accommodation. It sounds like a hard life, given the 227 rules they need to follow. However, they can leave the monastic life at any time, and I suspect many do.

Returning to the boat, we made our way to Tonlé Sap, one of the largest freshwater lakes in Southeast Asia, fed mainly by the Mekong River, before turning ourselves around and heading back past the mangroves and floating houses, the fishing boats and stilt houses, to the pier and our bus.

We decided lunch would be a good idea before heading to the temple du jour, and we stopped at a nice restaurant located in JB’s hometown. The food was good, and the setting was beautiful, open air but covered, with ceiling fans to keep us comfortable. Afterwards, Adele decided she wasn’t really up for another walking tour of a large temple, especially in the heat of the day, so we got dropped off at the hotel early, and found a nearby spa for Adele.

We met up with the group again for one last dinner together. There are several of us flying to Bangkok tomorrow afternoon, but several others are dispersing to Danang, or to Singapore, or elsewhere in Asia.

We went to quite a nice restaurant near Pub Street, and over the course of the meal talked about where we’d been together, where we were going next, and what waited for us at home. We drank cocktails and ate decadent, yet inexpensive food. Yang even arranged for a birthday cake for Adele.

A half dozen or so of us went with Yang to a rooftop karaoke bar. More drinks, games of Jenga, and at Yang’s request, some karaoke (although I was the only one who sang anything).

Now it’s time to sleep. Tomorrow will come soon, and with it a farewell to Siem Reap and Cambodia, a beautiful city and country we won’t soon forget.