Get me excited about Cambodia!!

I love Kampot - relaxing at the riverside, hanging round with the locals, a cold angkor beer with a stunning mountain view
I love the temples - most amazing stuff I ever saw
I love the people, they're open, great fun and really loveable
I love so many things about Cambodia I can't wait to go back next week for my 8th visit

can't really think of much I dislike ... well sometimes its just too hot for my tastes ...and its way too far away from Germany. ;-))

LOVE:

Angkor Wat - the most spectacular sight...it took our breath away
Battambang - a tour around the villages is great fun in a tuk tuk, the locals are so friendly and the best banana shakes and nutella baguettes in the world at the White Rose restaurant
Phnom Penh - the strangest capital city ever, more like a capital town but nice to wander around. Must sees are the Killing Fields, S21 prison and the Russian market.
Sihanoukville - Serendipity beach, very laid back and free beach beds! 50c draft beer
Food - the curries, the fruit shakes, the baguettes and omelettes are fantastic as well as the Angkor beer!

HATE:
The moto drivers - they are utter b*stards and will rip anyone off if they get half a chance and are very aggressive.

Otherwise Cambodia is a great country, full of friendly people who are always willing to help and talk to you!

Enjoy your time in Cambodia...we're going back in the new year for our 3rd visit!

3 things I like:

- The nightlife
- Cheap cigarettes, alcohol, food, drugs etc.
- picking out a big fat mud crab at sihanoukville markets then having it cooked at another stall and heading to the beach to relax in a beach chair with my mudcrab on my lap (and some prawns if I'm really hungry) and a beer beside me while I watch the sunset with some music going in the background and a hot woman by my side - life doesn't get any better.

Things I hate:

- the corruption (but I also love the corruption)
- motodopes

Hi Zazzle-
I, too, live in Japan and am from the USA and spent a little over a week in Cambodia the year before last- Siem Reap exploring the temples and after that Phnom Penh. I adored the people, and was amazed at the sights of Angkor, and the cool historical (and sometimes shocking ) sights of Phnom Penh and the great food and fun markets. Take a spare moment of your time to help out at a school or orphanage if you can. I'm going back to Phnom Penh again (+ down south) in December. You will love it!

Cambodia is not dicey. A bit adenturous, yes, but for the average tourist, no more 'dicey' than any of the surrounding countries. The Khmers are a warm, welcoming, friendly people, Phnom Penh has a great party scene and Sihanoukville does OK too, the countryside can be National Geographic beautiful, fruit of every variety is plentiful and cheap, the women are beautiful rivaled only by their immediate neighbors, provincial towns like Battambang and Kampot are particularly quaint and friendly, most of the provinces really are 'unspoiled' and waiting to be 'discovered,' just in passing you'll see some of the strangest stuff whether fried spiders on a stick or a hundred live chickens strapped to the back of a motorcycle, it's always something, and of course, the temples. I'm sure you've seen photos and heard stories. Anything said would be an understatement. Dislikes...can't say the food's all that great. The best food in Cambodia is Chinese, Thai and French IMO. Traffic and transportation safety is abysmal. Yes, the motodups can be a pain in the ass but get a good one and stick with him and you'll be fine. The most popular temples are over-touristed, but fortunately there are still plenty of other temples that aren't.

i love: the people, generous, positive, accommodating, gracious
i hate: siem reap, overpriced (accept for the optician who fixed my husbands glasses for free: see "i love"), tourist trap but angkor is worth it

loved: angkor wat, angkor beer, the people, hmmm... too many things to write them down.
hated: that i didnt have more time in cambodia

oh just one thing beaches are not that spectacular in cambodia (compared to thailand or vietnam). so go for some other stuff

Cambodia is not any more dicey than any where else in SE Asia. And SE Asia is not dicey in my book, Latin America capitols, hats dicey, you must take a taxi...not so in SE Asia.

Angkor Wat is great, and the countries rich culture, and great people.

Enjoy!