What is it about Siem Reap ...

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Anchor Moy
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What is it about Siem Reap ...

Post by Anchor Moy »

...that you love or hate ?
Often wondered why people choose to live there. And most Siem Reap expats seem quite content with the lifestyle. I say "seem" because I don't actually know anyone who lives there, but that's the feeling I've picked from SR posters. I sort of imagine it to be a bit like Kampot, but bigger. (Sorry, sorry :dragonchase: I mean this in the sense that the urban centre is small, so countryside is close-by, but there are lots of expat facilities in proportion to the size of the town. )

I've only been there as a tourist to visit the temples, but I quite understand that there is a life in SR apart from the temples and Pub St. I just found the endless begging and selling quite hard going compared to the rest of Cambodia, and don't all those tourists get to be annoying ?

So what's SR got that makes it an agreeable place to live despite all that ? And what sucks, apart from the touts and the tourists ? :popcorn:
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Jerry Atrick
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Re: What is it about Siem Reap ...

Post by Jerry Atrick »

I like breakfast at Rosy Guesthouse.

Erm, that's it.
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Sidewalker
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Re: What is it about Siem Reap ...

Post by Sidewalker »

Quote:''I mean this in the sense that the urban center is small, so countryside is close-by, but there are lots of expat facilities in proportion to the size of the town."
That's exactly the reason why I live in Siem Reap. I live about 5 minutes from town center, but my house is in the countryside.
Last edited by Sidewalker on Sun Nov 08, 2015 1:54 pm, edited 1 time in total.
There are people who cannot imagine that there are other ways of life than their own life. :facepalm:
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ExPenhMan
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Re: What is it about Siem Reap ...

Post by ExPenhMan »

Am watching this thread.

I've been considering moving there from Thailand because I like small. Yet, from what I've read, it offers a great abundance and variety of food, wide selection of bars and foreigner-focused services. (I don't mean massage shops etc.) And it seems accommodation is a bit cheaper there than in Phnom Penh.

I really took to the place when I visited it in the spring, my first visit there in 10 years.
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Re: What is it about Siem Reap ...

Post by Kampong Spooner »

I haven't been for a few years, since I moved south, but used to be a regular visitor as it was the closest place for kfc and english speaking hookers to battambang.
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TheGrinchSR
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Re: What is it about Siem Reap ...

Post by TheGrinchSR »

It's only tourists who see "relentless selling and touts". The town is a small place... the locals quickly come to know that you're local and none of them bother you. None of the SR expat crowd spends any real time on Pub Street either... that's where the tourists go. It's a city with tons of great places to eat, pubs to hang out in and interesting people to meet but it takes more than a fleeting visit to work any of that out. Which is good, it keeps the riff-raff in Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville where they belong. ;-)
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Re: What is it about Siem Reap ...

Post by Jamie_Lambo »

TheGrinchSR wrote:It's only tourists who see "relentless selling and touts". The town is a small place... the locals quickly come to know that you're local and none of them bother you. None of the SR expat crowd spends any real time on Pub Street either... that's where the tourists go. It's a city with tons of great places to eat, pubs to hang out in and interesting people to meet but it takes more than a fleeting visit to work any of that out. Which is good, it keeps the riff-raff in Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville where they belong. ;-)
i lived in SR when i first came to cambodia, its where i met my ex gf of 8months, i loved it there at the time, great restaurants and some nice chill out spots, spent most of 2013 living there, when me and the bird split i moved back to Thailand where i settled in Hua Hin, when i returned in Feb 2014 the place seemed to had lost a lot of sparkle that i used to like about it, bars i used to enjoy drinking in were dull and empty, being a single guy i was constantly pestered and followed by motos demanding they can get me "ladyboomboom", the whole 5 days i was there was really disappointing as i used to love that city, since then i think ive only spent 2 more nights there passing through, its good in the sense that theres not much temptation to go out there

i am planning on re-visiting at some point early next year as i fancy visiting Angkor Wat again and exploring some of the surrounding countryside
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Re: What is it about Siem Reap ...

Post by bkktrapper »

TheGrinchSR wrote:It's only tourists who see "relentless selling and touts". The town is a small place... the locals quickly come to know that you're local and none of them bother you. None of the SR expat crowd spends any real time on Pub Street either... that's where the tourists go. It's a city with tons of great places to eat, pubs to hang out in and interesting people to meet but it takes more than a fleeting visit to work any of that out. Which is good, it keeps the riff-raff in Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville where they belong. ;-)
Big expat hierarchy in SR , They are cool after a month maybe to keep asshole backpackers out of the circle i guess.
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prahkeitouj
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Re: What is it about Siem Reap ...

Post by prahkeitouj »

I visited Siem Reap many times. I spent more than 100$ for only two days and one night in SHV but in Siem Reap I could stay 5 days and 4 nights. What I like the best of Siem Reap is sightseeing the temples by cycling. I can buy the foods from market and park motor to have dinner on the sidewalk, nice fresh air at night. Then ride the motor around the temples, feel like I lived in ancient time. I feel safe to use my hand bag, go out at night to eat, drink etc.
កុំស្លាប់ដូចពស់ កុំរស់ដូចកង្កែប
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Digg3r
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Re: What is it about Siem Reap ...

Post by Digg3r »

I like siem reap for a few days. Too touristy to want to live there but obviously it has some amazing sites and pub street is just Damn good value.
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