Siem Reap, Cambodia - Acres of Temples and other stuff...
Wow, there sure are lots of ancient ruins in Siem Reap - John and I have been spent the last three days visiting them.
Angkor Wat, the most well-known and hyped of the ruins, was a bit of a disappointment for me. I guess I had just heard too much about it from others and had built it up in my mind to a point where it couldn't live up to my expectations. I did get some great photos of it at sunrise.
Some of the other ruins were more interesting. Especially the ones that had been partially taken over by the jungle. For detailed descriptions of them, please check John's blog. I'm going to divert a bit here...
We drove outside of Siem Reap to a stream in the countryside that has carvings hewn in the rocks in the streambed to bless the water that flow over them. It was a long, slow trip over a very bumpy dirt road, but we got to see a lot more of the Cambodian country life.
People along the way were doing all the things we human beings do, working, eating, buying things, selling things, playing and resting. I wonder about, "What are the differences in quality of life between living as a person in a "1st" world nation, like the USA, versus a "3rd" world nation like Cambodia?"
In terms of hardship, I think there are two major ones. These people have to work a lot harder than we do. In the cities people often work seven days a week. In the countryside it may be less hours, but much harder work. I didn't even want to try working in a rice field. It looks very hot and backbreaking.
The second major issue is the level of medical care available to them is very limited. If they are healthy and don't sustain any major injuries or illnesses, their life will be infinitely easier than if they contract a serious disease or are injured.
In terms of happiness, I don't know. I think in all of the "2nd" - "3rd" world countries I've visited, family and community has been very important to them, often their sole means of survival. There are many places where there is one significant income earner in a family to support 5 to 10 or more family members and relatives.
I think the effect of this is that I don't think that most of them are as lonely as many people are in the USA. I think they feel they are part of a family and part of a community. Despite there being families in America as well, of course, I think there is a lot of lonliness and alienation within them.
I will seek to explore these issues more as I continue my journey.
Wow, there sure are lots of ancient ruins in Siem Reap - John and I have been spent the last three days visiting them.
Angkor Wat, the most well-known and hyped of the ruins, was a bit of a disappointment for me. I guess I had just heard too much about it from others and had built it up in my mind to a point where it couldn't live up to my expectations. I did get some great photos of it at sunrise.
Some of the other ruins were more interesting. Especially the ones that had been partially taken over by the jungle. For detailed descriptions of them, please check John's blog. I'm going to divert a bit here...
We drove outside of Siem Reap to a stream in the countryside that has carvings hewn in the rocks in the streambed to bless the water that flow over them. It was a long, slow trip over a very bumpy dirt road, but we got to see a lot more of the Cambodian country life.
People along the way were doing all the things we human beings do, working, eating, buying things, selling things, playing and resting. I wonder about, "What are the differences in quality of life between living as a person in a "1st" world nation, like the USA, versus a "3rd" world nation like Cambodia?"
In terms of hardship, I think there are two major ones. These people have to work a lot harder than we do. In the cities people often work seven days a week. In the countryside it may be less hours, but much harder work. I didn't even want to try working in a rice field. It looks very hot and backbreaking.
The second major issue is the level of medical care available to them is very limited. If they are healthy and don't sustain any major injuries or illnesses, their life will be infinitely easier than if they contract a serious disease or are injured.
In terms of happiness, I don't know. I think in all of the "2nd" - "3rd" world countries I've visited, family and community has been very important to them, often their sole means of survival. There are many places where there is one significant income earner in a family to support 5 to 10 or more family members and relatives.
I think the effect of this is that I don't think that most of them are as lonely as many people are in the USA. I think they feel they are part of a family and part of a community. Despite there being families in America as well, of course, I think there is a lot of lonliness and alienation within them.
I will seek to explore these issues more as I continue my journey.
posted by Chris at 10:49 AM
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