After our trip to Artisan D'Angkor, there wasn't really much left to do until dinnertime, though shopping at the Night Market was part of our itinerary, there wasn't really much people around during those slightly early hours in the afternoon.
We did do a little shopping, (though I noticed that stuff here were a little more expensive than in Phnom Penh..) but mostly I think the whole place comes alive at well.. night, with all their street lights and all.
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| Bird houses |
For the most part, we spent quite a good couple of hours near the bridge and admired the view. We don't really have this type of serene atmosphere in the public places back home, so it's nice to just take it all in.
Turns out, our quiet moment ended when Mr. Kong decided to take us to more shopping areas!! Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't mind shopping for local goods in a foreign country, but The Fashion Plaza was like the typical high-end department stores we have in the Philippines! (Who even buys a $100 dress???)
It didn't end there though, the next place Mr. Kong took us to was what he called a "family-owned shop", which was actually a jewelry store. So I'm not really a clothes type of girl, but anything that sparkles usually has me taking a second glance (like a moth to a flame, or I prefer a dragon with its hoard). It also didn't help that they have this little video-showing room, wherein they feature where and how they make their goodies. So yeah, you got me, mom actually bought me a pair of my birthstone earrings (ruby), and I think that's a $100 well spent.
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| An advance birthday gift to me, she says... HA! And to think this whole trip was my advance birthday gift to her. |
Finally, Mr. Kong decided it was the perfect time to head to our dinner venue and grab our seats. We still had at least 30 minutes to spare when we got there and surprisingly, we were the only guests who have arrived. So after finding our seats, we took stock of what was being offered at the buffet tables, before taking a little bit of this and that.
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| On the way to dinner... |
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| Leaving room for dessert! (P.S. The colorful ones DON'T taste as good as they look...) |
People started filing in a bit later after that and the performers were now getting ready for the show. Upon closer inspection of the restaurant's brochure, I actually just realized that we would be watching 5 different performances for the night! Some of which have a slightly similar aspect to our own local folk dances in the Philippines.
- Tep Monorom Dance
Or happiness of the gods and goddesses dance, is one of the most popular and beautiful dances in the court repertoire. It has been performed as a dance of blessing to end a performance. The distinctive interweaving floor patterns of the Tep Monorom, as well as the complimentary relationship of male and female, in which the male is always on the female's left reveal the importance of balance in Khmer social interaction. The chorus describes the erotic pursuit of the heavenly maidens by the male celestials as well as their harmonious union.
- Coconut Dance
This popular dance from south-eastern Cambodia is performed at wedding ceremonies. Highly rhymthical and punctuated with shouts and the rapping of coconuts, it expresses joy in life and harmony amongst Cambodians.
Ironically, we also have a similar dance called Maglalatik, which mostly composes an all male group. However, I also find some similarities of the Coconut Dance with our La Jota and Bulaklakan dances, when it comes to expressions of joy and harmony.
- Mekhala Dance
A metaphor for the victory of good and evil. Armed with a crystal ball casting rays of lightning, the goddess of waters, Moni Mekhala, triumphs over the demon Ream Eysaur, whose axe creates thunder. The two characters illustrate the victory of beneficial rains over the dry and stormy season.
- Fishermen's Dance
This rural entertainment dance is a lesson of love and courtesy. It depicts, while exaggerating them, boys' and girls' attitudes to love and courtship. The dance shows a tenacious and mischievous boy courting a shy and earnest young girl.
This is quite similar to our own local Kuratsa Dance.
- Apsaras Ballet
This ballet was performed at offering ceremonies and palace celebrations in the Angkorian Era. The Apsaras, half-women and half-goddesses, are heavenly dancers. Their circular movements are poised motions, the litheness of their gestures symbolize their hovering between the cosmos and earth.
The night ended a little earlier than I expected, though at this point I was already feeling the consequences of having an early start of our day. So despite Mr. Kong enthusiastically (where does he get all that energy???) telling us about Pub Street, we opted to get back at the hotel and call it a day. Maybe next time, we'll come back to Siem Reap just to experience its Night Life but for now, I was quite satisfied with the glimpses of night lights outside our car's window.
Find out next: Our literal Temple Run experience! Checking it off the Bucket List!
