Journeying to a Parallel Utopian Universe: Song Saa, Cambodia

After I blogged about the first leg of my Cambodian adventures in Siem Reap last week, I thought I'd dish up part two today, as it's Monday morning and we all need a start of the week pick-me-up. 

I left off last time with me aboard a little plane skimming through the clouds, heading towards the second part of my trip - some hardcore beaching. Siem Reap was an incredible blast of culture - four days starting with pre-sunrise wake-up calls and ending with late night cocktails with plenty of clambering through crumbling temples Lara Croft style in between. An amazing start to the trip but one which had left me in desperate need of a little R&R. And what better place to swim, sun and sip cocktails than a beautiful resort on a private island in the middle of the Gulf of Thailand.

We used boutique travel company, Lightfoot Travel, to book the trip and had told  them that we wanted somewhere completely indulgent where we could totally unwind. But even in our wildest dreams, we hadn't imagined Song Saa...

After we touched down at Sihanoukville, we zipped through the airport, hopped into a car and barrelled towards the port where our carriage to Song Saa - a little white speedboat - lay waiting. Forty minutes later, we were stepping off the boat onto a wooden jetty that snaked towards a little shady spot complete with tree trunk stools and a cast of smiling staff bearing trays of delicious green juice. 

As we slurped down our juices, we were casually informed that we should set our watches forward one hour to Song Saa time. Yup, that's right, Song Saa has it's own timezone, created so that you get an extra hour to soak up the sun. It was about this point that we realised we'd landed in a parallel Utopian universe.

Clocks duly reset, it was time to skip along the talcum powder beach towards our home for the next few days - a stilted wooden hut hovering over the glittering, turquoise water. We had high hopes that the wooden doors would swing open to reveal a little slice of heaven, but nothing could prepare us for quite how incredibly awesome the room would be. From the beautiful lantern-lit bathroom...

... featuring a bath with the ultimate view...

... and not one, not two, but three showers, two of which were outdoor and overwater with pretty great views too... 

... each stocked with an array of Aesop goodies and a pair of cloud-soft dressing gowns (which in case you're interested in snuggling up in one yourself, are Ploh Plush robes - get one on your Christmas list pronto).

And we haven't even got to the bedroom yet, a huge rustic-luxe room wrapped around an enormous four-poster bed.

This is the sort of bed you'd never leave if it wasn't for the fact that the first thing you see when you open your eyes in the morning is a vast expanse of blues that has you hopping out of bed faster than you can say "morning dip".

Beyond the hyper-luxe bathroom and bed, the room is packed with thoughtful, quirky features - furniture made from upcycled fishing boats, a killer stereo system and an iPod loaded with music, local art and most excitingly of all, what looks like a huge leather trunk, that opens up transformer-style to reveal an enormous fully-stocked minibar fridge complete with a whole host of freshly-made scrumptious snacks.

All food and drink is included in the price at Song Saa, so with no fear of a runaway minibar bill, we popped the cork on a bottle of Prosecco and wandered outside to explore the deck. 

Squealing over our beautiful infinity pool, we scrambled down a poolside flight of steps and dove straight into that mouthwash-blue sea.

Splashing around with the fish is thirsty work, so after a couple of laps, there was nothing for it but a little post-swim rehydration and a dose of fashion nourishment...

And this spot is picture perfect spot is pretty much where I stayed, sipping on Prosecco and nibbling on sashimi until the sun slunk below the horizon.

Which meant that it was time to jump into a bath-salt laced, candlelit bath with a gin & tonic in hand, to soak away the seasalt and suncream and get ready for the evening ahead.

During the day, a scroll had mysteriously appeared tucked under the door handle of our room. On unfurling it, we discovered an invitation to dinner at the Driftwood Bar together with a mouthwatering preview of the six-course Thai menu that would be served up there that evening. Each night we'd be invited to a new location around the island from one of the resorts' two restaurants to a table for two on the beach and even, on our last night, a table by our very own pool. The ever-changing dining locations were matched by a myriad array of menus from local Khmer cuisine to wood-fired pizzas (which if we'd closed our eyes, we'd have sworn were made in Naples, not a teeny tiny Cambodian island).

Talking of food, I should probably mention the breakfasts. A decadant affair comprised of pretty much anything and everything you could ever dream of. We generally kept it low key and stuck with a modest breakfast banquet of coffees and juices, fruit and eggs, pancakes and a casual heap of passionfruit french toast.  

I think my face says it all....

The next few days drifted by in a blur of sumptuous meals, Prosecco-soaked sunbaking and snoozy afternoons stretched out on a pair of sun loungers that magically appeared on our deck minutes after we called reception to request them.

When we weren't lying supine devouring great reads on our Kindles, we were off exploring our teeny, tiny island home... 

...stumbling upon new places to eat more food and drink a couple more cocktails...

... hanging out at the big pool... 

...getting zen at the spa...

... and cramming in a little water-based activity here and there in a bid to work off all that french toast...

We were staying slap bang in the middle of rainy season, which meant a couple of storms that cracked and thundered like they'd been created by an Oscar-winning special effects team, but that just created the perfect opportunity for a picture in the pool with one of the rather photogenic Song Saa umbrellas...

And maybe best of all, after a storm, you're pretty much guaranteed a phenomenal back-drop for your sundowners...

Sitting on a driftwood swing, watching the burning ball of Cambodian sun sink below the inky hills on our final night was the most perfect end to four days in paradise. 

The next day, the island shrunk to a minuscule dot as we zipped back to reality on the speedboat and wound our watches away from Song Saa time. I'd have definitely dissolved into a puddle of tears if it hadn't been for the fact that we had one final stop on our Cambodia itinerary - a night in Phnom Penh. And, I'll be back with that final instalment of our Khmer adventures next time I need a little wanderlust to brighten up my week (which I imagine won't be very long at all).

Siem Reap: Tales of Temple Hopping, Quad Biking & Boating in Cambodia

Last weekend the cooler weather suddenly set in here in Hong Kong. In the mere swish of a russet leaf, we've gone from breezing around the city in flip flops and maxi dresses to wrapping-up in jeans and cashmere jumpers. After months and months of stifling, hair-frizzing humidity, I'm delighted!

As an added bonus, the mercury dipping, gave me the perfect excuse for a snuggly Sunday night on the sofa and the chance to clear a huge backlog of photo sorting and editing. Which in turn means that I've finally whittled down the zillion snaps I took during my August trip to Cambodia to a much more manageable fistful. So, I thought I'd share the highlights of my trip starting with part one - four nights in Siem Reap. 

Ever since I moved to Asia six years ago, I've been desperate to go to Cambodia but somehow there's always been a reason to visit somewhere else. No direct flights, not in the mood for anything more taxing than a beach break, not enough time to do it justice, wrong time of year etc, etc, etc. Finally, back in July, I handed in my notice at my last job and pretty much simultaneously booked a trip to zip off to Cambodia for the ten days before I started my new role.  

Having spent the previous nine months in a whirlwind of interviews and non-stop work, I decided to take the lazy route and hand the trip planning over to my good friend and travel expert extraordinaire, Lucy Jackson at Lightfoot Travel. Best decision ever! Within hours of me emailing, Lucy had my flights on hold, had pulled together my itinerary and had whittled down my hotel options to just a couple of luxe boutique hotels at each of our Cambodian ports of call. A few clicks later and I was indulging in some serious swooning over hotel websites desperately umming and ahhing over which to choose (it's a tough life). Luckily Lucy had personally stayed at all the hotels that she'd recommended and given that she has impeccable taste, I was happy to let her steer me in the direction of the properties she thought I'd like best. Complete five star service and a distinct possibility that I can now never go back to trawling whingy TripAdvisor reviews for hours on end searching for a half-decent hotel to book - Lucy, you've ruined me for life! 

Cut to a month later, the handover note has been handed over, the contents of my desk have been packed-up into a cardboard box and I'm heavy headed with a killer leaving party hangover. I'm also just touching down at Siem Reap airport though, so all's not lost. Within moments all the stresses and strains of the last few weeks at work are gone and I'm chomping at the bit to get out temple hopping and sun soaking. Lightfoot have arranged for our guide, Suron, who'll be with us for the next few days, to pick us up from the airport. Suron bundles us into a blissfully cool four by four and regales us with stories about his country and plans for our stay as we zoom towards our Siem Reap hotel - The Heritage Suites.

As we pull into the driveway a gaggle of girls tumble out of two rickshaws ahead of us. They shimmy past a couple of vintage Mercedes parked beneath the hotel's colonial white archways and throw open the shuttered front doors of reception ushering a toot of trumpets and a clink of glasses out across the courtyard. We look at each other a little unsure if we've come to the right place, but it certainly looks like the photographs. Tottering across the gravel towing our suitcases behind us with a little trepidation, the jazz grows louder and the laughing more raucous. We pull back the doors ourselves to a roar of people and music and are greeted by the grinning panama-topped head of the hotel's manager. We soon discover that the hotel hasn't been overrun by hedonistic burglars. In fact, it's Thursday evening, which means the hotel lobby is transformed into Siem Reap's only live jazz venue where the city's beautiful people flock and a bevy of barmen shake up the very best mojitos you'll slurp outside of Havana. 

What better way to kick off our trip than with a party and several seriously strong rum cocktails? We decide that there's not a moment to waste and hurriedly wind our way past the glowing turquoise rectangle of the pool and through the jungly gardens in search of our room. And what a room!

Bigger than our flat at home, our palatial room is divided into a separate living and bedroom area with an open bathroom kitted out with a freestanding half-egg shaped bath, a wet room and a steam cabinet. Sliding doors from the living area open out onto a sweet little terrace boasting a plunge pool made for sunset gin & tonics. We hastily hang our clothes in the walk-in wardrobe and duck under the shower and pull on our evening outfits ready to head out into the night for mojitos, a scrumptious French feed and ultimately a bucket or two in the aptly named 'Angkor What?'

Which all lead to missed alarms, oversleeping and no possibility of anything more adventurous than a morning flopping by the pool with our books. But when it looks like this, that's hardly a hardship...

As midday strikes, we hit the poolside terrace for a hangover-busting feast of a lunch and a heated debate about how to spend the rest of the day. As the sky grows grey and gloomy, we agree that rain looks imminent (but that's hardly surprising as August is rainy season and it's a welcome break from the crushing heat). We figure what we really need is an afternoon that's guaranteed to blow the cobwebs away. Hello, quad biking across the Cambodian countryside!

We were right about the rain. A few hours later we return to the hotel after an awesome afternoon zooming around the paddy fields soaked to the bone and completely exhausted - nothing that a hot bath with a strong gin & tonic can't sort out. But, knowing that the next day will be packed with templing and that our alarms are set for pre-sunrise, we retire to bed early after a quiet dinner and dream of kermit-green fields ploughed by bodybuilder-big oxen.

What seems like minutes later, we're ripped out of sleep by our bleeping mobile phones. We grumpily drag our clothes on and grab our cameras before shuffling out of the room like zombies. Our bad moods dissipate though when we arrive in reception to find Suron wide awake and smiling ready to whisk us off to sunrise at Siem Reap's most famous landmark and the largest religious landmark in the world - Angkor Wat. 

A morning's wander around the sprawling complex later and Suron ferries us back to the hotel for a breakfast pig-out and a snooze in the sun by the pool to compensate for the pre-dawn wake-up call. Once we're suitably rejuvenated, Suron's back to whisk us off for a Khmer lunch followed by an afternoon jam-packed with temples. From the crumbling, overgrown Ta Prohm (where tombraider was filmed)...

...to the temple of smiling faces - Bayon...

... through to a serene evening cruise along the temple moat.

Arriving back at the hotel ready to drop, we have just enough energy to wander round the corner from the hotel for Khmer tapas and a couple of glasses of wine before falling into bed and a deep, deep sleep.

The next morning we pick up where we'd left off the evening before - in a boat. This time Suron collects us at a more sociable hour and we drive for a couple of hours through country villages up to Tonle Sap Lake - the largest freshwater lake in South East Asia. As we putter along in a long boat, we watch the fishermen emerge from their stilted houses, hop aboard their boats and head out to bring in the day's catch.

Next stop, the crumbling hidden jungle temple of Being Mealea where we clamber over huge piles of ancient stones left to run wild away from the madding crowds of tourists that swarm around Angkor Wat and co.

Quick pitstop back at the hotel for a dip in the pool and a change of clothes and then we're off again for one last afternoon of exploring (this time solo armed with just a couple of rain macs, a camera and a sweet tuk tuk driver with no idea what we we're talking about - queue lots of miming and pointing).

Completely templed out, and having been conned out of a fistful of US Dollars by a 'policeman' at the final temple, we speed back to the Heritage Suites for one last night in Siem Reap before heading off on the next leg of our adventure - four nights of complete and utter, luxuriously lazy R&R.

But because this post has already stretched on for far longer than I intended, that's another story for another day. For now I'll leave us, bouncing through the clouds daydreaming of settling into a subbed for the foreseeable future...