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travel tips

Angkor What?

Posted in travel blog

 If you have not been to Cambodia…GO! We spent only a couple of days (definitely not enough) in Siem Reap, where we watched sunsets and sunrises over Angkor Wat, explored a busy city, got lost in the tranquility of ancient temples with powerful histories, and sweat profusely for the entirety of the trip from the second we stepped off the plane.

Things to know prior to arrival in Siem Reap, Cambodia:

1. Everything is paid for in US dollars because their currency is so weak, if you wanted to buy something worth $10 you would need to bring a wheel barrel full of this monopoly money.

2. There is Mexican food there!

3. Don’t be afraid to get a Tuk Tuk, for $1 you will avoid the sweatiest walk of your life guaranteed.

4. Cambodian BBQ is a must.

5. If you don’t get a foot massage on the street and people watch, then you will not experience the luxury of the eclectic crowd that visits Siem Reap.

6. Try, with all your power, not to buy too many T-shirts when you are there. Somehow, you will all of a sudden have 5 t-shirts in your hands as you count all the people you need to buy for.

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Things to know prior to visiting the temples:

1. Wear clothing that cover your shoulders and your knees (this doesn’t mean bring a scarf because even this is not allowed), otherwise you will not be allowed in many of the temples.

2. Be prepared to walk up so many flights of stairs that are at such a steep incline you wonder if it would just be easier to crawl up.

3. You will sweat. You will sweat so much. Don’t think that this is going to be a day that you will look good in pictures.

4. Do not think you will beat the crowds by going to the sunrise at Angkor Wat. I promise people are there starting from like 4:30am. There are SO many people. However, the sunrise is a MUST DO. I promise you won’t regret the painful morning alarm.

5. Do the Sunrise watch over Angkor Wat and then go to all the temples straight after the sunrise. It is less crowded, and it gives you lots of time to see as many temples as you want.

6. Be prepared for many many jaw dropping experiences. Honestly, this is a special place. Try to think about just how many people have been in the same place you are for thousands of years. It is pretty spectacular.

If you have gone to Angkor Wat, what else should we add to this list?

 

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Spurlocken?

Posted in travel blog

Throughout my life, I have had a surprising amount of people comment on my name. Apparently, it is a very interesting name. Now, let me tell you, I actually have been pretty fond of my first name. And my last name… well I think you can imagine the kinds of names kids made up with my last name. That being said, I’ve been told that my name, Samantha Spurlock, sounds like a mystery novelist, a sports caster, a lawyer, a blogger. I have also often gotten, “are you related to XXX Spurlock?” “Do you have any relations with Morgan Spurlock?” “I knew a Spurlock back in high school.” ETC. While these have all been good experiences, I think I have officially encountered the most unique mentioning of my name.

For some reason, many Irish have been kind of fascinated by my last name, but last week topped all my other name experiences. I went into the bank for the 145th time since arriving in Dublin, and the teller said, “ay Samantha Spurlock, do you play the sport?”

I was completely thrown off by this statement, and thought that maybe I misunderstood him with his thick accent. I think he understood that I was confused by my dumbfounded look and my awkward giggle without a response since I had no idea what he was saying.

He asked, “Have you played the sport spurlocken?” Genuinely shocked, I asked him what was spurlocken. His response, “a cave divin’ sport my lass, you know, where you go ‘plorin’ caves on de coast of England” (in my best Irish accent impression of course!).

This intrigued me so I came home and did some research: I did not find anything on Spurlocken and probably spelled it 15 different ways…but I did find what he was talking about. There is a sport called Spelunking that I guess with an irish accent sounds a lot like Spurlocken.

What is spelunking? Well according to wikipedia: Caving — also traditionally known as spelunking in the United States and Canada and potholing in the United Kingdom and Ireland — is the recreational pastime of exploring wild (generally non-commercial) cave systems. In contrast, speleology is the scientific study of caves and the cave environment.

I guess you learn something new every day! I can truly say however, this was definitely a new name experience and probably the coolest one I will ever get!

Some more homework for you, youtube spelunking and let me know what you think. I can’t actually watch it because it makes me too claustrophobic, but enjoy!

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