Siem Reap Diaries 2: Visit at Artisans Angkor

We got to visit the main center of Artisans Angkor on Stung Thmey Street, which is just a short walk from the Old Market. Artisans Angkor is a social enterprise aimed at providing job opportunities for Cambodians living especially in rural areas. They make expert craftsmen out of them. You will see how impeccable their skills are in stone and wood carving, silver plating, and silk painting.

This sight welcomed us in the first room we visited. I almost dropped down to my knees at the sight of fine silk yarn colored with natural dyes. They also have a silk farm, by the way! We didn't go there anymore because it was hot and we didn't feel adventurous :p The silk farm is located in Puok district (around 20 minutes travel time from Siem Reap).

Drool.

Carving a little Buddha out of stone.

This huge stone carving took one month to make! Wow!

Another artisan working on silver. See the wood panels on the bottom left? Each panel takes 2-3 months to carve! You can also see sample blocks of silk painting representing different stages of the process (bottom right).

After our visit at Artisans Angkor, Erika and I hanged out at The Blue Pumpkin and got ourselves some refreshing shakes. I got their lemon mint shake. Super refreshing! I also love that it's not sweet. Yes, this is my mandatory crochet-fie. As mentioned in my first post on Siem Reap, I always had my crochet hook and yarn in my bag.

The last part of my Siem Reap Diary is our visit to the Angkor Wat (and other) temples!