As the other commenter hinted, Siem Reap is a great place for expats, and that’s where I lived as well. The population is much more poor than the surrounding co

As the other commenter hinted, Siem Reap is a great place for expats, and that’s where I lived as well. The population is much more poor than the surrounding countries, but they are all so incredibly friendly and happy despite all this. You do need to make an effort really going into the country side to see the “real” Cambodia, I strongly advise against using only the cities as your reference, as they are generally very “tourist/expat savvy”, by lack of a different definition. I did freelance work for a few European businesses, mostly C++ and devops stuff, and for a long time I felt I was living the life. What drew me back, however, was ambition: before taking the sabbatical, I had successfully founded and “exited” (more like an acqui-hire with some pocket money) a startup, and I was craving for more. It was very difficult to find people that I could consider my peers in Siem Reap, and this left some void. This may also have to do with my nature as an introvert, they may have been out there, but most developers out there actually are web developers, which isn’t my cup of tea. All in all, however, the whole experience of being completely detached from my life back home for an extended period of time has made me a much more stable person, and I would do it again in a blink of an eye. As crazy as it sounds, I can now better appreciate the “rat race” and its good parts, and know that I also miss being challenged in that area. Feel free to reach out to me directly if you feel like it.