Kingdom of Cambodia

Jayavarman VII

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Ever get that feeling that someone is looking over your shoulder?????

More faces

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216 huge, smiling faces of king Jayavarman VII are found in Bayon temple. This was our favorite temple since we could explore pretty much at will and there was lots of climbing and lush green forest around it. How much longer will this free style visitng be allowed before ropes are installed and lines form to tour these places Disney World style?

Jungle temple - Ta Prohm

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This temple was not discovered until the 1900's by European explorers. The big trees enveloping the ruins serve as both their protector and destroyer. Since they support the structure, it was decided to leave this natural vegetation in place. However, in time, the massive force from the growth of these roots can cause the temple blocks to be lifted apart and if the tree dies, then the support dies and the blocks tumble. Reminds me of our poor underground sprinkler lines squeezed apart by the roots of that tenacious Linden tree at our Plymouth home and our heaving sidewalk that was forced apart by those same roots. Small scale version of Ta Prohm.

Man eating tree

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These "spunt" trees wrap their massive roots around anything in their path as they grow. This temple, Ta Prohm, was built in the jungle for Jayavarman's mother and required nearly 80,000 people just to maintain it. Now there's a good mother's day gift idea.....

Tomb Raider fame

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This door which Lara Croft entered in the movie "Tomb Raider", leads deeper into the Ta Prohm jungle temple. Fear not, no deep caverns here and light filtered in all throughout. Not nearly as sinister as it may look. In fact, with birds chirping and tourists fervently snapping photos, clamboring around in the heat in this temple was anything but adventuresome.

Songs in the jungle

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Children are everywhere in Cambodia trying ways to earn a dollar. These kids coordinated a lovely song as we walked along a wide jungle path. In this country, 50% of the population is under age 25 and less than 5% of them graduate from high school. Pol Pot has left this country void of the most educated and artistic people they once had. We could probably count on one hand the number of "old" Cambodians we saw on this trip.

Sandstone carvings

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Some temples had amazing detailed sandstone carvings. In this temple, Bantei Srei, the stone was cut into blocks, carved, and then pieced together to form a delicate temple complex. These original carvings date to 960AD.

Cambodian street scene

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Tuk Tuks and bike taxis are ubiquitous in the city areas we visited. We really had a great time flying along the streets in a tuk tuk in the evenings. No pix of this, but imagine a motorbike with a surrey for 4 attached at the back. Cushioned seats, soft roof overhead, and the breeze (and dirt too!) wafting through the open sides as we joined in the fast flowing current of bikes and motorbikes.

More Cambodian street scenes

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This little piggy went to market....and so did his big fat brothers!

Lunch

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We all agree - the fresh fruits in Asia are amazing! Mango, papaya, tiny bananas, pomelo, jackfruit, and others we don't even have names for! We had a fruit plate made up here to accompany our lunch. So sweet!

Simple school

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We left a few supplies for the local school in the jungle.

Cambodian hope

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Dirt floors and wooden benches, but at least it's here. The schools we saw were mostly built from donations from the Japanese or Christian organizations. Our guide calls education the hope of Cambodia. Only then can the citizens make wise choices.

Happy life

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Ah the simple pleasures of an inner tube and some waves on a warm sandy beach. This little guy joined us on a secluded beach in Ream National Park. We built a sand fort together and he and his sister happily shared one of our candy bars.

Fishing home

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In Ream National park, there are many small fishing homes along the shoreline. You may think this is strange for a national park, but even more strange are the cut out sections of forest which have been sold to foreign investors for future resorts. In Cambodia, much of the land is being sold to foreign investors. Garment factories, seafood companies, tourist hotels - including our hotel - even the airport to be opened in Sihanoukville are all foreign owned. People are trading their land for money for food.

Bay of Thailand

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Sun sets over the bay of Thailand looking out toward some small islands off of Cambodia. Warm, quiet, and oh so hard to leave.....

Ty's perfect girl

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She doesn't talk back, always smiles and always looked well coiffed. What else could he do with 6 hours to kill in Phnom Penh airport?