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Published: March 31st 2013
Which One?
Jerry is having problems deciding which new 'Cambodia' tee shirt to wear.We start our last week at ABC's & Rice with mixed feelings. The three months we were so excited about before we left home are drawing to a close. How quickly the time has passed.
The kids have little interest in lessons on Monday morning. They are still tinged with excitement about Sunday's concert and laugh and chatter in Khmer. I made the situation worse by showing them the photos and a video I had taken on my iPad. The lesson is a write-off, but it doesn't really matter.
Ginny and I both had appointments with a French hairdresser, who worked from her salon in the foyer of the Prince of Angkor Hotel, so we all left school a little early. Petra settled herself beside their very impressive swimming pool to wait for us. I had a badly needed haircut, then joined Pet for a drink and lunch, before we headed across the street to Lucky Mall for a few groceries and some Angkor beer. Lin and Jerry are expected tomorrow (Tuesday) and I had told Jerry I'd have some coldies ready for him.
I don't know why none of us thought of the possibility of them arriving
Show A Leg!
There's one in every crowd... early, as they tend to make a habit of just 'rocking up' and surprising people. So, they caught us unawares, just as I was putting those hot cans of Angkor beer into the fridge! It was lovely to see them again. They have been travelling for the past three months, mainly in China, then down through Laos and the top of Thailand before crossing into Cambodia via the Chong Chom border crossing.
We were due back at school for afternoon classes at 1.00pm, so we all clamoured into a tuk tuk and headed out to ABC's & Rice. Lin and Jerry were able to have a look around whilst we held our classes. Later in the day we went to the Frangipani Hotel for a swim and dinner. We stayed until almost 8.00pm enjoying cocktails, dinner and a dip or two in the pool. A very pleasant evening!
We all decided to give school a miss on Wednesday as there's not a lot of lessons being done. I think everyone has 'last week syndrome' and has slackened off accordingly. We went to the markets in search of colourful pyjama pants to wear to school on Friday, as it
The Frangipani Hotel
Having a drink whilst waiting for our dinner to arrive. is a fun day. We found what we were looking for - $3 a pair. The day was hot, and we were melting in the heat of the covered local market. Meas was waiting outside for us in his tuk tuk so we wasted no time in returning home. We spent the midday hours in the cool of our rooms, talking, sleeping and cursing the very slow internet connection. I asked Meas to return at 3.30pm, as I planned another trip to Angkor Wat to visit some more temples. Ginny and Petra decided to come too.
This will be my third trip to Angkor, and each one is planned like a precise military manoeuvre, to get the most possible from each visit. We had planned to be out for the sunset but ended up cutting the visit short and returning to town early. Meas, our tuk tuk driver, had a dinner and a visit to the Phare circus to attend that night. It was organised by Globalteer, and they were dining at a 'barang', or western restaurant, before attending the circus. The locals can't afford to eat in Pub Street or any 'tourist' restaurant and this would have been
The Frangipani Hotel
Which page is the cocktail menu on? a big night out for Meas. So, we cut our visit short and made sure we were back in plenty of time for him to attend.
Our first stop at Angkor was Chau Say Tevoda, a small 12th century Hindu temple. I have't been able to find any history on this temple, except that it had a connection with Thommanon (next paragraph) in it's heyday. You can see the remains of a long processional walkway leading up to the temple. All that's left today are the rows of square columns on either side. This walkway leads onto a raised causeway supported by square columns, which then lead into the temple.
Directly across the road is Thommanon temple. This is a small, attractive temple in very good condition, built at the same time as Angkor Wat. Thommanon seems to stand in conjunction with Chau Say Tevoda across the street, but was built decades earlier. Thommanon is currently in much better condition than Chau Say Tevoda, in part because archaeologists heavily restored it in the 1960's.
Next stop was Spean Thma which literally translates as 'Stone Bridge'. Here we found remnants of an ancient bridge over the Siem Reap
Bou Savy Cat
This cat lives at our guesthouse. Seems he has been lapping up tea remains and fallen asleep in the cup! River. It has been reconstructed several times over the centuries, using random carved stone blocks from earlier temples. It sits just to the side of the river, indicating how much the course of the river has shifted over the years, possibly in part due to the obstruction and sediment build up caused by the bridge itself. We walked upstream and found a huge old timber water wheel which was accessible via a wooden platform. Kids played in the water nearby.
Meas waits patiently in his tuk tuk whilst we explore. He is being well paid and is happy to sit back and listen to his music or tinker with his phone while he waits.
We head off to the next stop - Srah Srang, meaning 'Royal Bath'. This is a reservoir which was originally dug out in the 10th century. A majestic platform, or landing stage, which was added in the 12th century, leads to the water. This platform is in the shape of a cross with serpent balustrades, flanked by two lions. The front of this platform is under restoration and surrounded by fencing, which limited photos. Srah Srang is still used for bathing and swimming today.
I remember passing through this area on the way to the Land Mine Museum weeks ago. A temple pass isn't required to visit Srah Srang, but you will need one to visit nearby Banteay Kdei temple.
Our final stop was Prasat Kravan, a temple built for Hindu worship in 921. A very plain and uninspiring building, it's hidden treasure is the brick carvings of Vishnu and his consort Lakshmi within the central tower. These carvings in brick, on the interior of a monument, are unique in Khmer architecture. Unfortunately for me, the carvings were barely visible in the late afternoon gloom. The best time for photos is in the morning when the eastern sun streams through the door. We called it a day after leaving here, and headed back to Siem Reap. It was 5.30pm when Meas dropped us back at Bou Savy Guesthouse. We wished him an enjoyable evening and headed inside.
We all declared how hungry we were, so headed into pub Street to have dinner. We dined at The Sun Restaurant and Petra talked us into having a foot massage afterwards. A decision she lived to regret as her attendant was young and obviously inexperienced,
Chau Say Tevoda Temple
Me spanning a doorway in the temple. and she endured half an hour of leg slapping and toe flicking. No wonder she was rolling her eyes as we left....
Friday is our final day at school. It will be a fun day for the kids, with a few activities planned. All the volunteers were asked to wear colourful pyjamas and be prepared for a soaking. The kids watched a re-run of the concert on Monica's laptop while we filled buckets of water and got the water slide set up. Then it was a free for all, with the hose, buckets and bottles of water! Everyone was soaked, except for those kids who took refuge in the classrooms and Petra who took refuge in the office! A wading pool was filled with a sticky pink jelly substance which the kids sat in and also threw everywhere. They had a great time, it's not often they can let rip for an hour and they took advantage of it. By 10.00am it was all over. The kids were heading home so we also left.
Later in the afternoon, around 3.00pm, we were heading to the Foreign Corespondent's Club for 'high tea'. We got no further than 200 metres
Chau Say Tevoda
Visitors have created these little piles of stones along a wall. down the street, to the front of Wat Kesararam, before stopping. I could see by the procession of people walking down Road 6, and the crowd of monks around the wat entrance, that there was a funeral in progress.
But, this was no ordinary send-off. A monk of obvious high standing had passed away, and this was his funeral. In Buddhist tradition, when death occurs, it is very important to perform rituals in the correct and proper tradition. We were watching the beginnings of a funeral procession consisting of an achar (priest), Buddhist monks, members of the family, and other mourners. There were also members of the military present. The coffin, resplendent on top of a dais, on a golden float resembling a mythical bird, moved slowly onto the road, followed by monks in their saffron robes. The procession will wind it's way around the streets of Siem Reap, before returning to Wat Kesararam in about an hour and a half. Just enough time for us to enjoy our 'high tea' and return to watch events unfold.
The float was back in the wat grounds by the time we returned, and most of the people from the procession
Chau Say Tevoda
The processional walkway to the front of the temple. had disappeared. There were still many monks and some devotees waiting for the casket to be removed from the float and raised to the dais of the funeral pyre. The casket was removed first, and placed on the shoulders of waiting monks, as the platform on the float was to be reused on the pyre and had to be put in place first. Eventually, many hands helped to raise the casket to the dais, followed by it's lid.
The monks, resplendent in their saffron robes, circled the pyre and started chanting. I have never heard the monks chanting before and it was beautiful to listen too. The casket will remain here for seven days, allowing devotees to pay their respects. On the eighth day the body will be cremated. Buddhists do not think of death as the end of a life, but as the end of a life cycle. The body isn't embalmed or the organs removed as they believe it will have a negative impact on one's rebirth. We will be back at Wat Kesararam next Saturday to see what happens next, as this is the day the cremation will be held.
Saturday was a slow one,
Thommanon
Market stands are at all the popular temples. We don't bother visiting them... we didn't leave the guesthouse until almost lunchtime. Petra needed to collect her passport, with her extended visa (for 2 days) from the travel agency, and we needed to book tickets to Bangkok and organise hiring a mini van and driver for an outing next week.
Tonight we're going to a farewell dinner for ABC's. We're not the only volunteers who finished up yesterday and this will be the last chance for everyone to say their goodbyes. Abacus has a sophisticated menu of French-accented creations, and the meal was scrumptious. We said our goodbyes, hugs all around. I don't feel sad at leaving. Volunteering at ABC's & Rice and living in Cambodia has been a great learning experience and I've met some wonderful people, but after three months here I'm ready to go. Just one more week in Siem Reap, which will be spent with visiting family. Our departure date is the 8th April - next stop Bangkok enroute to New Delhi in India.
Kanpong Tong is Lin, Jerry and Ginny's destination on Sunday morning. It's a three hour drive from Siem Reap, on the way to Phnom Penh. Our mum and sister Suzie are staying there tonight,
Thommanon
.....but we don't have to, because they come to us. These two girls are trying to sell items to Petra & Ginny. No luck! enroute to Siem Reap, and they are going to surprise them. They have booked into the same hotel and will be chilling by the pool when mum and Suzie arrive. Petra and I didn't go, and decided to wait until tomorrow (Monday) to catch up with the new arrivals.
We had a slow start to the day, after all what's the rush? I took my iPad into Rogues in Pub Street. They download super cheap e-books, movies and music onto your computer, and I need some more novels to read. I browsed their catalogue and selected four books, which were quickly uploaded for $1.50 each. Amazon, eat your heart out! They were loaded into the iBooks app and work perfectly.
I texted Meas and ordered his tuk tuk for 3.30pm, another Angkor temples visit is on the cards. This will be my fourth visit on my seven day pass. I still have three days to go.... Petra decided not to come so I'm on my own again.
Meas was waiting and we headed off - past Angkor Wat, through the south Gate of Angkor Thom, past Bayon and out the North Gate. This is a picturesque spot,
with trees growing in the moat. I will stop for photos another day.... we headed east with the first stop at Neak Pean.
Neak Pean was originally designed for medical purposes, and was built as a hospital. It is based on the ancient Hindu belief of balance. Four connected pools represent Water, Earth, Fire and Wind. People believed that going into these pools would balance the elements in the bather, thus curing disease. In the middle of the four healing ponds is the central water source. Neak Pean is fenced off so I couldn't get any closer. You approach, and leave, via a wooden walkway over the water.
Next stop was Ta Som. This small, classic Bayon-style complex was used as a monastery and is similar to Ta Prohm but on a smaller scale. Some restoration work has been carried out here, to make the complex safe for visitors, but there is a lot of temple rubble lying around. Many of the carvings are in good condition and display particularly fine execution for late 12th century works. A huge strangler fig grows from the top of the eastern entrance. It is destroying the gate but it is a
photo classic.
Final visit for the day is Eastern Mebon temple. The Mebon used to stand on a small island in the middle of the Eastern Baray, which was a large body of water fed by the Siem Reap River. The temple was originally accessible only by boat. Today the baray, which was once a source of water for irrigation, is a plain of rice fields. Visitors are left to imagine how majestic this temple must have been in it's heyday, situated as it was in the middle of a large lake.
The stairways of the tiered base of Mebon are flanked by lions. Beautiful monolithic elephants stand majestically at the corners of the first and second tiers, looking outwards. This is the only temple where I have seen elephant statues. The brick shrines are dotted with holes which would have attached the original plasterwork.
After four visits to the temples, my interest hasn't waned. I could easily revisit every site again and probably take more photos. I will get back to Angkor Wat next week for another ramble, as I haven't seen all of this immense temple yet. I headed back to town and Meas dropped
Spean Thma
The ruins of an ancient bridge. me at Bou Savy around 6.00pm. He waited whilst Petra and I got ready to visit Pub Street for dinner, and then he dropped us in town. Next week, our final one in Cambodia, promises to be a busy one. We're looking forward to seeing mum and Suzie tomorrow.....there will then be seven of us in Siem Reap.
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