Temples of Angkor

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Another month and another country. Cambodia was in our sights on the six hour journey from Bangkok to the border. Once there we were greeted by a whole host of scam artists. "come with me for visa", "you have to have visa before you go passport control". This although not entirely wrong was a scam as they were charging about $5 more for a visa than at the actual checkpoint. The problem was that there was no signs explaining this so we just had to stay strong and push our way through to the correct visa point.

Relieved to be through we then had to find a bus to Siem Reap which is a further three hours from the border. All tourists coming through were met by smartly dressed 'government officials' who supposedly were there to help the 'clueless' tourists. According to Lonely Planet local authorities insist foreigners use tourist transport, which effectively means inflated prices. As you can imagine we did not like this but there seemed to be no local buses. Reluctantly we were taken to a tourist waiting area where you could either take a bus for $9 or a shared taxi for $12. We obviously chose the bus but had to wait for enough people to join us before the bus would leave. So in a very hot 'tourist lounge' we waited and watched numerous foreigners come and leave by taxi. Cowards I tell thee. In the end we did leave and were relieved to arrive in Siem Reap around 8pm, where we saw bus prices with the same company going back to the border for only $4. Not a great introduction to Cambodia from a government that claims it's 'trying to help'.

Another confusing aspect to our introduction was the use of both American dollars and Cambodian riel. You could pay for things in dollar or riel or a mixture of both but with the dollar came higher prices. However the national beer was only $0.50 which was a riel good price.

Our first impressions of Siem Reap were not what we had expected. It had fancy hotels, posh restaurants and lots of bars. The setting by the river was beautiful but it didn't really feel like you were in Cambodia. We, as most people there, were here for the temples of Angkor that sit about 14km out of town.

So with numerous tuk-tuk offers ringing in our head we instead opted for the cheaper and ultimately more rewarding option of cycling to the temples. It cost $1 per day for an old bike but meant we could do it all in our own time. We bought a three day pass to the World Heritage Site and entered for our first days exploring.

The temples of Angkor were the capital of Cambodia's ancient Khmer empire. Between the 9th and 13th centuries the different Cambodian kings strove to better the temples of their ancestors culminating in the worlds largest religious building, Angkor Wat. The hundreds of temples that are still standing today are but a skeleton of the the vast poltical, religious and social centre of a city that boasted a population of one million when London was a little town of 50,000. Hard to believe as we walked around the ruins, but true.

The area that the temples covered was vast and only just manageable by bike to see the main ones. This is why we took three days and started with the biggest, and closest, Angkor Wat.

The moat that surrounds Angkor Wat would put moats of English castles to shame. It was more like a river with a long, wide bridge to enter. People of all ages and nationalities stood taking pictures and admiring the gates. There were lots of Cambodian wedding couples in Aladdin-like outfits having photos whilst we walked past in our ragged traveller/ cycling gear. The gardens and stone walkways that surrounded the temple itself were very grand and reminded us of the Taj Mahal but weren't quite as well kept.

Around the outer temple wall was an 800m long, immaculately preserved, Bas Relief that showed past battles, kings and daily life. It was detailed from individual faces to elephants, horses and even kick boxing. As we walked around we were sandwiched between two Japanese guided tour groups who seemed suitably impressed, evidenced with the amount of camera flashing happening.

The temple itself was grand and completely symetrical on its four sides with steep stone steps leading to the focal tower point in the middle. We were allowed to go halfway up but due to Hans exposed legs we were declined access to the top, but we could return another day. The Bas Relief was extremely impressive but apart from that we felt it was only Angkor Wats' size that made it so special.

Back on our bikes and with some cold water in our baskets from one of the many pushy sellers outside, we headed for the walled city of Angkor Thom. Inside it's giant gates the first temple we came to was Bayon. Everything about Bayon was spectacular. It had giant Buddha faces on every crumbly pillar that looked over you as you walked around. In fact there are 216 large smiling faces that give the old building an enchanting and happy feel. We were happier still when we could take shade from the immense heat in one of it's many darkened corridors and walkways. This was truely no ordinary temple, a notion which was shared by most as we looked on in awe.

After some lunch we cycled around the rest of Angkor Thom's temples including: the Terrace of Elephants, which had a lot of carved elephants and was where the king addressed his people; Terrace of the Leper King which is now thought to be a cremation site and Baphuon which had a huge reclining Buddha on one wall. All of these required lots of climbing up steep steps and picture taking.

Then onto Ta Keo, a pyramidical temple with a very high central tower, pefect for sunset. The steep steps here were so steep that people were having to get on hands and knees to get up or down them. Once we were at the top though it was all worth it as there was a cool breeze and long views. We were so tired by then that I fell asleep and we decided to start our cycle back before it got dark.

Safely back in town we went to a great Night Market selling all types of things including many pretty shawls. Then a Cambodian style DIY BBQ using a camping stove on your table. We chose our ingredients and then we could cook them as we pleased. It was brilliant although the combination of the extreme evening temperature and the cooker made it a sweaty eat.

The next day we planned to see the far away temples on the 'grand loop' as the signs called it. We bombed past Angkor Wat, the city of Angkor Thom and straight out to Ta Prom.

When you think about the temples of Angkor then Ta Prom is usually what will come to mind. It is indeed the most photographed and filmed due to it's jungle meets temple nature. Ta Prom was built by the king for his mother but now the jungle is reclaiming it. Trees jut out of it's walls and huge roots engulf it's doorways. I'm sure the king nor his mother, if alive today, would be too pleased about it but it makes for an impressive sight.

The 'grand loop' was along the top section of the main temple complex and went along arid (dry season) land that local people were trying to farm. We could feel as we cycled along that many thousands of people had done this route all those years ago on bikes maybe not too disimilar from ours (they were pretty old). Next we came to Pre Rup which was a nice redbrick pyramid like temple. We climbed to the top and looked over our land. The red brick design reminded us of English castles. East Mebon, which was next on our loop, was similar but had big elephant statues which wasn't like an English castle.

Outside almost every temple were small restaurants that beyed for your attention by shouting at the top of their voice. "You want pineapple ladeeeeey" "you want water". I liked how they never asked the man just the ladeeeeey. This, although helpful when thirsty, became very annoying as their use of the word lady was rather high pitched and elongated. Bartering was the name of the game with these pineapple ladeeys as you could usually get two for the price they first quoted. We were also asked to buy postcards from very young children who used the generic term of "one dollar" for everything they sold. We bought a clutch full of postcards to try and help but it was still hard to take.

Ta Som was next and perhaps more impressive than Ta Prom in terms of jungle meets forest. It was smaller and much less crowded, wth intricate, fine designs. One archway was particularly beautiful with a tree and all it's roots engulfing it. It was standing strong though and you could walk underneath it. It was interesting to see how much restoration work was being perfomed at most of the temples and who it was funded by. Countries such as Japan, Italy, China and Canada were the main benefactors with no sign of England or America. Lots of the temples are crumbling not least beacause of their age but from looters and the fatal reign of the Khmer rouge. It was they who purposefully dessicated some of these fine buildings of great national pride. Thus the restoration, you can imagine, is a never ending process.

Yet more hot cycling to Preah Kahn, our last stop of the day. The temple was built as a monument to the Kings father and was a labryinth of paths and corridors. It was big and took a lot of exploring so instead we chose to sit and admire. It just so happened that we sat near to a lingum statue. This turned out to be the perfect spot for a rest as guide after guide came through trying to explain to their mostly aloof listeners what it was, much to the listeners dismay. "Here we have the lingum statue, it's three parts represent Vishnu, Brahma and Shiva. This part here is Shiva which is a phallic symbol. You know penis". If that wasn't good enough we were then treated to similar explanations in French and German. One guide just kept saying to his unaware guest "lingum, lingus" whilst suggestively nodding. You sensed the guides were having as much fun as us.

The Cambodian guides of Angkor are extremely impressive as we heard languages ranging from japanese to italian and all inbetween. They also have a sense of humour. At the same temple as the Lingum episode, and on the same day, we walked past as a guide was explaining why some carvings of the dancing girls, or nymphs as they are more affectionately known, held closed lotus flowers and others open. "It is for wirgin (spelt as he said it)". Now for most half intelligent people this would be enough but he continued. "when they are married flower is open so they are no wirgin...yes?". "Yes yes we understand" his couple said and they swiftly moved on. We didn't have a guide but I was ready to tip the man right there.

We cycled the 13km back which completed a 45km ride that day. Add to that all the climbing up and down temples and you have a recipe for tiredness but it had been a brilliant day. The bars of Siem Reap sell a range of Angkor beers but it didn't take three days for us to explore them, especially at $0.50 a glass.

On our final day of temple exploration we decided to go and visit our not too far away favourites again. We headed straight back to Preah Kahn, aka Nymphs and Lingums, where we had longer to look around. I admired the delicate artwork of the nymph whilst hannah poured water over the Lingum. This Shiva showering, I assure you, was not as weird as it sounds. You are meant to do it...a guide told us.

After lunch of banana wrapped in sticky rice, an ingenious creation that is also very filling, we went to Bayon. Hannah drew a section of the temple and I was left to admire the colourful hordes of japanese tourists, kindly offering my picture taking services when the opportunity arose. We spent a long time there absorbing what was our favourite temple before we made our way back via Angkor Wat.

This time we were allowed up to the top section and were able to look out over the whole of the Angkor Wat complex. It was a nice way to finish our trio of temple days. As the sun was setting and hot air balloons were rising for that aerial shot, we cycled the forty five minute journey back to town. This time however it took slightly longer as Hannahs bike got a flat tyre just as she was about to say "what luck we've had". We plonked back slowly but made it in time to get to the supermarket where they sold proper red wine for normal prices. So for the first time since we left home we sat and enjoyed a bottle of Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon with a bar of dark chocolate. Travelling can be tough sometimes!

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Comments

[Eric]

Hey Hanna, I enjoyed your Angkor Wat post. I have always wanted to go there. My blog is looking for travel photos. If you have the time, email us some at [e-mail] or check us out at dirty-hippies.blogspot.com Continued fun on your travels, Eric

[Tee]

Hello
Nice blog! Since you guys had extra days left did you went to the more remote temples like Beng Melea, Koh Ker Pyramid? I like those temples better because it's less touristy and way larger than most of the temples in Angkor!

[Josho]

Sup
Awesome pictures guys! Have fun with Hannah's family on the next bit!