The Temples of Angkor!

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With Emily back on form, we headed off to our next destination of Cambodia, more specifically the temples at Angkor. The journey to the border proved to be a smooth and comfortable one in a posh minibus. However, after crossing the border, the indication that Cambodia is a much less developed country than Thailand is clearly evident. We were squashed onto a rickety old bus which was to drive us the journey from Poi Pet to Siem Reap which is were Angkor is located. This journey was, to put it in simple terms, awful! The roads in Cambodia are nothing more than very pot-holed dirt-tracks and as such, we all arrived with very sore bums.

We pulled into a very nice guesthouse called Sidewalk, which although being a few miles out of the centre of town, was ideal and the staff there were very friendly. We ordered our tea at the guesthouse, and although Emily tucked into her home-delights of bangers and mash, I ordered a meal called Loc Lak which was recommended by one of the staff. It turned out to be tenderly cooked beef on salad with a pepper sauce, and was delicious and thoroughly recommended. After the food and a couple of drinks, we headed in for the evening.

The next morning at sunrise, we boarded our bikes to be ferried around the Angkor temples by two of the guesthouse staff. The first temple we paid a visit to was Banteay Srei, a small remote temple, about 30km outside Siem Reap. The temple was constructed by a deep red rock that stood out amazingly from the green jungle backdrop which surrounded it. With us arriving there very early, we were practically the only people there meaning we could get some great intimate pictures and move about the ruins freely.

Moving on, we next headed to Ta Prohm, a much larger temple which has had little restoration by archeologists and as such still appears as it did when it was ‘discovered’ hundreds of years ago by Europeans. The over-hanging tree roots and plants growing up through the structure had a remarkable appearance of nature fighting with man-made construction (with nature appearing to be winning). A good hour was spent by us exploring the temple’s nooks and clambering over fallen bricks to get the ideal view of the structure.

Next was Ta Keo, an enormously steep temple with near vertical staircases. The climb to the top was exhausting but the views were worth it, showing the stretch of the jungle below.

Our next port-of-call was Angkor Thom, a massive temple complex which was originally a city in its own right, possibly housing up to a million people inside and outside its walls. Inside there were many separate stone buildings, impressively carved with Buddhist and Hindu religious designs.

Our final destination was to the much-renowned Angkor Wat, the most impressive and well-preserved temple of them all. Smaller than Angkor Thom, this temple only housed one main, although enormous building, surrounded by large walls and a moat that was said to represent The Universe. The actual temple, the largest religious monument in the world, was in exceptional condition being covered on every wall with carvings of mainly Hindu stories and artwork. This temple was again very high to the top with the usual steep staircases where one slip and you’d surely fall to your death. Climbing to the top we were again treated to an exceptional view out over the green jungle canopy, and were able to view up-close the massive Buddha heads which covered the tops of the towers on all four sides of each.

Upon returning to the guesthouse, Emily tasted the delights of Loc Lak while I had some other, although not as good, recommended dish. Unfortunately we had to leave Cambodia the next morning as we were running out of time for our return to Thailand and some well-deserved rest on the islands.

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Photos

Me on Ta Keo
Note the now very short hair :-(

Comments

[Andy McAllister]

First Time Reading the Blog
Hey Phil, Just taken my first glance at your Blog. I promise I'll read it properly soon (when it's not 03:30) and leave a decent comment. Hope you guys are having an awesome time! Andy