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One of the many faces of Bayon
There are 216 of these in this temple! Wow! That's really all I can say. The Temples at Angkor Wat should seriously be the eighth wonder of the world. The place is breathtaking. There are actually several temples scattered around the Angkor area that we were able to visit. We went to Bayon, Ta Som, Ta Prohm (which is where Tomb Raider was filmed), and of course Angkor Wat. There are lots of dark corners and seemingly hidden rooms. You kind of feel like Indiana Jones exploring.
Some interesting incidents happened at the temples. Touts or religious people (more like a combo) like to hang out in the dark corners, and hand you incense to put in a Buddhist shrine that they've set up, pray with you or for you (not sure which one), and have you make a donation. We experienced that one when all of a sudden, there were sprigs of incense in our hands the second we walked into a room which had seemed to be completely empty. The sketchier episode happened at another temple when this guy popped out from behind a column, pulled out a police badge, and tried to sell Jason his badge. We got out of that room quickly.
Angkor Wat from a distance
This is what you see as you drive up. The place is massive. The temples are truly wonders, they were all created between 800-1300 years ago. The coolest one is probably Angkor Thom, as the jungle is slowly reclaiming it trees are starting to grow through the buildings, and the place is tumbling down, or sinking into the ground.
Angkor Wat is huge. The whole compound is as big as a small airport (like Dayton, OH's for instance) and it apparently took thousands of people to maintain the temple when it was in use. The main temple rises about 4-5 stories into the air and to get up, you have to climb up a 15-20 degree angle with tiny steps that only half of your foot can pretty much fit on. There is a sign telling you that you climb at your own risk, but it's worth it for the view and to say you did it. Making it hear felt like a big accomplishment as this had been one of the top things that Jason and I had been hoping to see in Southeast Asia. We can also travel at a much more relaxed pace from now on as we were trying to make it to Siem Reap as soon as
possible to try to beat the rainy season which has just now started: the roads get pretty tough to travel on and everything floods.
Siem Reap is quite different from Phnom Penh - much chiller and more ready for tourists. It reminds me of El Calaphate - a city in the Argentine Patagonia which is the base to see the Glacier National Park. It only really exists in its current state for the tourists. The city is currently growing quickly and new buildings are going up all over the place. I like it, although they seem to be having a Dengue fever outbreak so we won't be staying for long.
We have a driver in a tuk tuk who is taking us around town and to all the sites. Tuk tuk is really the only way to travel. The breeze is delightful, and you feel more like you're walking the road, rather than driving it.
There are a lot of bars which are brand new (the bar boom started in 2002), and they even have a street called "Pub Street". Unfortunately, the clientele was 90% male, and most of the other 10% were working girls. Still, it
Touristy I know
Couldn't resist made for an alright night out except for having to avoid children and amputees trying to sell you all sorts of useless knick knacks going from one bar to another. Seriously, those people don't seem to sleep. It's so sad that that's probably the only way these people can make ends meet, but it's not the type of thing you are in the mood for when bar-hopping. We were also able to get some foot and body massages, and do some shopping for peanuts. I'm still feeling that body massage.
Here is a video I posted of one of the temples:
Mike A
non-member comment
Silk
ALEX!! Go to the silk farm outside of town (if Siem Reap is still where you're at). Free tour and you'll take care of all of next year's christmas presents. Say hi to the working girls for me.