Angkor Wat

A bright early start for the sunrise at Angkor Wat. Sovin, our tuk-tuk driver from the night before was waiting outside the guesthouse at 5:15am. Using the same driver is a win-win situation: for the customer, you can trust them to take you to all the sights, and not mess you around as they take money at the end of each day, for the driver they secure business for a few days. Each day was about $10, but more depending on how far they drive.

The sun was low behind Angkor Wat when I crossed the bridge over the moat and through the entranceway. A crowd had gathered, but again, this wasn't so large. The optimal place to stand was in front of a lake on the west side, which reflected the temple as the sun rose, a la these pictures:






Angkor Wat is the highlight in terms of name, and the temple was sufficiently large to explore. There was an outer corridor, which I'll save for later. Although some walls had collapsed, it was in fairly good shape.


This drop towards the rear was interesting, not so much for the fact that all the other exits had steps so I nearly fell, but that it was used for climbing on and off elephants who could stop sideways on.



I even saw a monkey run across the roof from the back.


By the time I left, the sun was up and the moat was more vivid to photograph. The bridge itself had a strange crack along it. And I sat 'this' close to a monkey on the other side as I waited for Des.



We drove on to the Angkor Thom arena. The day itself comprised of the three main areas, which someone with a one day pass would more than likely explore. Angkor Wat and Ta Prohm are two temples in themselves, but Angkor Thom is more the central area of the reserve, comprised itself of many temples. It's worth seeing a diagram for this part:

We entered through the South Gate, briefly stopping for traffic.

A quick breakfast - banana pancake, which was a huge plate-sized scotch pancake with banana slices and condensed milk on top - from one of the tents.

The right side was empty, we were the only tourists the whole time we walked around. I'll say now that where Bangkok was tourist-heavy and I felt I'd visited twenty years too late, this is the place to go before the visitors flock. I'm not sure what the authorities will do as right now they are lenient and basically no area is out of bounds, but this brings erosion, and perhaps 'do not touch' signs will soon start popping up everywhere.

Actually, the right hand side was my favourite area of Angkor Thom - twelve laterite towers stood before the North and South Kleang palaces. These towers were serene and had a cool wind blowing through them. Built around 968, the different temples of Angkor Wat have varying styles depending on the year and the King that commissioned them. For the most part, Jayavarman VII ordered almost all of the most famous ones, including these and Angkor Wat. He pops up constantly, so I'll refer to him as J-man7.



Originally, the towers served two functions. One, tightrope walkers used to perform between them. The second is, brilliant. They also served as a public court; when two people were in dispute they would ascend the towers...

At this point in reading, the only thought I had was a Gladiators-style tightrope fall-off, where they'd use those over-sized cotton buds to determine the winner.

No. The two parties woul sit inside their respective towers, "one party eventually succumbing to disease and hence being guilty". Isn't that insane, and a little slow!

A few other temples behind them, hidden in the overgrowth. Local kids, who lived on site, would play and wait for tourists. From a young age, they were smart and business-savvy - they would pose for photos and then ask for a dollar.



The kids overall were great, with a brilliant level of English. It's hard to decide how much they play on their lack of education and need for money but generally it appears school takes the form of two or so mornings a week, where they learn Cambodian writing and English conversation. Their conversation is good, with the same cute grammar mistakes, which must spread memetically "My name is (name)" then point to their friend "My name is (Friend's name)". They knew how to go for the heartstrings but most seemed genuine and fascinating to chat with. A group of children I talked to for a long time opened up a defining statement of Cambodia. When I commented that some of them looked much younger and smaller than their real age, the all (about 6 of them) at the same time replied "Cambodia, so small".

Anyway, on one of the small temples, I met a Cambodian woman who gave me her business card - the Deputy Director of the Red Cross in Cambodia. A good person to network I'm sure, although I don't know how. It made me think of Suzuki-san, the man who died shortly after badgering me for English lessons. What's Cambodian for 'going off on a tangent'.

We crossed the main path to the other side, and started by the Terrace of the Elephants, which speaks for itself. Small wlakways, and elephant loading bays, with carvings along the wall.



There were also carvings, especially on corners, of the five or seven headed sepent, naga. He shows up all over the place.


At this point, the sun was high, and tour buses were building up. I won't go into historical detail of these temples as you can research that if you ever go, if you so wish, and my entries are long enough.

To escape the crowds (if you can call them that), we wandered off. I heard conflicting reports about landmines: there are still some nearby and you should stick to paths, but also that it is relatively safe in populated areas. I went with the view that I was only treading where other people had before me, so I wasn't too concerned. The bigger danger were the snakes. The ones to look out for, not that you can, are the small thin green ones that hang from trees. They're the dangerous snakes. Nice and conspicuous. The others are safe. Still, you can never be too sure:


There was also a small patch with red insects. Coincidentally, I read about them back in Japan by accident - and I rather wish I hadn't. They deserve a blog of their own. So another 'small' temple that didn't feature in the guidebooks (it always amazes me - just like Rome where half the awesome buildings aren't 'worthy' of featuring on maps'):



Baphuon, left middle, was closed, but looked impressive from the outside. The raised walkway was worth exploring alone, imagining royalty up high and lesser-folk beneath.




The last temple, is the focal point of Angkor Thom. Bayon is an overwhelming structure, centred by 54 towers and decorated by 216 'smiling' faces. It is said that from any position, you can see 14 or more faces. It really is something that can only be appreciated in the flesh. If you can afford the flight, the rest is so cheap, I can't stress enough. Oh, and J-man7 designed it!



Lonely Planet did a great job in keeping the interest of temple architecture by including a "Where's Wally"-style game for the bas reliefs for this temple, as well as Angkor Wat. The facades surrounding the outer wall were so detailed it was hard to keep on top of the action it was reflecting. The book not only described the story and events but also things to look out for. Some are so peculiar it made me realise that some of these sculptors must've had a great sense of humour. The human condition - how much has it changed over these 1000 years?

With over 1.2km of wall (imagine 16 of these murals:), and 11,000 figures, some highlights follow.


a tiger chasing a man up a tree, a fish eating an ox, underwater vomit, juggling midgits, a woman giving birth, a ship, horny deer, catching fish, pushing the bricks together.




The peak of the day, and the climb to the top was almost unbearable (the sun exposure is the only negative factor in the trip, should you consider it) so I didn't spend much time up there.



We stopped for a drink and shade and talked to this girl, who was beautiful.


The last stop of the day was at Ta Prohm - famous for being the overgrown jungle temple in Tomb Raider. It was amazing how bad and forgettable that film was, except 'that' scene - and I couldn't help (still can't even now) considering how much that one montage did for Cambodian tourism. No wonder Angelina Jolie is an ambassador for the country.



The temple was beautiful, with trees growing over/under/around/through walls and ceilings. Amazing to think that roots can bring stone to crumble, but given the 900 years or so it has been left to its own devices, nature has done a remarkable job. Guess who commissioned it!




Ta Prohm, while fascinating but tourist-heavy (the densest, according to staff), was only a taster for the real jungle temple I was planning later that week.



Nothing too exciting that night; a walk around the town. Sleep caught up and I was out for the count before 10pm!