We rolled out of bed for a 5 a.m. tuk tuk pick up to see sunrise over Angkor Wat. Theara's brother-in-law drove the tuk tuk--we loved meeting the family. He was a little late arriving because flood waters came into his home last night and he had to move his things to higher ground. Despite the flooding, he still came to drive us around. He wasn't going to miss out on the $10 fare.
Our tuk tuk.
Sunrise over Angkor Wat. It was a little disappointing because the sun was behind the clouds, but you can see how it has the potential to be pretty spectacular. The sun rises directly behind the main tower, creating a colorful glow around the temple. Even with the clouds and a little rain, it was still special.
Our second day at Angkor Wat and I was still loving the reflection in the water.
As an aside, inside the temple there is an echo chamber. If you stand in the chamber, say a prayer, then pound your chest 7 times while listening to the echo, your prayer will come true. Ta Prohm also has an echo chamber.
Next up was Bayon, the magic temple. Construction began around 1200. There are 37 towers with faces carved in them. Each tower represents a different province and the faces of the people who live in that province. Our book says the number of towers don't have any significance because many were added later and the number is in dispute; we like Theara's explanation. It is called the magic temple because when you stand in the center of it, every direction you face looks the same. This was the only disappointing story we heard at Angkor Wat. I thought for sure if I rubbed the right statute I would get magical powers.
Outside Bayon.
Two of the faces carved on one of its towers.
More faces.
Nose to nose (at least it appears) with the face on the tower. I don't think you are supposed to stick your tongue out in this picture, but I couldn't resist.
We each gave a blessing at the top of one of the towers. A woman from the village is there who collects your donation and gives you incense. You light the incense and place it in a sand pot near the Buddha. The incense carries your blessing to the gods. She says a prayer and ties a braided bracelet for good luck around your wrist. It is bad luck to take it off; it must either fall off on its own or you can have a monk cut it off.
Next up, Bapuon, which was started in 1060. You first enter a pavilion that symbolizes hell. You then walk along a pathway, symbolizing the universe and the rainbow to get to the earth pavilion, which then leads to the temple, which symbolizes heaven. They often incorporated rainbows into their temples. They symbolize the removal of water from the earth. It isn't surprisingly that they loved rainbows considering how frequently it floods.
A steep climb to the top.
The view from the top of the temple. You can see the temple entranceway. The pavilion symbolizing hell is in ruins and you can see other stones laying near the earth pavilion.
Above are more stones from the temple. The French had a map of how to reassemble these stones. The Khmer Rouge rolled the map up with tobacco and smoked it to prevent anyone from reconstructing the temple. They didn't want people to be religious or have a place to pray. You can see how it would be almost impossible to figure out where the stones go without an indication of what it looked like before it was damaged.
A stone lotus flower. These are everywhere throughout all the temples. These symbolize purity and bring good luck. Many of them are damaged because they were just placed on top of the towers, making it easy for the Thai people (Siam) to push it off. This one is in relatively good condition.
Most of the temples are built from sandstone, which is incredibly heavy. That small piece felt like it was 15 or 20 lbs.
The Royal Palace. The king meditated at the top every 2 hrs. He had over a thousand concubines at the palace.
This is the royal bath, where the concubines bathed. The king usually had five wives and would pick a new wife from the concubines if one of his wives died. Other men loved to marry former concubines because the women knew how to run a household, give massages, etc.
The Elephant Terrace, named for the intricate elephant carvings along the side. It sits near the Royal Court where the king would sit and be entertained during their version of the olympics.
Sitting near the terrace, the king would look out over these towers where acrobats and tightrope walkers would perform for him. It was a celebration of the harvest. They had a stone pit where they would light a torch. They would then run the flame around before the start of the games. I thought the Greeks started this Olympic tradition, but maybe they both did.
We did a quick trip through the market before we left. Theara said these markets are similar to those in Vietnam. They are, but they have a different feel. "Same same but different," he says. This holds true for about everything in Cambodia and the Khmer love this saying.
I love the variety of eggs they sell.
We packed up at the hotel and made a few stops before heading to the airport.
So long, Steung Siem Reap.
We stopped by a local workshop where they take poor, and typically disabled, people from the village and teach them a trade.
Carving sandstone.
We also stopped by a silk factory, run by the same owners of the trade school.
The mulberry trees they grow to feed the silk worm.
The worms eat twice a day. She is giving the worms in the tray shredded mulberry leaves. They have a hardy appetite.
Our silk farm guide showing us the difference between raw silk and fine silk.
She is separating out the raw silk and spinning it.
The next station spun the fine silk, which is on the inside of the cocoon.
They made the dyes there too, dyed the silk, then put it on spools, then weaved it. It takes between 1 to 4 days for them to weave a silk scarf, depending on the intricacy of the pattern.
A few more minutes to kill, so we stopped by one of two reservoirs for Angkor City. The US gave Cambodia $30 million to repair this in 1965 after it dried up.
A typical moment in the local village.
Street snacks--beetles and crickets. They take the wings off the beetles before they eat them. Anna offered me $50 bucks to eat one. Maybe for $75....
Smoked fish for sale. You can eat the small ones whole, but you only eat the meat of the large ones.
Their version of a shish kabob.
Just whipping up some squid.
A few random tidbits:
I mentioned the high prevalence of tuberculosis. The disease was transmitted to so many people because of the close working and living quarters in the work camps (in the rice fields) during Pol Pot's rule. They also had a high rate of HIV/AIDS after the UN took control of Cambodia for a few years in the 1990s. The aid workers were from countries all over the world. They used Khmer prostitutes, who then spread the disease throughout the country.
School is free for children, but they must buy their own books. Kids then take a test at the end of high school to determine what percentage they must pay to go to a university. The top students pay around 20 percent of the tuition rate and the lowest-scoring students must pay 100 percent if they want to go. The literacy rate is around 50 percent, a few years ago it was in the 30s.
Vietnam helped Cambodia oust the Khmer Rouge from power. In return they wanted to control Cambodia. The countries negotiated a deal in which Vietnam would control it for ten years, but the deal was later renegotiated due to continued violence. During the period of control by Vietnam after Pol Pot's rule, the Vietnamese killed many Cambodians (at least in the Khmer's version of the story). Eventually, they renegotiated the deal, permitting the Vietnamese to cross the border and live in Cambodia as they wish. I believe Theara also said the Vietnamese who live here don't have to pay taxes. Over 2 million Vietnamese now live in Cambodia and seem to make up a large portion of the middle/upper class. They came with significantly more money than the Cambodians and started shops in Phenom Phen.
It was the end of the rainy reason, but a great time to visit. The rain kept it cool (at least cooler than some other months) and the temples were not crowded. Around December, they are packed and it is difficult to walk around. We were often one of a few people at the temple. 4 days, 3 nights was the perfect length of time to spend here, but you could certainly find more things to do on a longer trip. The beaches in the south are supposed to be gorgeous. They are currently finishing the airport near them, so it will soon be much easier to access them.
We are off to Bangkok tonight. I'm not sure any country will be able to top Cambodia. It really is a kingdom of wonder.
The bumper sticker on our "tourmobile."
We at the apartment we are staying in Bangkok around 10, ate and crashed. Anna's friend's parents have an apartment here and they were nice enough to let us stay.
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Location:Siem Reap, Cambodia
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