Angkor Wat

July 9, 2017

We had paced ourselves with visiting temples so today was our final day and we had saved the most notorious one for last - Angkor Wat. Although we had come out to the entrance and main grounds the first night we arrived in Siem Reap, we did not have time to enter the temple. The sun was hot at 9:00 AM when we set off. Being the closest temple to Siem Reap, the ride takes only 15 minutes.

A rare shot of the temple (no tourists in the way!)

Although this is the most famous of all the temples at Siem Reap, and we all thought it had merit, we all thought there were many others that deserved attention, particularly the Banteay Srei. This was due to its compact size, but impressive carvings.

The heat was overwhelming. Luke and Levi went back to the hotel and Jack, Nate and I went to Rehash Trash, an organization that teaches mothers from abused or uneducated backgrounds skills to create beautiful, usable household items from trash. Nate and I learned to crochet bracelets and keychains from plastic bags gathered from local markets. These bags were washed and dried and then we cut them into strips to crochet. The products the women make they can sell at markets and earn income for their families. Nate was thrilled with his bracelet.

The bowls were my favourite.

The rain was coming down so hard we needed to wait to go back to the hotel. The streets were flooded.

Jack, no longer able to cut his own hair, shelled out the $2 for a haircut. Professionally done!

Trying for an early bedtime to get ready for the early departure to Bangkok tomorrow.

Siem Reap

July 8, 2017

Saturday, going with Ans' pictures and recommendations we were off in our tuk tuk heading over an hour north of the Siem Reap to Banteay Srei. It is a small temple with beautiful, intricate carvings. That could be why its name means Citadel of Beauty or Citadel of the Women. It was well worth the long ride to see it.

This temple was very different from others we had seen. Due to its distance from the city it sees fewer tourists.

A drink before we headed back to the city from this tiny restaurant.

The ride back had some rain, but not the usual downpour.

Getting ready for the possible downpour. Lowering the sides on the tuk tuk.

Homes along the road.



Jack and I left the boys at the hotel to swim while we went to the Angkor National Museum. It was a lesson in Buddhism and Hinduism, both of which we have very little background on. We were hoping for more information on how the temples were constructed but that was not the aim of this museum.

The evening was some Khmer curry for supper with Ans and Evert.

The pizza at Pot Pan is delicious if you don't mind the hour wait.

Massage parlours are popular! These large tanks soak feet while the fish nibble off the dead skin. We already had this experience in the waterfall at Luang Prabang.

Maybe this is a necessary sign to post. Could explain why our laundry came back so rank in Vietnam.

Temples

July 7, 2017
Siem Reap

Our tuk tuk driver will be at our service for the next 3 days. He was waiting for our 8 AM departure to Angkor Thom, one of the largest ancient Khmer cities. We entered through the south gate that has been restored (unfortunately I think).

The city houses other temples, but most of it is now forest. From the gate on to one of the most amazing temples we saw, the Bayon.

The Bayon is know as the temple of faces. It has undergone additions and changes over the centuries changing it from Hindu worship to Buddhist.

Heading out of Angkor Thom, the most photographed temple was next on route - Ta Prohm. We refer to it as the tree temple. I liked it because it did not seem to be as restored. It had been left to nature where trees have set down there enormous roots and parts of the walls have crumbled. It is confusing to walk around as it has many compact passways and buildings close together.

I was awed by the beauty of how nature had grown to be a part of this temple. The craftsmanship and detail is centuries worth of peoples life work.

By now, the temperature was steadily rising and we opted to head back to the hotel to cool off. We have 2 more days of temple exploring so best not to get templed out on the first day.

The entrance to our hotel looks like a tropical oasis. I envy being able to do so much living outdoors. Kitchens, living spaces are all open to the elements. This is after one of the downpours.

Bus Trip

July 6
Phnom Penh to Siem Reap

Time to say good bye to PP. This is not a city high on my list to return to. I thought earlier I was being harsh in my description, but we all agreed it is one dirty, polluted city.

The smells are overwhelming and nauseating. You get to know and remember a place by the way it smells. We needed the face masks.

We walk to the riverfront after the evening of rain and our feet are muck. There is pavement somewhere under the layers of dirt. The mud is sprayed up the back of legs and soaked feet. The side walks are wide but foot traffic is not possible. People drive cars, scooters and set up shops and impromptu restaurants on them.

Toyotas and Lexus make up the majority of cars.

No idea what this is.

Waiting for the bus to Siem Reap in the hotel lobby this morning.

The 5.5 hour drive to Siem Reap was on a well paved, flat road. I thought Cambodia would be more mountainous; not this section. All houses on stilts.

These grass structures remind me of the Zulu beehives.

Arriving in Siem Reap the hotel offered to take us to Angkor Wat to watch the sunset. We needed to purchase the entrance tickets outside of town. Lonely Planet has listed this as the number one place to visit in the world. Apparently many people read Lonely Planet (ha ha). And this is low season. I can't imagine the crowds during high season. We had the photo id created. Nate was free for being under 12. The cashier wanted to make sure we had not made a mistake by classifying Levi as being over 12.

I have been looking forward to this. Not to be let down, the first glimpses as we arrived via tuk tuk were nothing short of amazing. We did not even make it into the temple but just through the main gates and into the grounds of Angkor Wat.

Parts still have dye in the rock that lead to the belief that at one time these magnificent structures must have been very colourful.

The library inside the walls.

The guards were anxious to clear everyone out as 6 pm approached. Along with that came the pounding rain so common during the wet season. Reached our tuk tuk just in time.

We have the 3 day pass so I am planning out the route. An early start is planned for tomorrow. Can't wait!

Everyone should know

Phnom Penh, Cambodia
July 4, 2017

Some places in the world have been deemed a UNESCO world heritage site to preserve the culture or historical buildings. The Killing Fields 15km outside Phnom Penh do not have any lasting buildings, but have been given this merit because it its felt everyone should be aware of what happened in Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge reign during the late 1970s. We debated taking the boys to visit this site but after some research and discussion we felt it was a worthwhile learning opportunity albeit some very heavy content.

We took a tuk tuk with Ans and Evert through some other parts of the city to reach the Killing Fields.

It is difficult to comprehend the atrocities committed by Cambodians to Cambodians on the now peaceful grounds.

A few years ago I read the book When Broken Glass Floats; a memoir written by a woman who survived the tragedies from 1975 - 1979. It is difficult to learn more with the realia present.

Pol Pot was the leader during this time and seemed to want to set his country back to that of the stone age. He wanted  to create a completely agrarian, communal society. To achieve this, 3 million people were either brutally murdered or starved to death.

The area is respectfully silent as people listen to the audio guide giving explanations of the parts of the fields and translating stories told by survivors. These are not easy stories to listen to and we previewed what Nate and Levi would hear.

Bracelets left to show respect for those that died. Bones and pieces of clothing still surface from the mass graves after the wet season.

This opens up some good discussion about how some people get into power and why people hate.