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| Angkor Wat at sunrise on day 2 |
However, for personal reasons we would like a record of how
we spent our time here but friends and family (and anyone else) can be forgiven
for glossing over this particular chapter although anyone who wishes to visit
may find some useful information on how to tackle a visit there.
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| Sunset at Angkor Wat on day 1 |
There was other building during this period and, it is believed, afterwards
through to the 16th century but it most of these were perishable and
therefore did not survive. Although
conflicts between neighbouring nations and other factors shifted the seat of power
to modern day Phnom Penh in the 15th century, the kingdom of Angkor
survived until the 16th century. Certain temples were abandoned but Angkot Wat remained a place of worship throughout to the present day.
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| The north eastern corner of Angkor Wat |
Once we had arrived in Siem Reap we had to come up with a plan
of action and an itinerary of some description.
The park covers a massive area and there are so many different temples
and other buildings that it would be almost impossible to visit them all even
with a 7 day pass. Not if you want to
enjoy your time there.
Luckily we had our trusty tuk tuk driver, Walter, on hand to
guide and advise. We had to admit to
Walter that we found our mission incredibly daunting, were completely fazed by
the whole Angkor Wat thing, and didn’t really know where to start. Unless you seriously intend spending 15 hours
each day marching from temple to temple you are not going to see everything you
want without collapsing from exhaustion at the end of it.
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| Part of the interior of Angkor Wat |
We had no real plan whatsoever. We knew we had to prioritise but we had no
idea where to start, how to spend our days and I can’t stress enough that at
this point we could were seriously overwhelmed by the whole prospect.
Angkor Wat is actually the name of the main temple complex
and the best known of all the temples in the area. Angkor is the name of the ancient city area
and Wat means temple. Angkor Wat is the
largest Hindu complex in the world, the largest religious monument in the
world, and one of the most instantly recognisable images on a par with the
pyramids.
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| The raised external gallery which encircles the whole of Angkor Wat |
The Angkor Archaeological
Park is massive, covering hundreds of square kilometres, and includes many
temples, buildings and terraces in various stages of collapse, restoration or
repair, some of which are miles away from the main Angkor Wat temple itself.
We had 6 days to explore this wonder of the world and felt
this timescale seriously limited our options.
Most people seem to choose to spend only 2 or 3 days as many are time
restricted, however some, to our amazement, spend only a single day at the site,
darting about set routes from dawn to dusk taking in only the major attractions. This was not how we wanted to experience
Angkor.
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| View from the west of Angkor Wat |
So lacking any real inspiration we decided that we would
spend our first day at Angkor Wat, it being the main star of the show, and catch
the sunrise.
After that we would wander
around the temple for a couple of hours before heading back to the guesthouse
to mull things over a bit and see whether we could come up with a realistic and
workable plan.
Day One – Sunrise at
Angkor Wat
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| View from the south - a 7 headed naga can be seen just to the right of the walkway |
We emerged from our guesthouse at 5.00am rather bleary eyed and
Walter was waiting outside for us in the dark with his tuk tuk, all bright eyed
and bushy tailed. He took one look at
us, uttered the magic word “coffee” and we were whisked quickly to a local café
which was bustling with all the local tuk tuk drivers having breakfast at that
ungodly hour before beginning their day ferrying about tourists. We downed our delicious Vietnamese-like
coffee, felt duly rejuvenated, and were soon on our way.
We stopped at the ticket office and bought our 7 day passes and
as we headed towards Angkor Wat we joined a growing convey of tuk tuks transporting
fellow tourists doing exactly what we were doing – heading to the star of the
show hoping for a spectacular sunrise.
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| Another classic view from across the lake to the east of Angkor Wat |
It was still pitch black when we arrived but there were lots
of other people heading along the main causeway across the moat so we joined
the growing crowds. Sensible people had
brought torches as the ground was uneven and there were a few obstacles along
the way and the sun was still nowhere to be seen.
We weren’t sure where we were heading so we just followed
the procession of people in the dark.
There must have been a couple of thousand people doing exactly what we
were doing and once we passed through the western stone gates leading us inside the walls
surrounding the huge complex we joined the throngs in front of the east facing
part of the temple and spent the next hour or so just hanging about waiting for
the sun to do its thing.
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| Another classic view with the library on the left |
While we were waiting we bought the recommended book
“Ancient Angkor” available throughout the site from sellers everywhere. The book contains all the information you
could possibly want about the temples including who built what, when and why,
what the carvings, sculptures and bas reliefs all mean, the stories they
tell, or the actual events they depict.
This book was invaluable and really does provide you with all the information you could possibly want
or need including certain points of interest to look out for and how long you
need to spend at each site. Invaluable
though it is, there is just so much information you can take in and you quickly
begin to glaze over. We weren’t so interested in all the details that we wanted to take an exam in it but the book is useful.
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| Carvings on a pillar in the outside gallery |
One particularly interesting point the book makes is that it
is a myth that Angkor lay abandoned and undiscovered for centuries until it was
rediscovered by Europeans (specifically a Frenchman) in the late nineteenth
century. In fact, as I said at the beginning, the main temple at
Angkor Wat has always been a place of worship and while it is true that many of
the temples were abandoned and left to be reclaimed by the jungle, none were ever
entirely forgotten about.
This is a typical urban myth peddled by European
colonialists although it is fair to say that this Frenchman (his name escapes
me) was responsible for bringing the site to the attention of Europeans who,
during the Victorian era were increasingly fascinated by ancient sites, began
to visit the temples and worldwide interest in the site steadily grew.
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| Stone figures holding a naga on the causeway |
As we patiently waited for the sunrise it became clear that
as sunrises go, it wasn’t going to be a particularly spectacular one. However this did not dampen our enthusiasm or
diminish for us the occasion of being at one of the world’s most famous
landmarks as the familiar outline slowly became clear against the growing light
of the morning sky. The atmosphere was
nothing like we expected and it was not unlike waiting for the headliner to
come on at a music festival (only a bit quieter and a lot warmer). It was truly an experience that left us a
little awestruck.
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| Paul walking through the gate to Angkor Thom |
The dawn sky slowly filled with light and the iconic Angkor Wat
outline gradually revealed itself. As we
stood there, we found it hard believe we were actually there. Paul had wanted to visit Angkor Wat for over
25 years and to finally be there really was a dream fulfilled.
When it was obvious we were not going to be treated to
picture postcard sunrise we decided to leave the crowds and start exploring the
temple itself. We headed around to the
south and started to walk around the external gallery first which is where many
of the exquisitely preserved bas reliefs are can be found.
Over the centuries there has of course been damage, both
accidental and deliberate – some damage was caused during the civil war but
mercifully little, even terrorists seemingly have some respect for religious
monuments. Mostly it has been simple
wear and tear over the years, the artwork being exposed to the elements over
the centuries, and basic neglect.
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| Apsara carvings at Bayon |
We wandered around the north gallery, marvelling at the
skill and talent of the ancient artists, and then when we reached the western
end of the temple we bumped into monkeys.
Not literally of course, but there were plenty of the little primates hanging
around the tourists to see what, if anything, there was on offer. We had no food to tempt them with so just
watched them as they frolicked about gratefully accepting fruit from visitors
who had come prepared, completely unfazed by their human spectators.
After a few hours exploring the temple, the sun was
beginning to beat down with a ferocity that was becoming difficult to bear, and
it was time to meet up with Walter again so we headed back to the tuk tuk car
park which was packed solid and where by some miracle Walter found us among the
sea of tourists.
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| A Buddha through a doorway |
We were returned safely to our guesthouse and after a short
discussion with Walter we decided that we would spend the rest of the day
studying the guide book, and try to plan some kind of itinerary for the next
few days. One thing was becoming increasingly
clear to us: there were so many temples
and they were spread over such a huge area that it seemed that even a week
would not be long enough to visit all the sites we wanted to.
By the end of the day we were not feeling any more
optimistic that we would be able to make the most of our visit to these iconic
monuments.
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| Bayon Temple - you can just about make out the faces of the Buddhas |
Day 2 – Angkor Thom
(Bayon, Bapoun, Elephant Terrace, Leper King Terrace, Royal Palace, Phimeankanas
As arranged Walter met us outside our guesthouse the next
morning at 6.30am. An early start meant
that we would begin our day sightseeing before the unbearable heat descended
and we would also reach the first temple before the crowds turned up. This turned out to be a good decision and
became our routine for the rest of our visit (except the last day).
On our second day we decided to tackle Angkor Thom which is
a complex of temples and terraces, situated quite close to the Angkor Wat
Temple. Where Angkor Wat was purely a
place of worship, Angkor Thom was a combination of temples, palaces – more of a
small town.
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| Bapoun Temple with its impressive walkway |
Our route took us past Angkor Wat and as we did so the sun
decided to put on a stunning performance so Walter stopped so we could take a
few photographs. As we stood there mesmerised,
watching the golden sun light up the sky behind the temple we knew this was a
sight which would be imprinted on our memories forever (but a photograph always
helps for good measure!). After several
minutes we were soon on our way again.
Our first stop at Angkor Thom was a main causeway across a
moat (moats are a particular feature throughout Angkor!) and through an impressive gate. Once again, Walter stopped to give us an
opportunity to take some photographs. The
bridge causeway was flanked by a huge naga either side.
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| Phimeanakas Temple |
A naga is a many headed snake (usually 7
heads) and they are found everywhere throughout the Angkor Wat site (and
indeed, throughout Cambodia and other parts of Asia but mainly Cambodia). The naga was held by a line of warriors in
varying stages of disrepair and although there are similar causeways, this one
is the best preserved example.
We were then off again, headed towards the Bayon Temple and
we were fortunate to have the place almost to ourselves because it was still
early and despite our little stop-offs we were still ahead of the crowds.
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| Leper King Terrace |
The Bayon Temple is famous for its many huge Buddha faces on
each sides of the many spires (for want of a better word) and also for the many
carvings of apsaras (dancing girls which are one of the clear indications of
the influence of Indian culture in Khmer civilisation).
There are also carvings throughout the Bayon Temple, and
some evidence of restoration but we simply enjoyed wandering around, marvelling
at the talent and skill of the craftsmen from centuries ago.
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| A small section of the Elephant Terrace |
From there we walked to Bapoun Temple was our next stop and
this was reached by a long narrow raised walkway. This was one of the few temples where women were
only allowed to enter if they covered their knees and shoulders (this rule does
not of course apply to men which part of me finds a little irritating but when
in Rome…).
Although my shoulders were
covered, my shorts missed my knees by an inch so I was barred from entering and
Paul went in alone. It was impressive
enough from the outside and, according to Paul, the inside involved climbing to
three different levels, much the same as the next, so I didn’t feel like I
missed very much.
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| Ta Prohm |
Other parts of Angkor Thom included the Elephant Terrace
which is, as you can guess, a massive terrace of carved elephants. Next to that, is the Leper King Terrace which
is another collage of intricate and well preserved carvings.
Also forming part of Angkor Thom is Phimeankanas and the
Royal Palace, both in varying stages of disrepair and restoration but
nevertheless impressive.
By now it was about 1pm and we had just about taken in as
much as we could so we headed back to meet Walter at the allotted place.
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| Ta Prohm |
We were still feeling a little overwhelmed but slightly less
so. When Walter dropped us off at our guesthouse
he suggested that following day he take us on what is known as the Grand Tour,
and we were happy to be led by him.
It
was clear that Walter was knowledgeable about the whole site and while he
clearly did not want to appear rude, it was clear we needed some serious
guidance and he was able to recommend itineraries based upon what our
individual requirements were, how long we had, and what our interests
were. He was also keen to make sure we
saw all the “important” sites and he was quickly becoming invaluable.
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| Banteay Kdei |
By the end of day 2 we were beginning to feel
as if our plans were coming together.
Day 3 – Ta Prohm, Banteay
Kdei, Pre Rup, East Mebon, Neak Pean, Preah Kahn
It was another early start and at Walter’s suggestion we
embarked on the Grand Tour starting with Ta Prohm.
Ta Prohm is iconic among the temples of Angkor and will be
familiar to most as being the temple famously reclaimed by the jungle, albeit
in a controlled manner. Nature has been
allowed to repossess the temple but in order for it to remain accessible to
exploration and safe for most visitors, and to protect the structure of the
building, the authorities do control it to a certain extent.
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| Pre Rup |
Trees roots have crept over walls, through
doorways, in between bricks, and vines twisted around pillars and lintels. Dead or weakened vegetation has been removed
or cut back in places to keep the building relatively safe.
The trees and vines entwining the buildings give the
impression that the temple itself is living and breathing entity. The temple appears to blend into and become
part of the surrounding natural landscape.
If you were to conjure up in your mind’s eye an image of Angkor Wat, it
is likely it would be a snapshot from Ta Prohm.
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| East Mebon |
To be there, to be confronted with these images with your
own eyes, is impossible to describe.
This was particularly so for Paul as it had been his dream to visit
Angkor as long as he could remember, and to finally find himself standing
before each iconic monument was certainly for him one of the highlights of this
trip.
Ta Prohm was not the only temple to be engulfed by the
jungle but because it was the first time we witnessed this phenomena it was all
the more remarkable. Little did we know that throughout the Angkor
park we would see this fusion of nature and man made structure at almost every
turn.
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| The unique island temple of Neak Pean |
Once again, thanks to Walter’s guidance, we were lucky to
visit Ta Prohm early before the hordes starting arriving at about 8.30am. It was becoming abundantly clear that an
early start, while absolutely knackering, was a sure fire way of seeing at
least one temple in relative peace and it made our visits all the more
atmospheric.
Walter was an absolutely gem of a guide because he advised us which temples to visit early, leaving the
less well attended ones later in the day when most visitors would be following
the well-trodden route.
On day 3 we also visited Banteay Kdei, Pre Rup, East Mebon
and Preah Kahn and Neak Pean – all temples on a route easy to follow on a single day without
rushing around like idiots.
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| A gopura (temple gateway) at Preah Khan being overtaken by tree roots |
Neak Pean is unique as it is an island temple but there is not much to see and we didn't waste too much time there.
Preah Khan was similar to Ta Prohm with the invasion of nature but the temple has been allowed to decay and it is almost a better example. We preferred Preah Khan for this reason.
Once again
we were back by about 1.00pm, the heat of the day getting just a bit much, in
need of a little afternoon nap before
heading out to Pub Street for a bite to eat.
Day 4 – Banteay Srei,
Kbal Spen, Banteay Samre
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| Beautiful carvings at Preah Khan |
Day 4 was a day spent travelling quite a bit because the
three sites were some distance from Siem Reap.
We began at Banteay Srei which is a small temple but covered
in amazing carvings of apsaras and other symbolic bas reliefs.
Once again, we were early and there were few
tourists around so we were able to wander around at our leisure, without
stepping on anyone’s toes (and managing to get a few decent photographs giving
the impression we had the place to ourselves!).
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| Nature reclaiming at Preah Khan |
It is hard to explain the difference it makes when the buildings
are quiet; the atmosphere is so different and you don’t feel hurried along and
the buildings don’t have the feel of a museum.
Visiting early in the morning also bathes the temples in a beautiful light depending on the structure but Banteay Srei was lovely to visit in the morning.
It was a small temple but there was plenty to look at and we spent at least an hour wandering around before heading off to our next stop.
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| Banteay Srei in the early morning light |
Another popular site is Kbal Spen which involves a rather
long walk up to a waterfall and a natural bridge where carvings have been
shaped along the river bed. Being the
dry season, the waterfall was not particularly impressive but it was a
beautiful spot and a lovely walk to the top.
Neither of us could really see the particular attraction of this
particular site, to be honest, particularly when you compare it to the many intricately
carved and impressive temples elsewhere at Angkor. However, we enjoyed the long walk through the
jungle, the views as we walked up the mountain and we were in the area anyway.
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| Some of the carvings at Banteay Srei |
Our last stop on day 4 was Banteay Samre which was another
temple with many carvings and bas reliefs and also a rather laid back resident
cat. The temple itself was, well another
temple, and I am at a loss as to how to describe yet another magnificent
example of the Khmer architecture.
Even
when we were there we struggled sometimes to summon up sufficient enthusiasm
for each building, some so obviously more magnificent than others, but the less
than magnificent can hardly be described as mediocre. I can only imagine it would be boring as hell
reading about it and that pictures will be much more appealing to the vast
majority.
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| The waterfall at Kbal Spen |
Day 5 – Beng Mealea, Lolei,
Preah Ko, Bakong
We visited Beng Mealea on our fifth day and this temple is
one which does warrant some description.
This temple is about an hour’s drive from Siem Reap and one which is
missed out by those on a whistle stop one day tour but we cannot recommend it
enough.
t is the only temple which has been left as is. It was abandoned (although never forgotten
and that distinction should always be made) and left to nature and the elements.
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| Banteay Samre |
When interest in the Angkor Wat site grew, this was the one
temple which was left as it was found; no effort has been made to restore,
rebuild or, it would seem, make particularly safe (although there are a few
handrails and wobbly wooden walkways but they do not instill a great deal of
confidence).
Walls have collapsed and roofs fallen in and no attempt has
been made to sort any of it out. As the
building has slowly crumbled, so the jungle has slowly crept in to reclaim the
space it once occupied and as a result the temple is a stunning example of
ancient temple and tropical jungle entwined.
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| Beng Mealea |
In order to see the best of this temple you really must take
a local guide to show you around this building otherwise you would never discover
certain parts of crumbling building which look like it will collapse should you
even think of venturing inside. You
access certain parts through gaps so small it wouldn’t cross your mind to
attempt to crawl through.
Even I
struggled to squeeze into certain parts of the building through small doorways, passed
fallen stones, and through small windows so as you can imagine Paul found it
incredibly difficult.
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| Classic shot taken from a roof |
The guides themselves are people from the local village and
this is a rare occasion in Cambodia where the local people benefit from tourism
in an area. Usually the government will
try to ensure that it is the government that profits as much as possible but it
is important to try to support local people but I digress.
There is no set fee for the guide service and you simply
follow your allotted guide through the maze of collapsed rubble, up and over
collapsed walls and roofs, crawling through impossibly small gaps, all in order
to see the finest example of man made structure and jungle fighting for
supremacy. The guides point out carvings
of particular interest and although their command of English is limited, it is certainly
more than sufficient. And you have to
remember these are poor, uneducated people, so the fact they know any English
at all is admirable.
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| Lolei temple - shame about the scaffolding! |
The tour lasts about 45 minutes after which you give what
you think the tour was worth (we are probably always over generous but we hope that
makes up for the idiots who think a dollar is enough for someone’s time and
knowledge). Once we had our guided tour
we then went back inside to spend longer going around again at our leisure and
although it is quite a small temple, it really is one not to be missed and one
where you can easily spend a good couple of hours.
We also visited Lolei, Preah Ko and Bakong on day 5. Lolei was a lovely typical example of a simple temples with late dry season hairy grass roofs but unfortunately covered in scaffolding!
Preah Ko was small but pretty (another Khmer temple - what can you say?).
Bakong was quite impressive, but by this time temple fatigue was well and truly beginning to set in.
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| Preah Ko |
Day 6 – Thommanon,
Chao Say Tevoda ,Ta Keo, sunset at Angkor Wat
This was our final day and we had always intended starting
later (at about 2pm) and spending the afternoon exploring Angkor Wat Temple some
more (you need to visit at least twice because it is just too much to take in
in one visit) and then spend our final hours at Angkor by staying to watch the sunset
around 6pm.
However, Walter had other plans. He was really quite concerned that we had not
visited Thommanon or Chao Say Tevoda or Ta Keo, temples he considered to be
popular and therefore we should add them to our itinerary.
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| Bakong |
So, persuaded by our trusty tuk tuk driver,
we started at midday and headed out to the three “must sees”. The change in our plans involved Walter
making 3 extra short trips and he refused to accept any additional payment for
this, he just seemed genuinely concerned that we see these three temples.
And we are glad we did, the light was very good and the
temples were all beautiful.
On our way back to Angkor Wat however poor Walter burst a tyre and we were stranded for 20
minutes while he unhooked his motorbike and ran off down the road with it (literally). Rather impressively he was back in no time
and we were soon deposited at Angkor Wat for a final wander around the main
attraction before what we hoped would be a grand finale of a sunset (to make up
for the mediocre sunrise 5 days earlier).
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| Thommanon |
Sadly that was not to be the case and the sunset was as
unimpressive at the sunrise had been when we first started out. But we nevertheless enjoyed spending our last
hours wandering around Angkor and then just sitting on the grass gazing at
Cambodia’s most famous landmark, the iconic symbol of Khmer culture, as the sky
darkened marking the end of our time at Angkor.
We both agreed that nothing could disappoint us after 6 amazing days
exploring one of the most famous sites in the ancient world.
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| Chao Say Tevoda |
Credit must be given to Walter, who was a fantastic guide, always greeted us with water and beer in his cool box, and without his help we are not sure we would have seen as much as we did.
On a final note, we visited Cambodia towards the end of the
dry season and if we were to return (which we would like to) we would do so
during the rainy season. Certainly the
temples appear different covered in greenery and they would take on a life of
their own. Indeed, the whole of Cambodia
would be immersed in water and take on a different identity.
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| Ta Keo |
Maybe one day…
(More photos below)
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| Approaching Angkor Wat from the east gate |
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| The north east corner of Angkor Wat |
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| The star of the show |
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| Examples of beautiful carvings |
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| Yet more carvings |
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| Another view from inside the walls at Angkor Wat |
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| One of the pools inside the temple |
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| Examples of painting |
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| One of the exterior walkways |
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| The sunset was promising but never materialised |
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| The southern exterior gallery |
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| Our last glimpse of Angkor Wat |
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