Temples of Cambodia - July 14

When we landed in Cambodia last night, we were surprised by the fact that we had to purchase entry visas with cash in US dollars (something I’m sure I had read before, but hadn’t remembered).  Not just cash, but in Cambodia they don’t accept anything other than crisp, new bills. (You can use US dollars anywhere and prices are listed in dollars, but they don’t accept any old, torn, or dirty bills – it became a regular theme during our time here to have our money rejected at ticket booths and restaurants.)  I probably also read (and forgot) we should have traveled with extra passport photos for the visas. Luckily they are able to scan and use the photos in our passports for an extra fee. 

After getting visas sorted, we were picked up from the airport by a driver from our hotel.  Jeff and Michelle took a SE Asia trip last summer and I borrowed much of their itinerary…for this part of the trip, I just copied it exactly, same hotel and tour company.  So this hotel was an upgrade from our usual. We had a lovely four-person room with a balcony overlooking the pool in the inner courtyard.  By the time we got checked in, it was time for bed.

This morning started early with a delicious hotel breakfast buffet before meeting our tour guide, Sokoeurn, and driver, Chhen, in the lobby at 7:30 am to begin our day of touring temples.  Both men were really lovely – Thailand may be known as the Land of Smiles but the Khmer people we came in contact with were (perhaps more?) welcoming, friendly, and full of smiles. 

Our first stop was Angkor Wat – billed as the largest religious monument in the world. It dates from the middle of the 12^th century and it built in three rectangular levels: the first was used for education, the second for mediation for regular people, and the third for mediation for the royals.   Angkor Wat was built as a Hindu temple but converted to a Buddhist temple when a new king came to power.  When Buddhists took over, they simply moved the Hindu statues to other areas of the grounds and installed Buddhas in the central places.  They are very tolerant and believe that any religious statue can remain in holy places.  When Hindus were in power however, they removed any Buddha statues and scraped off wall carvings or “photoshoped” the carvings of Buddha on walls to appear more Hindu – changing the leg position from flat to more angular, for example.  Snake carvings outline the perimeter of the temple and they remain intact because Naga is important in both the Hindu and Buddhist traditions.

Our tour of Angkor Wat started by crossing over an impressive (200 m wide / 3+ miles perimeter) moat and being greeted by hordes of monkeys running about. 

Our guide first sat us down and gave us a wonderful introductory lesson about the history of Cambodia and the Khmer people, including more recent events and politics that he isn’t supposed to share with us.  I really should have read up a little before coming to this country.  He then took us along the first floor to show us the amazingly well-preserved, intricate wall carvings and described the stories they told.

In the bas reliefs the importance of each general was represented by the number of parasols surrounding him.  The king had 15!

We walked through the second level and waited in line to be admitted to the top level (they only allow 100 people up at a time) to walk in and around the five towers (a “quincunx” as they say) that are so distinctively Angkor Wat.

Our next stop was the walled city of Angkor Thom, the last capital of the Khmer empire, built 35 years after Angkor Wat.  The temple in the center of the city, Bayon, was built as a Buddhist temple to start and consists of 49 towers, most carved with four faces in each cardinal direction. It converted to Hindu and the vacillated back and forth under different monarchs before being abandoned to the jungle.  

We saw more incredible reliefs in the massive sandstone walls, learned about how Shiva lingas are used to make water holy, and went nose to nose with the king.

From there we walked over to Baphuon, a pyramid shaped temple also in Angkor Thom that was closed for 25 years for restoration by the French.  There is a long walkway leading up to the temple and ancient stones with numbers strewn about.  French archaeologists had identified and numbered all the stones in order to restore the temple but when they returned to finish the job after the Khmer Rouge, they discovered that all of their documents had been destroyed during the war along with all knowledge and records about the proper locations in which to replace the stones. 

We then drove to Preah Khan, the Buddhist King’s Father Temple where we learned about stupa and were able to hold light in our hands. 

We took a lunch break and tried amok, a mainstay of traditional Khmer food, which they were able to make vegetarian for us.  It came served in a big coconut shell and was delicious! 

After lunch we walked over to the Lady Temple, Banteay Srei, to see the beautiful, intricate carvings in pink sandstone from 967.  It was orginially dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva and was restored using anastylosis (using as much of the original architectural elements as possible)  in the early 1930s.

Then we went to a temple even older by 6 years, circa 961, called Pre Rup or Crematorium, and dedicated to Shiva (one of the Hindu trinity).  It gets its name from locals during the 16^th century cremating their dead in a 3-meter long structure that what was once likely a pediment to an old statue. 7371

Our last stop of the day (and probably my favorite) was the one dedicated to the King’s mother, Ta Prohm.  It had 36 towers (as compared to the 27 of the father’s temple).  It remains in much the same condition in which it was found – with trees growing in and out of the ruins.  The power of the trees to send roots that separate the stones in search for water is awe-inspiring and the general merging of the jungle and the ruins is picturesque to say the least. 

After we were dropped off at our hotel we set out on foot again to find a restaurant I had read about called the Peace Cafe - with a variety of vegetarian options and a fair trade store to boot.   When we finally took the tuk tuk back to the hotel I feel sound asleep, totally exhausted. 

Writing about all we saw I wish I could go back and see it all again.  The Khmer-style architecture is distinctly beautiful and I’m so glad we had the chance to experience it.