Siem Reap: Temples D'Angkor

It was some time last September, just before I decided to quit my job, that I spent a week’s worth of lunch hours planning out a two week vacation to the Angkor temples. It didn’t take long to realize that the trip wouldn’t be feasible in such a short period of time, so the following week’s lunch hours were spent formulating an exit plan and a three month itinerary of Southeast Asia (which has expanded since). Before all this, a trip to Angkor was hollow rhetoric. A place I’d tell friends I dreamed of seeing but never actually made any effort to go.

Before heading out to the temples today, we (I buddied up with Ngai, an American Peace Corps volunteer I met on yesterday’s bus) stopped off at Psar Chaa, Siem Reap’s central market, for a quick bite and some souvenir shopping. While navigating the maze of shops, I picked up a handy Krama (the Khmer scarf and a source of national identity) for a couple of bucks. Among its many uses, the Krama can be made into a towel, a dust mask (a must in Cambodia), a blanket (it’s quite large), a bandanna (which, when put on in a certain way, makes the wearer look like a terrorist), a makeshift pair of swim shorts and a pillow. Stylish and functional.

The Angkor temples were commissioned by a series of Khmer God kings (much like the pyramids of the Egyptian Pharaohs) between the ninth and fourteenth centuries as tributes to their respective Hindu and Buddhist deities (and probably epitaphs to their enormous egos). The Angkorian civilization eventually collapsed in the fifteenth century following an invasion by the Siamese. The temples were subsequently left to the elements.

The Southern gate of Angkor Thom served as our first glimpse of the city’s past grandeur. A giant Buddha head looms over the gated entrance.

Bayon - 216 giant stone heads (known as Avalokiteshvara if anybody's interested) pointing in all directions keep a watchful eye on Angkor’s citizens. It is believed that these faces were modeled after King Jayavarman VII, probably to exert his power over his people.



Baphoun

Thanks for the tip:

Terrace of elephants

Terrace of the Leper King

Ta Promh - Overrun with trees, Ta Promh is probably the most atmospheric temple in Angkor.



It’s a shame that pop culture has watered down Ta Promh’s historical significance. The site is now commonly referred to as the place where they shot a scene from the Tomb Raider movie.

The tree from the movie: