One of the 7 Wonders of the World - Angkor 吴哥

VICHET "BROTHER"

Thursday 18 Aug 2011. Siem Reap

I book us on a full day tour of Central Angkor with a professional tour guide for a sum of $60. In additional we pay $20 per pax for the park entrance charges.

Vichet meets us at Frangipani ready to rock and roll at 7.30am. He is to be our guide for our momentous trip to the Angkor Central.

SIEM REAP, we ask, means Siam (Thailand) Defeated (Reap). Interesting. And Vichet ( I call him "Brother" because he always use the term "brother" as a term of endearment whenever he addresses us) gives us a brief history of Cambodia/Kampuchea from the period the French colonized the country in early 1800's to after the Pol Pot regime in 1979.

We start our tour today at the South Gate of ANGKOR THOM which was the largest city during the Khmer Ruler Jayavarman VII era (c 1181-1220). He also commissioned the construction of ANGKOR WAT, the largest temple ever built during the Angkor era. The city was 3 km on a side and has 5 huge gates leading to it. one gate each for north, south and west; two gates on the east - one is a gate of victory which the king entered if he won a war, the other a gate of defeat.

The channel of water (moat) surrounding Angkor Thom. The moat is more than 100 m wide

The giant statues along both sides of the causeway leading to the south gate of Angkor Thom form two rows: devas on the left and ashuras on the right. The figures are holding a naga (serpent)


On the causeway over the moat to the south gate




Water of reflections (moat)




Monkeys are sacred to the Hindus/ Khmer Buddhists


Carving of the face of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara. It looks down on those who enter the south gate. The gate tower is 200 m high, and the bodhisattva's faces, on all 4 sides of the tower, are about 3 m high

Our first stop in the Angkor Thom is the BAYON temple, built in the middle of the 11th century (1060) by then Ruler Jayavarman VII.



The volcanic sandstones were stacked one on top another. Then the craftsmen carved figurines and inscriptions on them

The carvings give us an understanding of the daily life during the Angkor era. husband, wife and children



Monkeys eating fruits

A wild boar/ pig

A turtle bites a man's backside

Chams/Vietnamese soldiers at war with the Khmers. The oarsmen and warriors with spears and shields are depicted with exciting realism


Bayon temple has 54 towers with faces of Avalokiteshvara on 4 sides. It is built as a pyramid, gradually rising to the central sanctuary, 45 m high

Linga (male genital) and Uni (female genital). The water that is poured on linga flows out through a groove in uni and legend has it that the water gives health (not to promote childbirth)

Another pretty tourist

Pretty Japanese girl (tourist)

After visiting Bayon we make our tracks to Ta Phrom - temple in the jungle. Ta Phrom has many old 200+ years old trees growing in the temple and on top of the temple.

This is a picture of the causeway leading to Baphuon. We skipped Baphuon and went straight to Ta Phrom

Brother makes a point by drawing in the sand

Ta Phrom has 3 levels - Hell, Earth and Heaven

These trees are called "Sprong" - apparently 200+ years old

Big black ants making tracks

The volcanic sandstones are lying on the floor after they are excavated. There is a plan to restore them to their former glory. All these sites are UNESCO protected.

Darren and I are asked by Brother to point at something and then he took the pictures for us. In his words "This is a money shot!"

Apsara the dancing goddess

Amazing root system of the Ta Phrom trees. The original "sprong" has already died and then a later "new" banyan tree grows over it

This is an illusion. The tree is not growing on top of the temple structure but behind it

After the visit to Angkor Thom (of which we only covered Bayon and Ta Phrom temples) we decide to go back to town and Brother takes us to "Khmer Kitchen" for lunch. It is in a small lane just off Pub St. near Old Market. We invite him to join us. I order Fish Amok, banana salad, fried pork ribs, Angkor and coke. The lunch is fantastic here and we only pay $14.50. Unbelievable value.

After lunch we journey to visit Angkor Wat and by this time it is showery and out come the umbrellas. Brother tells us stories of the Good and Evil. The monkey soldiers of Indian origin vs. the Sri Lankan soldiers.

Angkor Wat

On the causeway leading up to the Angkor Wat temple

Darren has got Angkor Wat by his fingers

We climb the steep stairs up to the top level and meet some old folks (maybe in their 70's) doing the same. Darren feels the steepness and comments that we should travel more whilst we are able. He also comments that we are not too far off from the Cambodian's average life span of 65!

I like this design of the "window frame"

In touch with Apsara the dancing godess

Looking down from the temple

A buddha figure in the temple, sitting on a serpent

Going down the steep steps from the temple

In the overall scheme of things, the architecture, the grandeur, the design, the functions, the perspective; of ANGKOR WAT, is truly impressive. There is so much to see and to understand but we do not have the time. We get back after the long day to Frangipani Villa for a rest and I change to take another dip in the pool. We get our Air Asia boarding passes printed and start to mentally get ourselves ready for the early start to the airport tomorrow.

For dinner tonight we make our way to Pub St for BBQ. I am so tired I do not bother to remember where we have the dinner. We decide on BBQ mackerel (Sabah fish) and two frog legs. We also have amok, banana salad, Angkor and coffee. All for a grand sum of $15.

Tomorrow morning we rise early and will leave the Villa by 6.45am after breakfast. We should be able to get to the airport by 7.15am for our 8.30am departure. Home sweet home. What an unforgettable trip for me to one of the 7 wonders of the world.