Angkor Thom

We now expected the crocodile pool noises, and slept much better our second night at Bun Kao Guesthouse. Excited about our first day at the Angkor Temples, we got up and went downstairs for a breakfast (included in our $14.00/day room cost) of baguettes, jam, a fried egg, and a banana. We grabbed a large water and headed over to Rosie's where we had arranged a tuk-tuk. After negotiating a price of $13.00 for the day, we headed off down the long, tree lined road, to the Angkor Thom complex, stopping only to purchase our 3 day, $40.00 tickets.

At the end of the tree lined road, we turned left and drove alone the south moat of Angkor Wat. We then turned right and continued along the Angkor Wat moat. This was our first view of Angkor Wat's 5, lotus shaped, towers rising to the blue sky. We passed Angkor Wat and continued to Angkor Thom. After discussions with other tourists, we decided to save Angkor Wat, the largest religious structure in the world.

Angkor Thom is one of the largest Khmer cities ever built, by Jayavarman VII, primarily dating to the 12th Century, and was the capital of the kingdom until the late 17th Century. Each city gate is lined with a causeway over the moat, lined with Gods holding the tail of Naga. At the south gate of Angkor Thom, our driver stopped, just before the moat, and we took photos and purchased our own Angkor Wat Temples book, from a hawker. Face towers stand at the end of the causeway and mark the entrance.

Inside the gates, our first stop was Bayon, the state temple of Jayavarman VII and his immediate successors. Construction began around 1200 and represents Hinduism and Buddhism. It is unique due to the quantity of face towers and the bas reliefs depicting daily life and Khmer history. We were greeted by a tour guide who lead us around the temple explaining the bas reliefs and pointing out the important features. The guide had one prostetic leg, having stepped on a land mine as a 14 year old boy. We spent about an hour and a half exploring this temple, then parted with our guide, paying him $10.00. The great thing about having a tuk-tuk ferry you around is the ability to walk through the temple and exit the other side while the tuk-tuk drives around to meet you.

After Bayon we were dropped off at Baphuon, dating to the mid 11th Century (1060). It was the state temple of Yasodharapura of King Udayadityavarman II, and is still under reconstruction. In the early 1970's, the French had begun reconstructing this temple which required extensive stabilization. In order to stabilize it, they had disassembled much of it, numbering and mapping each piece and laying them in a grid all around the temple grounds. When the Khmer Rouge seized power in 1975, they destroyed all photos, mapping & numbering. The French have been trying to unravel this mess and reconstruct Baphuon since the early 80's. The concourse to the temple is still surrounded by thousands of numbered blocks and pediments.

Under a tree, at the beginning of the concourse, we enjoyed our lunch, then, to the extent possible, walked around Baphuon. From there we followed the path to Phimeanakas (10th - 11th Centuries) the remains of a temple which is said to be the place where the Khmer king lay every night with a woman who was the incarnationof the 9 headed naga, said to have power over all the lands of the kingdom, and the Royal Palace area.



the temple base


















We walked along the Elephant Terrace which sits at the heart of Angkor Thom, overlooks the Royal Square and depicts hunting scenes with elephants via bas reliefs.

Phimeanakas

The Leper King Terrace projects into the Royal Square is just to the north of the Elephant Terrace, but almost appears as a protruding continuation. It dates to the 13th Century and is named after the 15th Century sculpture sitting on top of the Terrace. At the far northern end, the carvings of Nagas and dieties are absolutely spectacular!

We met Set, our tuk-tuk driver, at the end of the Terraces and enjoyed the breeze on our way back to Rosie's. It has been a long, hot day and we were dusty and exhausted. Settling into the cushioned wicker chairs, we drank a cold beer and discussed our day with Anna & Smiley.