Today we started every early, leaving the hotel at 5 to go to Angkor Wat to watch the sunrise behind the temple. It is quite an attraction to be there at sunrise and the crowds are unbelievable for that hour of the morning. When we arrived it was still dark enough that we needed flashlights to see where we were going but the sun rose quickly and by 6 it was light and we toured the Angkor Wat temple complex. What a magnificent old structure it is! The carvings in the stone throughout the temple are spectacular, notwithstanding the ravages of time and weather. The structure is simply enormous and seems to go on forever as you wind your way through tunnels and up and down stone staircases. We climbed up the wooden staircase they’ve created to get to the top of the temple which affords a view out over the whole complex that is really stunning. The temple combines both Hinduism and Buddhism as it has, in its history, been the center for religious life in Cambodia when the prevailing religion was Hindu and then again when it was Buddhist. The blending of the two religious traditions is fascinating. In Angkor Wat the bas relief depiction of the “Churning of the Sea of Milk” an epic tale of how the good gods defeated the demons in a battle to procure and consume the elixir of eternal life is stunning. Much of it is under restoration having suffered from the effects of the elements, including acid rain on the stone structures over the centuries. Even so, it is incredible to see the intricate carving in the stone and the perfection of the work, knowing that it was constructed in the 12th century by human hands working for years and years to create a magnificent piece of architecture and art in the massive temple. After visiting Angkor Wat we returned to the hotel at about 8:30, feeling like we’d done a day’s work already, to have our breakfast. We were all starving having been up since 4 with no food. And touring these temples is a lot of work – climbing up and down stairs and walking good distances in the massive complex.
At 10:30 we returned to Angkor city and saw Angkor Thom, (“Big City”) and its temple and the Boyon Temple. I’ve included pics of Sam and of me at Boyon Temple. On our way through that complex we were delighted to see a community of mackac monkeys playing in the trees as we went into the complex. We stopped to photograph them and they were playing with one tourist, climbing all over her head and reaching into her bag to see what she had! They were really adorable. Then as we turned around we saw a parade of elephants decked out in fancy red coats ambling through the gate. Some people tour these temples on the elephants so they were on their way to pick up passengers!
We then had lunch at a little café in the temple complex called the Blue Pumpkin. The food was delicious. Sam and I passed on the prescribed dessert in favor of one they call “dizzy delight” – a concoction of chocolate and caramel ice cream with chocolate sauce, grand marnier, triple sec and kahlua drizzled over the ice cream. It was heavenly. We then had a couple of hours of rest time, which was much needed after our very early start this morning.
Then in the late afternoon we went out into the country to a small landmine museum. It was started originally by a Cambodian man named Akira, who was raised during the era of the Khmer Rouge. He became a “soldier” of the Khmer Rouge at the age of 10 and under their orders he planted thousands of land mines in Cambodia. After the fall of the Khmer Rouge he became an avid “de-miner” and has spent his life removing landmines all over Cambodia. He started his museum in his own home, and he and his wife adopted a number of children who were orphaned and injured by landmines. The museum grew and ultimately became a recognized NGO with the help of an American not-for-profit benefactor who then managed to get US government grants to help the organization do its land mine removal work. They also run an orphanage for about 35 children. The man who gave us the tour is the American ex-pat who now lives and works here full time for this landmine removal group and in the orphanage. It was really sobering to learn about landmines, how they were planted, by whom and how difficult it is to remove them. Cambodia still has hundreds of thousands of land mines buried all over the country and it is a very tedious task to remove them, by hand, one by one, but this organization is dedicated to the work they are doing.
During the drive out to the museum we got outside the main part of Siem Riep where all the tourists and shops and restaurants are and were once again plunged into the midst of developing world poverty. We drove through village after village that are collections of small bamboo homes with thatched roofs, outdoor fires for cooking and many children, usually ill clad. The disparity between the relative opulence and wealth in Siem Riep where are all the investors and tourists compared to the reality of life for the rural villagers is sharp and disturbing.
Tonight we are going back down into the city for dinner and Sam and I are hoping to hit the Night Market even though it’s already raining cats and dogs. Cambodia’s rainy season seems to work like Florida in the summer. Hot and sunny for about ¾ of the day and then the downpours start in the late afternoon/evening and keep going, but clear up by morning. So we may have a soggy shopping trip but we’ll enjoy it anyway and take a “remork” (their version of a moto-taxi) back to the hotel.
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