ok, today was the day. angkor here we go. after the long journey from phnompenh, we got ready to start our walk in angkor. the driver drove us all the way there and waited for us while we explored the temples. day pass costs us USD20. so we made full use of the time there. went in at 8.30a.m. and left at 6p.m. lunch also in one of those restaurants opposite angkor wat. no doubt it was more expensive, but we did not want to waste time going out and coming back again.
angkor hotel. quite dim along the corridor. i think they were trying to save energy here. electricity is expensive and most of the hotels looked quite dim from outside.
the lobby.
dining area.
the hotel pool which we did not have the chance to utilise at all. so wasting money only renting a room in a hotel with a pool. the pool closed at 8p.m. and we usually got back to the hotel after 8.
taking picturesque shot of the angkor wat in front of the royal pond. a local posing. not for me lah. lovely.
the moat surrounding angkor wat. it is square.
children jumping into the moat for a dip. i tried going to them and taking a shot from the steps, but they demanded money in return for their poses!!
walking into the temple.
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angkor wat which is famous for its many carvings of apsara (heavenly nymphs). there are many around the temple. few hundreds if i am not wrong.
you can get into the hot-air balloon too for a bird's eye view of angkor.
mahabrata epic carved on the west gallery.
more apsaras.
offering prayers in the temple.
restoration in progress in the inner temple.
wooo look at these. so intricate. more apsaras i think.
steep steps going down the inner temple. i had to clamber up the temple and going down is not for the faint hearthed.
my travelling group.
stalls outside angkor wat.
foreigners giving sweets to local children.
local arts.
bayon temple at angkor thom. (thom means city) notice the different faces on the stones. there are about 300 faces here and non of them is the same.
elephant terrace. royal viewing place in ancient time.
close-up of the elephants.
entrance to ta phrom. another temple in angkor thom.
the famous giant tree roots growing on the temple ruins.
archeological work carried out by a team from india. ta phrom is 'adopted' by india for its conservation project.
heaps of stone slabs. i wonder how they rebuild the whole thing. will it be like lego blocks and you stack them up one by one hoping to get the best fit for each piece?
the majestic ta phrom. look at the clear blue sky. we explored angkor on such a hot day. so everyone came back a few shades darker.
ta keo. one of the unfinished temples. it is not decorated by any carvings or whatsoever. everything was so stark compared to what we saw before this. it was struck by lightning and thus deemed inauspicious and therefore abandoned. more clambering to the highest tier of the temple. it is climbing here and there to reach all the temples.
entrance to preah khan. this was built by a king for his father as a retreat.
missing head from some of the carvings on the walls. you see many of these here. the missing pieces were cut so precisely.
the living room in this retreat. notice the left column of the wall. do you see those gaps or holes? they were for gemstones. light would be reflected from a hole in the roof of the building thus creating brightness in the room.
majestic grecian style structure in preahkhan.
after visiting all the major structures that one could cover in one day in angkor, we went to our final spot. jostling with all other tourists who had decided to gather there for the sunset as well. apparently, it was a popular place to view the sunset but you could not see the sunset behind angkor wat. angkor wat is in the east. however, we could not catch the sunset on that day as it was quite cloudy as well. nevertheless, at least we tried.
we had to walk about 15 minutes uphill to go to phnom bakheng. i think it is the highest temple here.
this was the original way used in the bygone era. how steep it is. maybe the kings took their journeys on elephants.
more climbing and clambering. even the not so old took the challenge.
central sanctuary of phnom bakheng.
angkor wat from phnom bakheng.
the almost sunset view.
the tiers around phnom bakheng.
elephant dismount area at phnom bakheng. it is quite popular with tourist groups but i think the fare is not cheap. just sit and wait to be carried all the way up for the sunset. what a life. but poor elephants. hehe.
so the day ended at angkor and everyone was drained! before going back to the hotel, again we got the driver to drop us in siemreap town for our dinner. i was almost running out of money, so nothing fancy. we got into a restaurant which was quite packed with locals and ordered what the locals ordered. cheap meals. i ordered fried noodles with pork. and i washed them down with my cola beer (coca-cola plus angkor beer). the east and the west. angkor beer is cheap. only USD1 for one can. coke was also USD1. my fried noodles? USD1.50.
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