Retired Nomads - Part 3: Angkor Wat & Angkor Thom

March 29

We were up early to catch the sunrise at Angkor Wat. We were picked up about 5:00. We hadn’t driven far when I realized I had forgotten my camera, so we turned back to get it.

We made our way in the dark over uneven surfaces and steps to get to the temple. Sam had a flashlight, but I think we each needed one. Sam found us some flat rocks to sit on until it was time to take photos and he would take us to the "best spot" to get photos.

It wasn’t a great sunrise, but magical, nonetheless.

Angkor Wat in the dark

tethered balloon rides

Tom & Cathy

everyone leaving since the sunrise didn't pop

walking towards the entrance to Angkor Wat

Angkor Wat was built as a spiritual home for the Hindu god Vishnu. The temple is an architectural triumph with bas-relief galleries that line many walls and tell enduring tales of Cambodian history and legend.

Our guide Sam introduced us to a local Khmer Scholar who showed us around Angkor Wat for 2 hours. In hindsight I shouldn’t have agreed to that when planning the trip and for future trips I will stress that isn’t our style. He lectured for 1 hour and then we walked around hearing many of the same things again and again. Tom & Cathy “fell on their sword” and sat intently in front of him, while Greg and I wandered and sat off to the side.

Just the long walk over the bridge to the temple of Angkor Wat took forever. We’d go a couple of steps and he’d talk forever repeating things over and over. As we started the walk the sun decided to pop out!

sunrise popped - not spectacular, but it was pretty

We finally made it inside Angkor Wat, and we wanted to see it and take pictures, but he sat us down for an hour and showed us photos in a book and told us history. Seeing things that are in a book when the actual site IS RIGHT THERE is not something we understand as a guiding tecnique.

The description that I thought we were getting was “As the Khmer empire unfolds before your eyes, the scholar will bring the stories depicted in the bas-reliefs and murals to life. Through his explanations, you will gain a deeper understanding of the various narratives and symbolism embedded within these intricate artistic creations.” Ah well….

After the lecture we were led around and at every stop he’d repeat the same thing over and over and we learned to just walk on. Our regular guide, Sam, had a much nicer style and we wished he had been the one to show us around. He told us what was necessary and let us wander as he talked. We would have preferred some time to be on our own, but after the scholar we were done. I’m not sure if that experience tainted our view of Angkor Wat, but we left feeling like we didn’t have a good experience. For us, it’s more important to experience a place and really look at things at our own pace, than to listen to a lecture and then race past the sites. Plus, we were starving.

monkeys entertained us as the scholar droned on

finally, we got to walk around

the boys didn't want to pose....

me towards the top and Tom & Cathy towards the bottom

The reliefs sculpted on the western section of this southern gallery commemorate a series of historical events from the reign of King Suryavarman ll, the founder of Angkor Vat in the 12th century.

We were hoping we would have our breakfast after sunrise, since we had had no food since 3:30 the day before, but the scholar started immediately. It was miserable doing all those steps and stairs with no calories. We ordered drinks from a restaurant, and they let us eat our boxes there. It really was more of a lunch with sandwiches, pastries, and fruits. We devoured it. (there was enough food in each box for 2 or 3 people)

our breakfast baskets

We made a shopping stop looking for magnets or something but didn’t find much. I bought one but was hoping to find one I liked better later. Turns out Cathy bought me some beautiful earrings of Angkor Wat at sunrise. Thank you, they are beautiful and will always be a special memory of the trip.

Refreshed, we were ready for more temples! Oh, and more stairs.....

Angkor Wat may be the main attraction, but there are hundreds of other structures & temples in the Angkor Archaeological Park. We next headed for Angkor Thom.

Angkor Thom is not a singular temple dedicated to a Hindu deity like Angkor Wat; instead, it is the name of one of the most impressive royal cities of the Angkor Period (9th–15th centuries). Angkor Thom is surrounded by a long and wide moat. It is more like a stronghold rather than a religious site. There are five entrances into Angkor Thom, four in each cardinal direction, north, south, east, and west, while the fifth, called the Victory Gate, leads eastwards from the Angkor Thom Royal Palace grounds. Each of these used to have a causeway leading towards it, but today only the south gate has water under it.

On the way to Bayon Temple, we stopped to get photos of the south gate of Angkor Thom as is the best-preserved gate among the 5. There are 54 stone figures on each side of the causeway.

Tonle Om Gate - South Entrance

South Gate

Bayon Temple is the most notable temple in Angkor Thom and was built in the late 12th to early 12th Century, by King Jayavarman VII (reigned 1181-1220). Second to Angkor Wat, Bayon enjoys its fame by the temple of stone faces. Viewed from afar, the temple looks like a mountain yet the stone faces merge as you come closer.

Bayon Temple

Sam waiting for Cathy and me

Angkor Thom's moat

me being silly

Greg being Greg

there was a wedding shoot at the temple

Our next stop may sound strange, but it was a very interesting visit. Apopo is a non-profit company that trains African giant rats to recognize landmines and neutralize them. We visited the Siem Reap office to learn about the serious landmine threat Cambodians face and how the company managed to train rats to spot mines, saving hundreds of lives. They are hopeful that Cambodia one day will mine free. Once the land is declared mine-free, the land is given back to the people. At Apopo we finished by holding one of the rats. So cute!

Valerie walking the grid

Tom & Cathy getting a photo

Valerie getting a reward

she was licking my arm and fingers

I have to give her back?

Then we got a big surprise which was high tea at Shinta Mani Angkor as it wasn't on our original plan. We feasted on salmon sandwiches, shrimp sandwiches, ham sandwiches and salami sandwiches. The next tier had scones and almond croissants and the top tier had lemon meringue pies, chocolate eclairs and chocolate macarons.

We then went back to the hotel and had some cold drinks at the swim-up bar and hung out in the lounges in the water. We got showered and Greg and I went back to Pub Street for dinner.

We felt like pizza and had an "OK" one. We wandered the streets and then decided to check out the Night Market.

We found a much better Gelato place and we will definitely go back. Gelato Lab.