When I first told people that Sean and I were going to try and make it to Cambodia during winter break, many of them said that we absolutely had to go to Angkor Wat. Awhile ago, my first response was, "Angkor what?" because, to be honest, I had never heard of it before. This became more embarrassing when I found out that it was one considered one of the most famous historical wonders of the world. The more I looked into it and read about it, I realized that Angkor Wat for many tourists is the only reason they travel to Cambodia in the first place and is basically the reason that the city Siem Reap is on the map at all.
Many people who visit Angkor Wat are serious about temples, ancient architecture, archeology and photography and you can buy a ticket to visit every day for an entire week. Sean and I opted for the day pass knowing that we would only see a tiny fraction of what Angkor had to offer. Don't get me wrong, I like history and culture, but one day climbing around ancient ruins is usually enough. Especially when it is really hot out, the place is crawling with other tourists and vendors chase you down and get in your face in hopes that you will purchase something.
To maximize our day pass, we got up early in the morning and hired a tuk-tuk driver for the day. This means that he drove us to the temples (there are many scattered all over the place), waited while we climbed around and took pictures, drove us to the next one and then finally, at the end of the day, drove us home all for $12 - what a deal!
Since there were so many temples and so much to see, I am going to just post about a few of my favorites. In this post I'll mention the most famous temple and mother of all temples, Angkor Wat. Angkor Wat was built in the early 12th century and was once the capital of the ancient Khmer empire. My guidebook claims it to be the world's largest religious building first Hindi, dedicated to Vishnu and then Buddhist.
I was definitely not prepared for the awesomeness that is Angkor Wat. Its size and grandeur made it an eye-popping and jaw-dropping event. This temple was amazing. There were elaborate rooms, several stories, carved walls representing epic tales and statues. Walking around and inside filled me with a sense of awe for how it was built and for what must have gone on here so long ago. It far exceeded my expectations - the closest thing I can compare it to is Macchu Picchu in Peru, but I must say that I think Angkor Wat was cooler.
We spent a couple hours touring the inside and outside, eavesdropping on other guided tours and trying to decipher the stories on the wall. We could have easily spent more time there, but since there were so many other temples to see, we moved on. After visiting the mother of all temples, I can see clearly now what all the fuss is about.
You anthropologist/photographer friend hopes for an installment 2 and 3 on this subject....
Welcome to cambodia again
Backpackers were amongst the very first foreign visitors to Cambodia
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