I bent my body backwards, twisted from the ground, angled towards the trees, and I had no luck. Anthony Bourdain once remarked that Angkor Wat caused him to give up taking travel pictures over ten years ago.
Of course, he has a camera crew following him whereever he goes. Cheater. You guys just have me, my iPhone, and my little Kodak point & shoot.
sorry.
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In words:
I met my grumpy tuk tuk driver at 5am. We headed in the pitch black just a few kilometers north of the city and he dumped me out by a food cart. Coffee and croissant in hand, I follow flashlights and the sound of others murmuring in the darkness up stairs and across some uneven walkway. I can barely make out the outline of some building before we cross in and out. This next walkway stretches forever and with a chill I notice the famous sillihouette. Crowds are all around me now and we move as one over to some lake waiting for the sunrise. Folks laugh nervously and others complain about the early time. I munch on my croissant and feel like complaining about my bad coffee.
The sun shyly hides behind clouds as she stirs awake. Light slowly spreads across the fields. Angkor Wat gradually brightens before our eyes while people fiddle with their tripod and guidebooks.
By 6am I'm convinced the sun has denied us a glamorous show, so I break away from the crowd and head into the temple. It's unbelievably quiet and only three or four people follow me inside.
What can be said that hasn't been said before? I'm standing alone in the middle of the world's largest religious monument. I'm staring at the remnants of a civilization that I knew nothing about before I came to Asia. Apsaras stare back at me from every corner. How did I not know the word Apsara before I came here? Or Shiva? Or Ganesha?
I knew -of- Hinduism and Buddhism, but I didn't know they inspired art and buildings like this. In hindsight it seems obvious. I guess two decades of staring at Christian iconography in cathedrals and museums left me somewhat narrow minded in scope and imagination.
There's something else you should know. It's not just Angkor Wat. There's a huge complex of ancient ruins spanning 881-1218 AD. I saw next Angkor Thom (1190-1218), the name for another capital city walled in. The main temple known as Bayon features hundreds of gigantic king faces staring down at you. There's a large 'elephant terrace' and 'leper king terrace' with meticulous bas reliefs leading to the royal palace. Then I visited Ta Prohm (1186), also known as 'tree temple' or tomb raider temple. It was left in its original condition after 'discovery' by the French, and now enormous silk cotton trees infiltrate the walls and ceilings. It's magnificent. The afternoon ended with Thomannon and Chau Say Teuda.
The next morning we drove 30km out to see Banteay Srei (967), built for not a king but a Brahamin. It's a small temple of gorgeously carved pink sandstone. Just north of there is Kbai Spean, or river of a thousand lingas. My driver joined me for the scenic 1.5km hike up a jungle covered mountain. A stream washes over carvings of lingas and other depictions of gods. (this visit was a favorite). Then back into town for East Mebon (952), Neak Pean (1180-1190), and Preah Khan (1191).
The next day, I revisited Angkor Thom because the crowds were so dense the first time I went to Bayon. Then another swing by Angkor Wat, with an end at the earliest temples: Bakong (881) the first temple built for the god-king, Lolei (893) created as new capital city, and lastly, Preah Ko.
Phew. I didn't even see them all.
The city of Siem Reap itself is pretty divided between locals and tourists, which bothered me. Most of the time though, I was too tired to even think about going out or exploring.
Well, I just crossed the border into Vietnam. On to Ho Chi Minh City!
Katie
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