The Temple of Doom

I have decided that a little jet lag is a good thing. This morning Steve and I woke up at 5:00 am. We watched the sun rise over the jungle from our hotel room balcony, listening to the monkeys and tropical birds greet the day. Steve went to the gym while I read in our room. At 7:00 we went down for a swim in the luxurious pool, which of course we had to ourselves. We then enjoyed breakfast in the hotel restaurant, where they offer a combination of French and Cambodian cuisine, a reflection of the French colonization of Cambodia. Our hotel, the Sofitel Phokeethra, claims to be the eighth wonder of the world. Jonny says don't believe everything that you hear. However, I have decided that there may be just one little shred of truth to it. The dollar goes a long way in Cambodia! 

Jonny and Jenny found us in the restaurant this morning after flying over from Bangkok. I leaped out of my seat to greet them -- we were so excited to be with them. They had a driver waiting outside for us, who we paid $25 for an entire day of zipping from one temple or restaurant to another. We jumped into the back of his white sedan and began our journey through the jungle. 

In our guide books we read that one must have at least three days to enjoy Angkor Wat and the other surrounding temples. We had a day and a half so when Lies pulled up in front of Ta Prohm temple we were intent on some fast paced sight seeing. 

This first temple was right out of an Indiana Jones movie. In fact, we debated whether or not this was the actual setting for the first movie. This temple, over the past 900 years, has been swallowed up by the jungle. Huge trees grow out of the roofs of the crumbling temple with ferns and moss adding a bright contrast to the precariously balanced massive stones that block the ancient corridors.

We stopped at Bayon, a temple with steep flights of stairs leading up to 54 gothic towers with 216 cold smiling enormous faces, staring down from on high. The faces watched over the 54 provinces of the ancient Khmer civilization in the area. We climbed up the towers, coming face to face with the mysterious carvings. The view of the jungle and distant rice paddies was spectacular.

For lunch we stopped at a large open air cafe, with a thatched roof for shade. Steve ordered Cambodian curry, served in a huge coconut and I ordered pancakes with a sweet honey sauce and fresh fruit.  I drank from a peeled open coconut with an inserted straw to extract the milky water. 

In the afternoon we made our way to Angkor Wat, which is widely believed to be the largest religious structure in the world, and the reason we made the trip to Cambodia. It was never abandoned, because it changed from a Hindu to Buddhist temple, and therefor is the best preserved temple. It lacked the omninous feeling of Ta Phrom, instead having intricuit carvings, including the 3000 nymphs, each one unique, and a depiction of a religious epic streaching around the entire inside corridor. 

In the evening we climbed to the top of a nearby hill which was topped with Phnom Bakheng, one more ancient temple. From the top of the massive stones we had a perfect view of Angkor Wat. 

We then found our driver, who took us to the killing fields, a spot where thousands of murders occured during the Khmer Rouge. I have so much sympathy and respect for the Cambodian people. They are a people of strong spirit, kindness and progress, despite the horrific events they are still recovering from. 

New Tidbits Learned

1. In the late 1800's the discovery of the Angkor temples brought Cambodia into the international scene by a French explorer named Henri Mouhot. 

2. Tomb Raider was filmed at Ta Prohm

3. Cambodia ruled the entire region of Southeast Asia from about 800 to 1200 

4. In 3 years, between 1975 and 1979, the Khmer Rouge killed 3 million Cambodians, 35% of the population

 

We loved each moment of our day and look forward to tomorrow.