We woke up at 4:30AM to see Angkor Wat at sunrise. We met our awesome driver, and a tour guide arranged by the hotel, and we were off. It was outright chilly at 70 degrees, so we were bundled up in our warmest clothes.
Angkor Wat is the largest religious monument in the world. It was built by volunteers as an expression of faith. It took 37 years to build and is made of sandstone that was shipped by water and over land. 50,000 stone workers shared their skill during construction.
It was originally a Hindu temple, but when the king of the Khmer Empire was exiled for four years in the late 1100s, he converted to Buddhism. He wanted to unite his people, and he wanted to get rid of the caste system that is part of Hinduism. The temple kept its Hindu elements, but it was turned into a Buddhist temple.
The Khmer Empire was incredibly powerful in this region for 500 years. In its time this temple was magnificent, as can be imagined in the incredible details. We perched on the side of the ancient temple's library, where records were kept, to witness the sunrise. We arrived when it was dark and patiently waited.
Our guide was so good. His English was easy to understand and he was very knowledgeable about Buddhism, Cambodia's history and current events and politics for his people. I wish I could remember all that I learned from him!
At 7:00 we began to explore inside the temple.
We stopped for a Buddhist blessing.
He flicked water in my face with his little brush!
The dancers on the walls are heavenly dancers, as Buddha's last life was one of "enlightenment". As Christians might envision heavenly angels singing, the Buddhist nirvana has dancers.
Buddhism has it's own ancient writing called Pali.
We stood in a 30 minute line to climb to the third level, which isn't always open.
It was full of courtyards and colonnades. Every turn was something familiar (similar design elements) and yet surprising. We took a bazillion photos (and believe me when I say that I'm only posting a portion!) It may all seem the same as you glance through them, but each view felt magnificent and awe inspiring.
This temple was relatively cared for over the centuries by the local Buddhist believers. Luckily it was not damaged during the Khmer Rouge in the 1970s.
The stairs to the higher worship places are steep and narrow on purpose - the climb to "enlightenment" is difficult and requires great concentration and effort.
There are a lot of visual similarities to the Mayan temples of Central America. Not only in the steep stairs to the top, but also in how the buildings are situated to the sun's movement. If I understood our guide correctly, the Khmer people arrived in the area around 400 BC, but they aren't sure where they came from at that time. Very curious from a Mormon perspective!
As we left the temple we saw two wild monkeys picking from each other. Our guide told us people think they are picking off lice, but in fact, they are picking of salt from their sweat!
Next we went to Ta Prohm, a recognizable temple from Angelina Jolie's, Tomb Raider. It was also constructed in the 12th century, but as a Buddhist temple. After the powerful Khmer Empire ended in the 15th century, it was abandoned and forgotten until the French began to discover temple ruins in the late 19th century. At that point, nature had taken over man's former power.
It is a most mystical experience to walk through the jungle and ruins of this once great structure. Luckily, there are many trying to preserve the structures. At this point it is not certain whether the buildings are holding up the trees or vice versa!
Oh man is that place magical! I hope it holds up until everyone I know gets to see it!
Last stop was the royal temple in Angkor Tom. Angkor Tom was the walled city of the Khmer Empire, with 10,000 people living inside and 1 million in the surrounding city! They had a complex and organized infrastructure that later empires (China, for example) learned from. It too was abandoned and rediscovered by the French.
At this point we were hungry and tired (but thankfully it was not a hot day!) We breezed through this temple fairly quickly, but still got a glimpse of its magnificence.
There are several towers with enlightened Buddha faces on four sides. Our guide told us we had to see the "kissing Buddha". At one point he set us up for a picture, and when we saw it, we were kissing the Buddha.
Knowing the trick, Ceci puckered up.
A wedding photo shoot...
Hundreds of years of history is carved into the exterior wall. There are all sorts of clues as to dress, games, food, lifestyle and war in these stories of the Khmer empire. Our guide pointed several details out that we wouldn't have noticed. He was so good!
Our guide, whose name is pronounced "Dahling", as in, "How are you this morning, Dahling?" posed in a picture with us.
And the last photo trick of the day...
Geoff won the champion award for hobbling around the whole day like this.
This was one of the coolest places I have ever visited. If you have a bucket list, make sure you put Angkor Wat on it!
And if you made it through this long post with all of these pictures, you get the champion award too!
Angkor Wat Tour Guide
Dalign
Email: sengdalign@yahoo.com
Tel:(+855)12869365
FB: angkorhappytour
Siem Reap Van Driver
Mr. Loy
Tel: (+855)12710207
Angkor Wat is the largest religious monument in the world. It was built by volunteers as an expression of faith. It took 37 years to build and is made of sandstone that was shipped by water and over land. 50,000 stone workers shared their skill during construction.
It was originally a Hindu temple, but when the king of the Khmer Empire was exiled for four years in the late 1100s, he converted to Buddhism. He wanted to unite his people, and he wanted to get rid of the caste system that is part of Hinduism. The temple kept its Hindu elements, but it was turned into a Buddhist temple.
The Khmer Empire was incredibly powerful in this region for 500 years. In its time this temple was magnificent, as can be imagined in the incredible details. We perched on the side of the ancient temple's library, where records were kept, to witness the sunrise. We arrived when it was dark and patiently waited.
I took a time lapse video, which didn't capture how spectacular the light was.
Our guide was so good. His English was easy to understand and he was very knowledgeable about Buddhism, Cambodia's history and current events and politics for his people. I wish I could remember all that I learned from him!
Our guide had all sorts of photo spots and tricks. One trick was the vertical panorama.
At 7:00 we began to explore inside the temple.
We stopped for a Buddhist blessing.
He flicked water in my face with his little brush!
The dancers on the walls are heavenly dancers, as Buddha's last life was one of "enlightenment". As Christians might envision heavenly angels singing, the Buddhist nirvana has dancers.
Buddhism has it's own ancient writing called Pali.
We stood in a 30 minute line to climb to the third level, which isn't always open.
It was full of courtyards and colonnades. Every turn was something familiar (similar design elements) and yet surprising. We took a bazillion photos (and believe me when I say that I'm only posting a portion!) It may all seem the same as you glance through them, but each view felt magnificent and awe inspiring.
This temple was relatively cared for over the centuries by the local Buddhist believers. Luckily it was not damaged during the Khmer Rouge in the 1970s.
Original Hindu god Vishnu statue still stands.
Back down...
The stairs to the higher worship places are steep and narrow on purpose - the climb to "enlightenment" is difficult and requires great concentration and effort.
There are a lot of visual similarities to the Mayan temples of Central America. Not only in the steep stairs to the top, but also in how the buildings are situated to the sun's movement. If I understood our guide correctly, the Khmer people arrived in the area around 400 BC, but they aren't sure where they came from at that time. Very curious from a Mormon perspective!
As we left the temple we saw two wild monkeys picking from each other. Our guide told us people think they are picking off lice, but in fact, they are picking of salt from their sweat!
Next we went to Ta Prohm, a recognizable temple from Angelina Jolie's, Tomb Raider. It was also constructed in the 12th century, but as a Buddhist temple. After the powerful Khmer Empire ended in the 15th century, it was abandoned and forgotten until the French began to discover temple ruins in the late 19th century. At that point, nature had taken over man's former power.
It is a most mystical experience to walk through the jungle and ruins of this once great structure. Luckily, there are many trying to preserve the structures. At this point it is not certain whether the buildings are holding up the trees or vice versa!
Another vertical panorama, courtesy of our guide.
Oh man is that place magical! I hope it holds up until everyone I know gets to see it!
Last stop was the royal temple in Angkor Tom. Angkor Tom was the walled city of the Khmer Empire, with 10,000 people living inside and 1 million in the surrounding city! They had a complex and organized infrastructure that later empires (China, for example) learned from. It too was abandoned and rediscovered by the French.
At this point we were hungry and tired (but thankfully it was not a hot day!) We breezed through this temple fairly quickly, but still got a glimpse of its magnificence.
There are several towers with enlightened Buddha faces on four sides. Our guide told us we had to see the "kissing Buddha". At one point he set us up for a picture, and when we saw it, we were kissing the Buddha.
Knowing the trick, Ceci puckered up.
A wedding photo shoot...
Each tower had a Buddha inside, and a little chimney for incense smoke.
Hundreds of years of history is carved into the exterior wall. There are all sorts of clues as to dress, games, food, lifestyle and war in these stories of the Khmer empire. Our guide pointed several details out that we wouldn't have noticed. He was so good!
Our guide, whose name is pronounced "Dahling", as in, "How are you this morning, Dahling?" posed in a picture with us.
And the last photo trick of the day...
Geoff won the champion award for hobbling around the whole day like this.
And in case you were wondering, this is what tuk tuk drivers do while waiting for you to do whatever you are doing (meaning, they give you a ride to Angkor Wat, wait for you to tour around, then give you a ride home). Notice his warm coat!
And if you made it through this long post with all of these pictures, you get the champion award too!
Angkor Wat Tour Guide
Dalign
Email: sengdalign@yahoo.com
Tel:(+855)12869365
FB: angkorhappytour
Siem Reap Van Driver
Mr. Loy
Tel: (+855)12710207
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