You don't think of Cambodia as a holiday destination. Here we have a country that has experienced almost all kinds of war, famine, corruption and pillaging, yet when you step off the plane you are greeted with smiling trusting faces who make you feel glad you came. It is only two hours to Siem Reap from Singapore, and being well served by most of the regional airlines, it makes for an easy weekend away. This trip was made all the more easier by the fact that our good friends Sandra and Jim had made the pioneering journey one month previously, so we were very lucky to be able to go armed with excellent tips and  recommendations, which meant our long weekend was a great success.

Cambodia has some of the most spectacular temples anywhere in the world, and this alone makes it a very popular tourist destination. Add to that extremely cheap prices for just about anything, and a good climate and you could be looking at the next big thing. If the country can stay at peace and if the government can maintain stability that is. There are over two thousand temples in Cambodia, and many more now officially in other neighbouring countries that were built on Cambodian soil many years ago. You could probably spend six months seeing these temples, but with limited time, we saw four of the best, all conveniently located within an hour of Siem Reap, where we were staying.

Unless you want to spend months researching where you are going to go, the best way to see and learn about the temples is to take the services of one of the local guides. As said before, we had some great recommendations, and Mr Vannak, our guide, was excellent. A local with a real interest in the history of his country, he was able to tell us stories you will never find in your Lonely Planet guide. More details on Mr Vannak later on.

Final word before you start to look below at the pictures.... they are quite large in filesize, so they may take a while to load, but I do hope they are worth the wait.

Angkor Thom means "Great City" and houses many different temples, some large and some small. We entered through the Southern gate, across a causeway that originally crossed a moat, which surrounded the city. As you can see from the picture below, the moat is now almost dried up. The statues that lined either side of the causeway had mostly had their heads stolen at some time during the countries turbulent past. To prevent further looting, the authorities removed the remaining heads for safekeeping and replaced them with cement replicas. This replacement is evident by the different shade of body and head you can see. 

The view from inside the South Gate. The four smiling faces on the gate are a prelude to the style of the Bayon temple, which has a staggering 216 such faces on its towers.

The Bayon Temple, viewed from the East. What looks like simply piles of rubble becomes superbly detailed stonework as you get closer.

A very small sample of the amazing stonework in Bayon. This is where a good guide makes all the difference. We were told the stories of each scene, and the key characters were also pointed out. These gentlemen on the left being Chinamen about to wage war with the Khmer.

In the middle of the temple we came across a fortune teller who spoke French, and various Cambodian tongues, but very little English. Thankfully, Mr Vannak managed to translate for Vici. The outcome was that Vici could be lazy, but also she studied hard and worked hard and was very lucky, and would eventually become a millionaire !

The temple is still a holy place and is still used for worship, so we also got to see some monks. These charming gents seemed to be quite at home in front of the camera lens and were being photographed front on by another visitor when I took this shot.

And as we left the Bayon temple, it became a pile of rubble again, but of course we now knew the secret of the 216 smiling faces.

Angkor Wat is the largest temple of all and covers an impressive 1500 square meters. Reached by a huge causeway which crosses the protective moat, you enter through the outer gates to find the five towers rising above you. Unfortunately, everyone else knows it is the largest and most popular temple, so in stark contrast to the serenity and peacefulness we had experienced at the Bayon temple we had just left, we "enjoyed" Angkor Wat with about 5000 other people. Remember this is off season. Apparently in the peak of tourist season, which runs November to January, there is sometimes a total people gridlock across the causeway.

It is impressive just by its sheer size and mass, but it was not as intimate as the Bayon temple, which will probably remain our favourite.

It's amazing how quickly you can erase Japanese tourists in PhotoShop !

You are constantly reminded that this is a holy place...

I'm glad we can say we've seen Angkor Wat and I'm sure it will remain a firm favourite for years to come. Just make sure it's not the only temple you see.

Banteay Srey : The Citadel of Women (967)

Banteay Srey lies about 40km North East of Siem Reap. Due to the poor condition of the roads, and the huge variety of obstacles we had to face, this was a one hour drive. But totally worth it. On the way there we got a chance to see the real Cambodia. To be honest, it was quite saddening to see where the people were living. That said, you could also see the hope that existed. Every house we passed was busy and bustling, with something going on, and some wares for sale on the small stall by the roadside. We saw everything from sugarcane juice to car batteries on offer. We were glad to spend quiet time in another peaceful temple after the chaos of Angkor Wat.

Do not adjust your sets. Banteay Temple is actually red, infact made from a very unusual red sandstone, which was quarried not far from the site. The name "Citadel of Women" was given to the temple due to the ornate, intricate carvings, which is was said could not have come from the coarse hand of man !

One of the temple caretakers takes a break from the sun.

Some of the carvings. Sanscript on the left, and fighting monkey kings below.

Ta Prohm (1186)

Amazingly, most of the temples that can be visited today were only "rediscovered" in the early 1900's. Most were in a sorry state, having been at the mercy of looters and also the forces of nature, as the jungles tried to take back the land that was rightfully theres in the first place. Many different countries have helped in the restoration of the temples over the years. We saw sites being restored by French, Swiss, Japanese and even the Italians (of course that site was only half finished before everyone left on strike, but what do you expect ?!) The restoration work usually starts with clearing the site of the jungle, then rebuilding the damage that has been caused by nature. Ta Prohm is unique in that it has been cleared only enough to allow safe access. Everything else you see is exactly as it would have been when it was unearthed almost 100 years ago. A full 800 years after it was built. 

The entrance is barely standing. The causeway buckled and twisted by the huge tree that now rises from the forest floor.

The power struggle between earth, bricks and nature rages silently inside the temple walls.

A tree within a tree. The first tree had taken hold of the temple walls before dying out, only to be replaced by a younger tree which wrapped itself around the first tree, creating this amazing arterial effect. (Pity some tourists got in the way of the picture, ah well....)

The battle creeps silently on at Ta Prohm, and from the picture below, it looks like nature is winning.

We had a great weekend, and hope many more people get to see these amazing temples. We also hope Cambodia stays at peace, so its people can succeed to prosper.

Flights : SilkAir

Hotel : Angkor Hotel or Angkor Star Hotel

Tour Guide : Mr Vannak (A huge thank you required here. Excellent service)