Sunset drinks at Angkor Wat

The next activity on our itinerary was "sunset drinks at a quiet and beautiful spot we know of" but we knew we wouldn't get much of a sunset photo opportunity.  We just couldn't pass on the chance to sit by the moat at Angkor Wat and have a gin and tonic.  It was a relaxing time to reflect on our first day in Siem Reap.

Terrace of Elephants and Terrace of the Leper King

The Terrace of Elephants is 350 m long and was used as a giant viewing stand for public ceremonies.  Our guide had us try to imagine the pomp and grandeur of the Khmer empire at its height, with infantry, cavalry, horse-drawn chariots and elephants parading across the Central Square. 

There were a LOT of holes in the stones which were filled with rainwater.  Ayla would say, "Mix." and put her finger in the hole and "mix" the water.  It was quite fun to watch.

Leper Kings or Queens?

Angkor Thom & Bayon

Angkor Thom was the world's largest city in the 12th century.  At the city's height it may have supported a population of one million people in the surrounding region.  It is enclosed by a square wall (jayagiri) 8 m high and 12 km in length and is encircled by a 100 m wide moat (jayasindhu.)  It is suppose to emulate Mt. Meru surrounded by the oceans. 

This is the Victory Gate of Angkor Thom.  The road is flanked by a representation of the Churning of the Ocean of Milk - 54 demons and 54 gods in an epic tug of war.

Stan found an interesting use for his bandana - a carrier for Ayla.

The bas-reliefs include 1.2 km of carvings depicting more than 11,000 figures.  The carvings on the outer wall of the irst level show vivid scenes of everyday life in 12th century Cambodia.  Our guide explained what stories many of them were telling.  At some point I may come back to this post and explain the ones I have chosen here. 

The guidebook states, "At Bayon there are 54 Gothic-style towers decorated with 216 coldly smiling faces of Avalokiteshvara that bear more than a passing resemblance to the great king, Jayavarman VII.  These huge heads glare down from every angle, exuding power and control with a hint of humanity - this was precisely the blend required to hold sway over such a vast empire, ensuring the desperate and far-flung population yielded to his magnanimous will."

It started to rain so everyone at the temple took refuge in any corridors they could find.

We decided there was too much to see and we didn't mind getting wet in the rain so we headed to our next site.  Solin, our guide, ran to get the van on the other side of the temple.  We waited patiently under a tree, or in Mike's case under a hat.

Ta Keo Temple

Ta Keo is an undecorated temple that had never been finished.  This was built by Jayavarman V and was dedicated to Shiva.  It was the first Angkorian monument built entirely out of sandstone.  Some people believe that the hard sandstone was impossible to carve and that explains the lack of decoration.  Another possible reason it was not finished is stated later in this post.

 Little did Ayla know when she started climbing what she would be up against further along the trail.

 

 This little Cambodian girl climbed up the hot steps barefoot.

 Ayla, the little reader, found more writing to check out.

My travel guide states that according to one of the inscriptions, Ta Keo was struck by lightning during construction. This may have been considered a bad omen and led to its abandonment.

The summit of the central tower is 50 meters high.   

Mike and Ayla headed up first.

We all worked up a sweat climbing all the stairs.  It was well worth it.  Our guide stated that the stairs were built to be very steep so not everyone would be able to make it to the top.  

Artem, Cassandra, Mike, and Emily at the top of the central tower.

The holes in the stones were put there for carrying the blocks to their final destination.

It was much easier to climb up than down.  We all had to go down backwards.  Mike and Emily played tag-team with Ayla just to be safe.

Now which one had the ball under it?