Tea at Ta Nei

We took a little break and had coffee and tea at Ta Nei.  It was a nice opportunity to give our minds and our eyes a little rest.  This temple is not visited by many people so it was nice just sitting down with the whole family.  We all met the day before at the airport in Bangkok before flying to Siem Reap but we  really had little to no time to sit and chat.  Ayla is a busy little girl, she doesn't really just sit.

Stan felt unsafe in this temple.  He advised no sneezing.  We were continually amazed at all the stone carvings decorating all the temples.

Ta Prohm, aka The Jungle Temple

Ta Prohm was built from 1186 and originally known as Rajavihara (Monastery of the King.)  It was a Buddhist temple dedicated to the mother of Jayavarman VII.  It is one of the few temples in the Angkor region where an inscription provides information about the temple's dependents and inhabitants  According to an inscription 80,000 people were required to maintain or attend at the temple, among them more than 2700 officials and 615 dancers.

Our guide, Solin Aing, telling us some of the history of the temple.  She was a terrific guide.

Parts of the film Laura Croft - Tomb Raider with Angelina Jolie was filmed here.  This is where she parked her jeep before entering the inner parts of Ta Prohm.

One of our books stated, "There is a poetic cycle to this venerable ruin, with humanity first conquering nature to rapidly create, and nature once again conquering humanity to slowly destroy."

Srah Srang

Srah Srang means Pool of Ablutions.  This basin was reserved for the king and his consorts.  It is from the later part of the 12th century.  This was the first site we visited in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Tanning with a Toddler

The pictures tell it all.....

Taking Ayla Out and About

We took Ayla out for a walk around the block (or quite a few blocks) so Emily and Mike could sleep in.  Mike had just returned from a business trip in Seattle the night before.  We went out to where they were cutting sugar cane.  There was an excavator (which Ayla loves) by there but we couldn't get close enough because of all the mud.  Notice Ayla's sock puppet.

The mud was sticking to everything.  We had a heck of a time walking with all the mud on our shoes.  Stan tried to get as much off the tires before we got back home.  It was not very successful.  Stan ended up hosing off our shoes and the tires when we got back.

 Stan rigged up a way to keep Ayla's four wheeler going without her having to keep her finger on the button.  It was fun watching her drive down the street.

Look, Grandpa!  No hands!!

A little glimpse at Emily's garden.  We had fresh salad one night.  It was delicious!