Photos from Siem Reap ($.50 beer capitol of the world), the amazing temples of Angkor and our journey to Phnom Penh where we met up with Nathan and Jen (yes, we know you are jealous).
Amanda sitting in the ubiquitous plastic chair, waiting for some fresh pressed sugar cane juice. We are trying not to get addicted, but sugar cane on a hot day is pretty damn nice. Luckily we will have state sponsored health care when we get back, since we're pretty sure we are going to get diabetes.
Toul Sleng Genocide Museum, also known as S-21. This building was once a high school but was turned into an interrogation center when the Khmer Rouge took over in 1975. An estimated 20,000 people were tortured and killed here, many brought to the infamous Killing Fields 14KM outside of the city. It was chilling to walk the halls which are full of mug shots of the prisoners staring back at you.
And this is where we stayed, note the house on the end halfway under water. We paid a pretty good price considering the fact that we had a free swimming pool in the corner.
Arriving in the big city, Phnom Penh, we take a tuk tuk to lakeside to stay for the night.
An apsara dances gaily even though she lost her face. These female deities lined basically every wall of many of the temples we saw. Those Khmers sure love to dance.
Colin still sweats balls in a tank top as the faces of Bayon temple stare down at him. Bayon is one of the coolest Angkorian temples with as many faces as there were provinces in the whole kingdom that resemble the emperor at the time. Big Brother is watching!
Look familiar? Think Angelina Jolie in hot pants. This famous tree is pretty impressive and is featured in SE Asia blogs as well as blockbusters.
The "crocodile tree" clings to the temple wall like it's a fresh wildabeast. Nom nom crunch nom.
On the altar of the Leper King there are many reliefs, so many that there are even reliefs behind more of them! This site was once thought to be dedicated to one of the two Khmer kings who had leprosy, but is now thought to be the remnants of the royal crematorium.
The trees don't only take over the temples, but also sweaty tourists trying to hide from the sun.
The trees overtook Ta Prohm's temples and now are necessary to hold up the crumbling stones. They haven't reconstructed so you can get a view of what the temples looked like before conservation. Temples like Angkor Wat were taken apart and put back together stone by stone to rebuild the grandeur of the past.
Climbing the steepest steps to the top of an unfinished temple due to the king's untimely death during its construction. Those Khmers have the tiniest feet! There were good views of the surrounding temples from the top and a sleeping guard next to a Buddhist shrine.
A smaller Buddhist sanctuary dedicated to one of the most famous king's mother built in the 12th century. Many children at the entrance of the temple offered us postcards and other souvenirs, all of whom could name every capitol of every state in the US.
A bas relief depicting a scene from the beloved Ramayana epic. An evil giant warrior fights off a member of Hanuman's monkey army. You can ask one of us to tell you the full story over many beers if you want more details, we'll be experts on Hindu classics by the end of this trip.
One of the subsidiary praangs of Angkor Wat. Monks find shade from the blazing sun.
"We're too excited to sleep!!!" Amanda sports her new krama plopped on her head ala Cambodia.
Angkor Wat viewed from across the moat at sunrise. We biked there just in time to catch our first glimpse as the sun was rising out of the clouds. In the center of the photo are the iconic five praangs (towers meant to symbolize mythical Mt. Meru, the center of the Hindu universe). When we first saw the moat we thought it was a river but then found out it is the largest moat in the world, pretty impressive especially since it was built by hand 1,000 years ago.
A common treat on the streets of SE Asia. It looks like pancake batter, sometimes sweet and other times savory, this one came with a chili sauce and green onions. You can pick up 5 for about a quarter, not bad.
Who knew there were crocodiles in Siem Reap? Amanda wrangled one on the sleepy riverside, a hard thing to do without getting your dress dirty. We spent a couple afternoons here reading as it was the only cool retreat during the hottest hours of the day.
Amanda sitting in the ubiquitous plastic chair, waiting for some fresh pressed sugar cane juice. We are trying not to get addicted, but sugar cane on a hot day is pretty damn nice. Luckily we will have state sponsored health care when we get back, since we're pretty sure we are going to get diabetes.
Toul Sleng Genocide Museum, also known as S-21. This building was once a high school but was turned into an interrogation center when the Khmer Rouge took over in 1975. An estimated 20,000 people were tortured and killed here, many brought to the infamous Killing Fields 14KM outside of the city. It was chilling to walk the halls which are full of mug shots of the prisoners staring back at you.
And this is where we stayed, note the house on the end halfway under water. We paid a pretty good price considering the fact that we had a free swimming pool in the corner.
Arriving in the big city, Phnom Penh, we take a tuk tuk to lakeside to stay for the night.
An apsara dances gaily even though she lost her face. These female deities lined basically every wall of many of the temples we saw. Those Khmers sure love to dance.
Colin still sweats balls in a tank top as the faces of Bayon temple stare down at him. Bayon is one of the coolest Angkorian temples with as many faces as there were provinces in the whole kingdom that resemble the emperor at the time. Big Brother is watching!
Look familiar? Think Angelina Jolie in hot pants. This famous tree is pretty impressive and is featured in SE Asia blogs as well as blockbusters.
The "crocodile tree" clings to the temple wall like it's a fresh wildabeast. Nom nom crunch nom.
On the altar of the Leper King there are many reliefs, so many that there are even reliefs behind more of them! This site was once thought to be dedicated to one of the two Khmer kings who had leprosy, but is now thought to be the remnants of the royal crematorium.
The trees don't only take over the temples, but also sweaty tourists trying to hide from the sun.
The trees overtook Ta Prohm's temples and now are necessary to hold up the crumbling stones. They haven't reconstructed so you can get a view of what the temples looked like before conservation. Temples like Angkor Wat were taken apart and put back together stone by stone to rebuild the grandeur of the past.
Climbing the steepest steps to the top of an unfinished temple due to the king's untimely death during its construction. Those Khmers have the tiniest feet! There were good views of the surrounding temples from the top and a sleeping guard next to a Buddhist shrine.
A smaller Buddhist sanctuary dedicated to one of the most famous king's mother built in the 12th century. Many children at the entrance of the temple offered us postcards and other souvenirs, all of whom could name every capitol of every state in the US.
A bas relief depicting a scene from the beloved Ramayana epic. An evil giant warrior fights off a member of Hanuman's monkey army. You can ask one of us to tell you the full story over many beers if you want more details, we'll be experts on Hindu classics by the end of this trip.
One of the subsidiary praangs of Angkor Wat. Monks find shade from the blazing sun.
"We're too excited to sleep!!!" Amanda sports her new krama plopped on her head ala Cambodia.
Angkor Wat viewed from across the moat at sunrise. We biked there just in time to catch our first glimpse as the sun was rising out of the clouds. In the center of the photo are the iconic five praangs (towers meant to symbolize mythical Mt. Meru, the center of the Hindu universe). When we first saw the moat we thought it was a river but then found out it is the largest moat in the world, pretty impressive especially since it was built by hand 1,000 years ago.
A common treat on the streets of SE Asia. It looks like pancake batter, sometimes sweet and other times savory, this one came with a chili sauce and green onions. You can pick up 5 for about a quarter, not bad.
Who knew there were crocodiles in Siem Reap? Amanda wrangled one on the sleepy riverside, a hard thing to do without getting your dress dirty. We spent a couple afternoons here reading as it was the only cool retreat during the hottest hours of the day.
I like the new shades you guys are sporting and Amanda's new dress. Glad to know you are supporting the economy! :) That free swimming pool definitely would have creeped me out. That snack looks like it is made from a poffertje grill!
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to hearing the Hindu legends in great detail in the not to distant future. Hope you get your phone into a clear zone so we can talk soon.
ReplyDeleteLove Da and Ma et al
Todd and Amber made us some delicious puffy pancakes like the ones in your photo. They called them aableskivers and said they were Norwegian. I'm very interested in this delicacy and its cultural history.
ReplyDeleteVery nice pictures!
ReplyDelete