Samantha in Saigon: September 2014

Following an awe-inspiring motorbike trip through central Vietnam and a few days recovering in Hoi An, Dad and I said goodbye to Lisa and flew across the boarder to Cambodia. After checking in at the hotel, we beelined straight for dinner at Cambodian BBQ. Dad manned the grill, cooking up bits of chicken, pork, beef, squid, swordfish, dogfish shark, and crocodile. I manned the beer bottles.

Mmmmm, grilled meat

Mmmm, beer

Next morning, we hired a tuk tuk driver, Won Di, to cart us around the Angkor Wat complex. As he pulled to a stop in front of the famous Angkor Wat temple, we began to realize how impressive the world’s largest religious monument truly is.

Angkor Wat

Ridin' in style with Won Di

Angkor Wat is surrounded by a moat over 600ft wide. Inside the temples, there are hundreds of bas-reliefs, in varying states of ruin.

Interior temple
Angkor Wat

Angkor Wat

Interior temple of Angkor Wat through a window

Angkor Wat

Next up on the tour was Bayon, inside the Angkor Thom complex. Bayon is another example of Khmer design and is best known for the 216 giant carved faces of Avalokiteshvara.

Bayon, Angkor Wat

Beautiful relief work
Bayon, Angkor Wat

Bayon, Angkor Wat

Huge faces
Bayon, Angkor Wat

Bayon, Angkor Wat

The heat really started to set in as we tuk tuk-ed our way down the road to Ta Prohm. Ta Prohm is popularly referred to as the Indiana Jones temple. The beautiful towers and courtyards are overgrown by trees, their roots slowly devouring the stone.

Ta Prohm, Angkor Wat

Roots
Ta Prohm, Angkor Wat

Taking over
Ta Prohm, Angkor Wat

Ta Prohm, Angkor Wat

Amazing!
Ta Prohm, Angkor Wat

Tree hug
Ta Prohm, Angkor Wat

Ta Prohm, Angkor Wat

As the afternoon sun beat down on us in full force, we climbed the hill to Phnom Bakheng to see the sun set over Angkor Wat. We were exhausted, soaked with sweat, hungry, and less than eager to deal with the rapidly growing mass of people also looking to take in the sunset. After a short debate, we decided to head back down the hill to find Won Di to take us home.

Remains of steps up to Phnom Bakheng

Viewing deck at Phnom Bakheng

Well before dawn the next morning, Dad and I woke up and met Won Di out front for a chilly tuk tuk ride back to Angkor Wat. We followed the crowds over the moat and towards the reflective pool. As day broke, the mob of onlookers grew quiet, busily clicking photos of the magical sunrise over the temple.

Daybreak at Angkor Wat

Reflection
Angkor Wat

Sunrise
Angkor Wat

Here comes the sun
Angkor Wat

After breakfast at one of the food tents outside the temple, we met Won Di again had headed through the Angkor Thom South Gate. We stepped out of the tuk tuk and strolled along the bridge to cross into Angkor Thom on foot.

Angkor Thom South Gate

Standing guard

Angkor Thom South Gate

On the other side of the complex, we arrived at Preah Khan. This was possibly my favorite of all the temples, with its pink- and green-hued stones and lichen covering.

Bigfoot
Preah Khan, Angkor Wat

Preah Khan, Angkor Wat

Sunlight shining into the temple
Preah Khan, Angkor Wat

Pink and green stones
Preah Khan, Angkor Wat

Preah Khan, Angkor Wat

Seven-headed serpent
Preah Khan, Angkor Wat

Preah Khan, Angkor Wat

Next up was a long walk down a wooden pier over a somewhat creepy swamp to Neak Poan. This tiny temple is surrounded by a peaceful pool.

Swamp
Neak Poan

Neak Poan

As the heat of the day grew stronger, we toured around lesser-known Ta Som. It was a bit like a combination of the pink and green stones of Preah Khan and the overgrown jungle of Ta Prohm.

Ta Som, Angkor Wat

Pink stones
Ta Som, Angkor Wat

Ta Som, Angkor Wat

Roots
Ta Som, Angkor Wat

Incredible!
Ta Som, Angkor Wat

Our last temple was Banteay Kdei. The heat was so incredibly unbearable, we only made a quick circle of the temple before jumping straight back in the tuk tuk with Won Di.