For simplicity, outside of a few specific examples, I'm going to collectively refer to the entire temple complex as "Angkor" in this post. While it is in fact possible to name every temple, it would I only add to the length and complexity of this passage, which I feel would detrimentally effect its readability.
The first thing you must accept about Angkor is that you simply can't see everything. The scale of it beggars description. Angkor Archeological Park sprawls over 400 square kilometers. To put this in perspective, my native city of Philadelphia clocks in at 367 square kilometers. In just the main area, there are literally hundreds of temples, outbuildings and ruins, some barely larger than a garden shed. Some of these are tucked away in pockets of mature dipterocarp forest. Others are closed as a dedicated crew of builders and restorers attempt to renovate them in an effort that rivals their original construction. Even with the seven day ticket (which at the time of this writing allows you a generous ten days) it would be a real challenge to cover all that ground, and this doesn't even account for the remote sites like the Roulos Complex or Banteay Srei. Not only is the site expansive with many hidden pockets, it is hot here. Temperatures have been consistently in the energy sapping upper 90's (f ) for over a week. The warm breezes offer little relief and stir up the dry season dust. Without real determination, it is all too easy to abandon the whole project in favor of a beer by the hotel pool.
There are several options for Angkor passes sold in one, three and seven day increments. Due to low tourism numbers, the one day pass actually allows two days of visits, the three day gets you five and the seven day permits you to explore for ten days. I opt for the three day. While even an entire month wouldn't enable me to see everything, I am rightly assured that five days is sufficient to take in most of the good stuff without feeling rushed. I pay and have a photo taken of myself, which is printed on my ticket to prevent anyone else from using it. Whether this is to prevent fraud or simply scare people off isn't explained.
If you purchase your ticket late in the afternoon, you are given one "free" sunset. After securing my ticket at about 5:30, I found a tuktuk and raced to Angkor Wat to see the famous towers painted by the last night of the day. The main causeway to the temple is currently closed for repairs. In it's place, the visitor crosses the moat on a broad floating walkway made of interlocking plastic tiles. It may not have the majesty of the old bridge, but it is pleasingly bouncy. Angkor Wat bathed in the last light of the dying day is truly a sight to behold. I have time to snap a few quick pictures before the staff, who have clearly beheld enough for one day starts herding us back towards the bridge and into the waiting arms of something nearly as old as the grand temples themselves: The Hustle.
Approach any major attraction anywhere on the planet and you'll be greeted by the same game. Everyone has postcards or bracelets or tee shirts to sell you. Everyone wants to give you a lift or a tour and it's all at a "very good price". or has some way of trying to glean money. If you ask how these people are they will tell you with some dramatic flair that their lives have been an uninterrupted tragedy since nobody will buy this very nice scarf, but maybe, just maybe someday a benefactor will appear, a very handsome American... All of this is related in a nasal whining singsong that I find particularly grating. "No" simply isn't accepted outright. You need to decline as politely as possible while being followed at a brisk trot. Some of the children are so persistent that they will follow you into restaurants or sit waiting by your ride. I started checking my backpack at the end of the day to assure one of them hasn't climbed in to be carried home with you. At no point are you ever entirely safe. In Angkor, the ticket agents ask what you are doing tomorrow, not to make conversation, but because they just so happen to have a tuk tuk and by incredible good fortune they just happen to have tomorrow off...
At least the belligerent, obese and scrofulous looking temple monkeys are easier to avoid.
I get why. People need to make a living and they're doing the best that they can. To them I must look like unlimited wealth and privilege. They don't realize how close I am to them socioeconomically. It's just relentless and exhausting.
Upon returning to the guesthouse, I ask about the possibility of renting a bicycle. The clerk looks at me with repressed horror. They don't do this anymore he tells me in a hushed tone. Sure, they used to but the cost in human suffering was just too grim. You see, he explained as if to a toddler, Cambodia is a very hot country. Only a lunatic or an imbecile would want to ride a bike in this heat, he very tactfully avoids saying. I begrudgingly allow myself to be talked into the sunrise tour.
After we are all collected from our various hotels, our tour guide perkily greets us. My dislike for this woman is instantaneous and largely unfair. In my own defense, I haven't generally wound up liking many people who I first met at 4:30 in the morning. We were than whisked to the ticket offices and then Angkor Wat itself, half an hour before dawn. We were invited to explore, which basically meant find a good photogenic spot to await first light, most opted for the reflecting pool. There were a few hundred people clustered around what sunrise would reveal to be a murky little pond that was the source of most of the local mosquitoes.
The sun rose to an enthusiastic and pointless round of applause, as though they expected it to take a bow.
Here is my problem with package tours. While a good guide can provide useful insight and context, part of their mind is always counting. They need to assure everyone came back from the toilets or that food breaks happen before too many people start whining. This means that most tours are as short and basic as possible and the guide will rarely ever deviate from the script or prepared route. Our guide, while actually fairly good, was clearly wearing out by the end. After a five minute description of a relief carving, we were given just half an hour to explore the rest of Bayon, a wonderfully weird temple about the size of a city block. I went back to some of the sites our tour covered later and spent hours where we spent minutes before being sheparded into the van.
That afternoon I rented a rattletrap bicycle from a shop that was clearly not concerned about my mental well being. Most of the Angkor sites are shaded by stately jungle trees and this section of Cambodia is as flat as a billiard table, so cycling, while hot, was not difficult. I was able to explore most of Angkor at my own pace this way for two dollars a day, and was much happier for it.
Every sculpture and mason should visit Angkor. It is a master class in stone: how to build with it, how to carve it how to shape it, how stone ages and breaks, how it is affected by wind, water, sun, gravity and trees. The Khmer craftsmen built dreamscapes of stone and populated them with an eye watering variety of apsaras, nagas, garudas, four faced buddhas, elephants, gods, demons, lions, and other figures to please the Devine as the temples switched from Hindu to Buddhist and back again through the centuries. It can be hard to keep track of all the twists of history which is why it helps to have a good guide book. I have a great one that you can have for just fifteen dollars, that's a very good price... okay twelve. Ten. Eight dollars only. Seven...where are you going?
The collosal effort of erecting such enormous and glorious structures becomes even more impressive when you consider how much of this highly sophisticated construction and planning took place while most of Europe was busy being invaded by Vikings and dying of various plagues. Even after centuries of neglect and being literally defaced by the Khmer Rouge, the artistry in every detail is undeniable. Dainty patternwork is etched into every wall and pillar. Similar to the Taj Mahal, you get the distinct impression that Jewelers were hired instead of builders. It is impossible to overstate how ornate and beautiful it is.
The Cambodian people have come to the idea of renovation quite recently (within the past century). Traditionally if a temple began looking a bit frayed around the edges, the Cambodians would simply build a new one. Rather than detract from the experience, it gives the visitor a sense of the passage of time to see that this towering tree has been able to grow through the walls of the building and overtake it. I mentioned that much of Angkor is under active reconstruction which means that some buildings have needed to be taken apart piece by piece and rebuilt. It is fairly common to enter a courtyard and find a large pile of stones stacked like cordwood. The fact that each of these is elaborately carved is somehow both heartbreaking and beautiful.
On my last day I scheduled the "long tour" just to see the far flung Banteay Srei, the so called "Lady Temple". Legend has it that it is called this because the ornamentation is too fine and delicate to have been carved by male hands. I was slightly dreading being pushed for hours through sites that I had already explored on my own just to see one, but I could see no other way of getting there without paying a small fortune to a bandit in a tuk tuk. The booking agent regretfully informed me that no one else had booked this tour, but for a little extra I could have a private tour. I bit the bullet and paid
This turned out to mean that I had a private tuk tuk for the day with a driver who would, after realizing that I wasn't interested in following the pre-set itinerary, would take me almost anywhere I wanted in the complex for the day. This for a fraction of the cost other drivers had offered. I used my time to see some of the smaller more fascinating temples in the park.
Banteay Srei lived up to advanced billing. It is a confectionery of pink sandstone spun like sugar. After seeing the water temple alone on its own island and a few others I requested a small temple site tucked behind another more famous one. I won't name it for reasons that will soon become apparent. The temple was in an enchanting state of disrepair, with only a few visitors and the local restoration crew. I read a notice pined to a tree. It encouraged the visitor not to feed the gibbons. I knew that a few families of pileated gibbon had been released into Angkor park in the hopes of repopulating the forest, and after days of searching out of the corner of my eye, I had finally found the release site. I didn't spot them, as it was now afternoon and warm enough where they were unlikely to be active, but just knowing that they could be nearby gave me hope.
The first thing you must accept about Angkor is that you simply can't see everything. The scale of it beggars description. Angkor Archeological Park sprawls over 400 square kilometers. To put this in perspective, my native city of Philadelphia clocks in at 367 square kilometers. In just the main area, there are literally hundreds of temples, outbuildings and ruins, some barely larger than a garden shed. Some of these are tucked away in pockets of mature dipterocarp forest. Others are closed as a dedicated crew of builders and restorers attempt to renovate them in an effort that rivals their original construction. Even with the seven day ticket (which at the time of this writing allows you a generous ten days) it would be a real challenge to cover all that ground, and this doesn't even account for the remote sites like the Roulos Complex or Banteay Srei. Not only is the site expansive with many hidden pockets, it is hot here. Temperatures have been consistently in the energy sapping upper 90's (f ) for over a week. The warm breezes offer little relief and stir up the dry season dust. Without real determination, it is all too easy to abandon the whole project in favor of a beer by the hotel pool.
There are several options for Angkor passes sold in one, three and seven day increments. Due to low tourism numbers, the one day pass actually allows two days of visits, the three day gets you five and the seven day permits you to explore for ten days. I opt for the three day. While even an entire month wouldn't enable me to see everything, I am rightly assured that five days is sufficient to take in most of the good stuff without feeling rushed. I pay and have a photo taken of myself, which is printed on my ticket to prevent anyone else from using it. Whether this is to prevent fraud or simply scare people off isn't explained.
If you purchase your ticket late in the afternoon, you are given one "free" sunset. After securing my ticket at about 5:30, I found a tuktuk and raced to Angkor Wat to see the famous towers painted by the last night of the day. The main causeway to the temple is currently closed for repairs. In it's place, the visitor crosses the moat on a broad floating walkway made of interlocking plastic tiles. It may not have the majesty of the old bridge, but it is pleasingly bouncy. Angkor Wat bathed in the last light of the dying day is truly a sight to behold. I have time to snap a few quick pictures before the staff, who have clearly beheld enough for one day starts herding us back towards the bridge and into the waiting arms of something nearly as old as the grand temples themselves: The Hustle.
Approach any major attraction anywhere on the planet and you'll be greeted by the same game. Everyone has postcards or bracelets or tee shirts to sell you. Everyone wants to give you a lift or a tour and it's all at a "very good price". or has some way of trying to glean money. If you ask how these people are they will tell you with some dramatic flair that their lives have been an uninterrupted tragedy since nobody will buy this very nice scarf, but maybe, just maybe someday a benefactor will appear, a very handsome American... All of this is related in a nasal whining singsong that I find particularly grating. "No" simply isn't accepted outright. You need to decline as politely as possible while being followed at a brisk trot. Some of the children are so persistent that they will follow you into restaurants or sit waiting by your ride. I started checking my backpack at the end of the day to assure one of them hasn't climbed in to be carried home with you. At no point are you ever entirely safe. In Angkor, the ticket agents ask what you are doing tomorrow, not to make conversation, but because they just so happen to have a tuk tuk and by incredible good fortune they just happen to have tomorrow off...
At least the belligerent, obese and scrofulous looking temple monkeys are easier to avoid.
I get why. People need to make a living and they're doing the best that they can. To them I must look like unlimited wealth and privilege. They don't realize how close I am to them socioeconomically. It's just relentless and exhausting.
Upon returning to the guesthouse, I ask about the possibility of renting a bicycle. The clerk looks at me with repressed horror. They don't do this anymore he tells me in a hushed tone. Sure, they used to but the cost in human suffering was just too grim. You see, he explained as if to a toddler, Cambodia is a very hot country. Only a lunatic or an imbecile would want to ride a bike in this heat, he very tactfully avoids saying. I begrudgingly allow myself to be talked into the sunrise tour.
After we are all collected from our various hotels, our tour guide perkily greets us. My dislike for this woman is instantaneous and largely unfair. In my own defense, I haven't generally wound up liking many people who I first met at 4:30 in the morning. We were than whisked to the ticket offices and then Angkor Wat itself, half an hour before dawn. We were invited to explore, which basically meant find a good photogenic spot to await first light, most opted for the reflecting pool. There were a few hundred people clustered around what sunrise would reveal to be a murky little pond that was the source of most of the local mosquitoes.
The sun rose to an enthusiastic and pointless round of applause, as though they expected it to take a bow.
That afternoon I rented a rattletrap bicycle from a shop that was clearly not concerned about my mental well being. Most of the Angkor sites are shaded by stately jungle trees and this section of Cambodia is as flat as a billiard table, so cycling, while hot, was not difficult. I was able to explore most of Angkor at my own pace this way for two dollars a day, and was much happier for it.
Every sculpture and mason should visit Angkor. It is a master class in stone: how to build with it, how to carve it how to shape it, how stone ages and breaks, how it is affected by wind, water, sun, gravity and trees. The Khmer craftsmen built dreamscapes of stone and populated them with an eye watering variety of apsaras, nagas, garudas, four faced buddhas, elephants, gods, demons, lions, and other figures to please the Devine as the temples switched from Hindu to Buddhist and back again through the centuries. It can be hard to keep track of all the twists of history which is why it helps to have a good guide book. I have a great one that you can have for just fifteen dollars, that's a very good price... okay twelve. Ten. Eight dollars only. Seven...where are you going?
The collosal effort of erecting such enormous and glorious structures becomes even more impressive when you consider how much of this highly sophisticated construction and planning took place while most of Europe was busy being invaded by Vikings and dying of various plagues. Even after centuries of neglect and being literally defaced by the Khmer Rouge, the artistry in every detail is undeniable. Dainty patternwork is etched into every wall and pillar. Similar to the Taj Mahal, you get the distinct impression that Jewelers were hired instead of builders. It is impossible to overstate how ornate and beautiful it is.
The Cambodian people have come to the idea of renovation quite recently (within the past century). Traditionally if a temple began looking a bit frayed around the edges, the Cambodians would simply build a new one. Rather than detract from the experience, it gives the visitor a sense of the passage of time to see that this towering tree has been able to grow through the walls of the building and overtake it. I mentioned that much of Angkor is under active reconstruction which means that some buildings have needed to be taken apart piece by piece and rebuilt. It is fairly common to enter a courtyard and find a large pile of stones stacked like cordwood. The fact that each of these is elaborately carved is somehow both heartbreaking and beautiful.
On my last day I scheduled the "long tour" just to see the far flung Banteay Srei, the so called "Lady Temple". Legend has it that it is called this because the ornamentation is too fine and delicate to have been carved by male hands. I was slightly dreading being pushed for hours through sites that I had already explored on my own just to see one, but I could see no other way of getting there without paying a small fortune to a bandit in a tuk tuk. The booking agent regretfully informed me that no one else had booked this tour, but for a little extra I could have a private tour. I bit the bullet and paid
This turned out to mean that I had a private tuk tuk for the day with a driver who would, after realizing that I wasn't interested in following the pre-set itinerary, would take me almost anywhere I wanted in the complex for the day. This for a fraction of the cost other drivers had offered. I used my time to see some of the smaller more fascinating temples in the park.
Banteay Srei lived up to advanced billing. It is a confectionery of pink sandstone spun like sugar. After seeing the water temple alone on its own island and a few others I requested a small temple site tucked behind another more famous one. I won't name it for reasons that will soon become apparent. The temple was in an enchanting state of disrepair, with only a few visitors and the local restoration crew. I read a notice pined to a tree. It encouraged the visitor not to feed the gibbons. I knew that a few families of pileated gibbon had been released into Angkor park in the hopes of repopulating the forest, and after days of searching out of the corner of my eye, I had finally found the release site. I didn't spot them, as it was now afternoon and warm enough where they were unlikely to be active, but just knowing that they could be nearby gave me hope.
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