The Jungle-Temple of Ta Prohm

The second part of our Angkor Wat tour was concentrated at the temple of Ta Prohm. The construction of Ta Prohm as a Buddhist temple began in 1186 A.D. The design of the temple is not like the previous ones with steep stairs and elevations. This was a flat kind of temple with only a few stairs.

As per wikipedia, Ta Prohm was singled out because it was "one of the most imposing (temples) and the one which had best merged with the jungle, but not yet to the point of becoming a part of it." It is composed of a number of towers, corridors and closed courtyards.

Ta Prohm is extensively ruined but can still be explored. While we were there, we observed that some parts have been closed off from tourists as it was being restored.

Some corridors were impassable and risky of falling debris. Nevertheless, a lot of restoration are going around the temple to keep the safety of visitors and maintain the lost-in-the-temple/ jungle atmosphere. 

Another thing that made Ta Prohm famous is that this is where the movie of Angelina Jolie, Tomb Raider, was filmed. Our tour guide said that the producers of the film was able to gather permit to close the temple from visitors when they shot the film.

Tall and sturdy trees seem to rise up and swallow the temple walls. The roots of the tree below looks like that of a snake's body.

We had fun posing as secret agents looking for some criminals hiding on crevices and roots.

There were surely a lot of trees and roots around. 

Look how mighty the roots of these fig and silk-cotton trees impose themselves on the temple walls.

Visiting Ta Phrom last was a sweet conclusion of the whole tour. Going into the temples and its corridors felt as if discovering a temple in a jungle. It was a mesmerizing and wonderful experience. Thank you and 'til next blog!

1 day Historical and Cultural Tour in Phnom Penh

We arrived in Phnom Penh, Cambodia at around 9 in the evening. After settling down and having dinner, we decided to just sleep immediately to get ready for a long day.

The currency in Cambodia is Riel. We did not have to exchange our USD cash to their money because USD is widely accepted. Armed with a breakfast of pancakes and coffee, here are the places we visited in the country's capital.

1. National Museum

Entrance Fee: 5 USD

We were so lucky that the hotel we chose was very near to the National Museum. We did not have to ride a tuktuk to get to it. This is Cambodia's largest museum of cultural history.

The museum works to provide a source of pride and identity of the Cambodian people. It housed a lot of stone sculptures important to the Buddhism and Hinduism. We were not able to take photos inside the museum as it has a separate fee.

2. Royal Palace

Entrance Fee: 6.25 USD

To serve as a residence of the King of Cambodia, his family and foreign dignitaries, the Royal Palace was built. This also serves as a venue for the performance of court ceremony and as a symbol of the Kingdom.

The Royal Palace is very near to The National Museum. Again, we hiked towards the place. We arrived at around 9am, paid for the entrance fee and proceeded to explore the area.

There was a map given to us on the entrance which was very useful as there were a lot of buildings.

Separated by a walled walkway but still within the compound is the Silver Pagoda. This has been coined because of the solid silver floor tiles that adorn the temple building.

This houses the Emerald Buddha and a collection of priceless Buddhist objects. We were not able to take photos inside as it was prohibited.

A lot of stupas were surrounding this temple. This was one of them.

A replica of the famous Angkor Wat is found in the palace grounds.We figured to have a look at it to know how vast it would be. 

3. Independence Monument

Entrance Fee: 0

This was built in 1958 for Cambodia's independence from France. Located in the center of the city, the lotus - shaped stupa stands majestic. We first saw this monument on the evening of our arrival and the lights surrounding it added to its beauty. This shot was taken by Wincee when we stopped in the park fronting the monument on our way to Wat Phnom.

4.Wat Phnom

Entrance Fee: 1 USD

Set atop a small hill and serving as a central site in the city as religious sanctuary for prayers and offerings since 1973 is the temple called Wat Phnom.

What amazed us when we visited this place is the giant flower clock that provided the exact time of the day. Sources pointed out that the original clock came from France but in 2000 it was replaced by a new version as a gift from China to mark the countries friendship.

5. S21 or Toul Sleng

Entrance Fee: 3

This was formerly a school which was used by the Khmer Rouge from its rise to power in 1975 to its fall in 1979. During the regime, this place became Security Prison - 21 wherein prisoners were kept, shackled, stripped, beaten and interrogated so that they will confess to crimes they were accused to commit.

Photos of the prisoners lined the walls of the first floor of the building. There was even a glassed case containing  all the clothes of the prisoners who did not survive. I was not able to hold my tears thinking that this place was where horrible and inhumane things happened.

The sign at the side says that this is called the gallows: "This pole with cables attached to it  had been used by the students to conduct their exercise. The Khmer rouge utilized this place as interrogation room. The interrogators tied both hands of the prisoners to the back by a rope and lift the prisoners upside down. They did like this until the prisoners lost consciousness. Then they dip the prisoner's head into a jar of smelly, filthy water which they normally use as fertilizer to the crops in the terrace outside. By doing so, the victims quickly regain consciousness and that the interrogators could continue the interrogation."

There were survivors of this terrible times who were able to tell  the world what they have gone through. Their detailed accounts and photos are posted at the rooms on the 3rd floor.

6. Killing Fields

Entrance Fee: 6 USD

This is a fitting continuation of the story of the Khmer Rouge regime's doing.

Corpses of the prisoners were buried in Toul Sleng however when it ran out of space, the regime made an extermination center in Choeung Ek. This is just one of the many killing fields of Cambodia and is 15 kilometers from Phnom Penh.

Armed with a map and an audio player, we visited the site and learned that prisoners were taken here to be killed. This is a tree where babies/ newborns were killed by smashing their heads. They killed even the young ones to stop them from growing and making revenge against what was done to their parents.

Dozens of mass graves are visible in the area. The skulls as well as bones and other belongings of the victims that were dug up are now placed in the Buddhist stupa.

It was a long and tiring yet a very informative day for us. We didn't know much of Phnom Penh before apart from it being in Cambodia. Truly to travel is an enriching experience. Thank you for your time and 'til next blog! :)

One Day Tour at Angkor Wat - part 1

I've always wanted to visit UNESCO world heritage sites. One of them is Angkor Wat, the number one attraction of Cambodia. I can still remember my teacher in Civics and Culture mentioning this to us in class. I never bothered to dream about travel at that time but now travel is my addiction.

Going back to the temples, we showed the guards our entrance IDs again. This time we went with our tour guide, Mr Chenla (sorry, forgot to get the correct spelling of his name). Our hotel was also kind enough to provide us a dozen of bottled water placed in an ice bucket to combat the heat and thirst while going through the temples.

King Suryavarman ordered Angkor Wat's construction in the 12th century to serve as his official temple and royal capital city.This is the straight path towards the towers. But this view only provides at least 3 towers. We were asked to go towards the left side for a different view.

This side from the pond enabled us to see the 5 towers. Our guide suggested this pose which we gamely did. It came out nice. :)

Going towards the entrance of the first building into Angkor Wat was a stone balustrade of a seven headed serpent or "naga". In the Sanskrit, this represents power, water and fertility in many Hindu texts. The Khmers adopted this Hindu Indian myth.

A lot of beautiful carvings were on the walls of the Central Angkor Thom. These were about the stories of their gods such as Vishnu conquering the demons, Churning of the Ocean of Milk and Battles of the Gods and the Demons. Observe that the stones are now shiny because in the past tourists were allowed to touch them. Now, a rope or a wooden barricade is placed to distance the tourists from the walls. 

We were led towards the left (or maybe the north) side of the complex. It was something like a corridor where we saw a groom and bride having their photo shoot. Not to be outdone, we had ours too.

We were led by the guide a bit further outside the gate and asked us to have a jump shot. Another cute idea from him!

There were guards who regulated the entrance to the towers. They did not allow tourists who were wearing shorts, sleeveless tops or mini dresses that didn't reach the knees. I was allowed to come up because I've put on my jacket. I roamed the second floor of the complex. The stairs were very steep. 

Up close with the center tower.

We came back down and was led to a great hall so massive we appeared very small.

Heading out of Angkor, we passed by the South Gate of the Angkor Thom. It is a challenge to wait for the area to be empty of people. I was lucky to have this shot of Wincee.

From here some tourists would opt to ride an elephant towards the Bayon temple.

The Bayon

Next, we headed out to Bayon temple. This is the central temple of the ancient city of Angkor. This was built around 1190 AD as a Buddhist temple but with Hindu elements. 

Bayon is famously known for the huge stone face of Avalokiteshvara. Here is also where tourists are able to have a nose to nose photo of the stone face.

There is an estimated 216 count of the face of the bodhisattva of compassion on the temple.

The temple had a lot of passageways and rooms in it. The place is as crowded as Angkor. We had to get a good timing to take photos without photobombers. This time Wincee took a  photo of me and in a split second after this was taken, people were coming in from different directions.

Some tourists opted to have their photos taken with Apsara costumed women. This had a fee of course.

Baphuon

Just a short walk from Bayon is another temple often times overlooked by tourists. The Baphuon temple was built in the mid 11th century and is a three tiered temple mountain dedicated to the Hindu God Shiva.

Unlike the temples we have visited earlier, Baphuon almost feels like it's a temple all to ourselves.

We had to climb steep stairs again to reach the top. There were no guards this time to regulate the dresses of tourists.

This is where Wincee was able to literally have a "Temple Run" kind of photo.

Me, sitting like a boss. Enjoying my view from the top.

This is the west wall of Baphuon. I really thought there was something about the bricks that at first glance was only piled up. From my readings, I found out that this was actually constructed as the face of a reclining buddha in an abstract form. 

This concludes the first half of our tour. We were dropped off at a nearby restaurant to eat lunch and rest a bit before starting the second part.

Thank you for your time and 'til next blog! :)