Saturday, August 23, 2008

Images of Siem Reap, Angkor Wat, and the ancient Khmer Empire temles

Images of our trip to Siem Reap to see Angkor Wat and other ancient Khmer Empire temples
View of the countryside on the bus trip to Siem Reap.

A rest stop (to buy dried fish and hard boiled eggs - I did not partake).

The Angkor National Museum, built by a Thai company and the center of a good deal of controversy, was nevertheless a good place to start our visit and get some perspective on the ruins we would be touring for the next few days.


In front of Angkor Wat on the first morning.





Ian in front of one of the towers of Angkor Wat.







Gate to Angkor Thom, the ancient capital city.

Bayon Temple.


Intricate carvings at Bayon.




The faces of Bayon: Buddha or King Jayavarman VII?


Bayon has 216 of these faces peering out in the cardinal directions.





Bayon Temple from afar.

An ancient/contemporary swimming hole in Angkor Thom.


A Cambodian boy climbing down some steep steps that I was too chicken to ascend.


Carvings on the Elephant Terrace wall.


The Elephant Terrace.



Monks walking along the Elephant Terrace.

Terrace of the Leper King.

A giant naga carving on the Terrace of the Leper King.

The carvings on the Leper King Terrace are very well preserved because it was covered from the elements until relatively recently.


Ian in front of the Terrace of the Leper King.

A small temple in Angkor Thom being overtaken by the jungle.




Ian in front of a wall at Ta Prohm, a temple being consumed by the flora (it made for some awe-inspiring views).

Ta Prohm was also a filming site for the movie Tomb Raider.




A boy and a dog at Ta Prohm.





Traditional Khmer dancing that we enjoyed during dinner at the Temple restaurant.

The peacock dance.



View of Bayon again.

Carvings of men holding the tail of a large naga, which they were said to have used to churn the sea of life.




A lovely rainbow greeted us on the third day.





Large tree, little Katie.

Ruins which used to house a large pool used by the royalty.

A water spout.
Human legs, horse body.


Two small Cambodian boys, playing with a machete.









Lion statue.

Hike up to the River of a Thousand Lingas.

Interesting rock formation on the walk up.

The River of a Thousand Lingas is an intricately carved riverbed several dozen kilometers from the temples of Angkor Wat.




A lovely butterfly at the waterfall.

A camoflouged reptile.


Another colorful butterfly.


Cambodians are quite creative in their modes of transportation.

Rural Cambodia.


Walkway to an intricately carved temple.












A giant cistern used by the Khmer kings.


Cambodian barbeque: it was a lot of work, but the goat was quite tasty.

Live pigs on the way to market.


More temple wildlife.


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