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Welcome to our blog again!
It has been a while since we last wrote, but of course this doesn’t mean we haven't traveled...
In August we had many destinations: Cambodia; Korea and Perhentian Island in Malaysia.
In August we had many destinations: Cambodia; Korea and Perhentian Island in Malaysia.
We will write a little bit more about our trip to Angkor Wat as it was very memorable! We have spent 5 days at the ancient city of Angkor located at the outskirts of Siem Reap. I have been traveling together with my friend Viki and later Sjoerd joined us as well.
This trip was amazing and unforgettable for many reasons: finally I have got some time to spend with one of my best friends who I haven’t seen in a very long time; the people of Cambodia are very friendly; it is a very different country from all the other countries we have visited before and of course the temples of Angkor are some of the most amazing temples we have ever seen. You really feel in different times when you are walking among these spectacular temples.
The Angkor Wat late afternoon...
Once one of the great empires of South East Asia, Cambodia now occupies only a small portion of its previous area. The Angkor period of Cambodian history lasted from AD 802 to AD1431 and represents the greatest period of Khmer architectural, artistic and cultural achievement. Bombed during the war in Vietnam, Cambodia was soon after ruled by the Khmer Rouge led by Pol Pot. This period of approximately ten years was extremely violent and resulted in millions of Cambodians killed and many fleeing to Western countries. In 1992 the United Nations assisted Cambodia in conducting democratic elections
Most of the temples were built from 1190-1300. The local Hindu kings built a hundred or so temples in praise of Vishnu and Shiva. King Jayavarman VII (1180-1220 AD) was the most famous of the era. His Kingdom was to Cambodia what the Roman Empire was to Europe - orderly and technically superior beyond its years.
The most famous and largest temple complex is Angkor Wat. Built by King Suryaman II from 1130-1150, it is the only temple that survived the ravages of nature, time and the Khmer Rouge nearly intactly. In the later centuries, it was converted into a Buddhist temple by latter day Khmer kings, who changed the state religion from Hinduism to Buddhism. The Angkor Wat, besides being the biggest religious structure, also contains the biggest bas relief in the world, totally about 800 m in continuous length. The temple is also famous for the “heavenly nymphs”, there are more then 3000 carved into the walls of the temple.
The most famous and largest temple complex is Angkor Wat. Built by King Suryaman II from 1130-1150, it is the only temple that survived the ravages of nature, time and the Khmer Rouge nearly intactly. In the later centuries, it was converted into a Buddhist temple by latter day Khmer kings, who changed the state religion from Hinduism to Buddhism. The Angkor Wat, besides being the biggest religious structure, also contains the biggest bas relief in the world, totally about 800 m in continuous length. The temple is also famous for the “heavenly nymphs”, there are more then 3000 carved into the walls of the temple.
All in all the temple of Angkor Wat is stunning!!! We have visited it 3 times just to see it in different times of the day.
Angkor Wat in the early morning light.
Angkor Wat in the early morning light.
We have tried to visit as many temples as possible in 5 days and also go back to those that we liked the most
Without a doubt one of our favorite once was the Ta Prohm, a huge Buddhist temple left completely as it was found over a hundred years ago-----taken over by the jungle. It’s an amazing combination of nature in the form of huge trees and art. We have been wandering around for a few hours admiring it. It truly feels like in a dream world.
Another big favorite was Banteay Samre, which is much smaller in size then the other temples, but still has wonderful details and there are hardly any tourists. We enjoyed the sunset here.
The Temples of Bayon were spectacular as well This one is known for it's ominously large stone heads.
We have visited many more temples of which you can see more photos on our website. We left the place with wonderful memories. The people are very friendly even though they had to go through very difficult times and we have seen quite some tourists at the temples, which is great as this means money coming into the country. We have also done a lot of shopping and enjoyed the local massage:-)
Without a doubt it is one of the wonders of the world.
