Ground Control to Angkor Thom 
February 14, 2012
Siem Reap Cambodia is the city closest to the temples of Angkor and has been built for the tourists; there are more guesthouses and hotels than temples! All which have been built within the last 15 years or so after the end of the Khmer Rouge regime. It has a bit of a Disney/Vegas feel with the uniform landscaping and architecture. I can only imagine how it will continue to explode in the next few years, but it's still rather pleasant now. We are staying in the super luxurious Sofitel, it's gorgeous but a bit guilt inspiring, particularly since it is right next to the Angkor Children's Hospital where families line up the night before for free inoculations the next morning.

The recent history and tales of genocide in Cambodia are unbelievable. I have a distinct memory of finding an old national geographic in my grandmother's basement on Pol Pot and the killing fields which fueled some morbid fascination as well as a few nightmares. Our tour guide Ta, who is in his early 40s lived through it all, and the stories he told about the violence, the forced labor, marching hundreds of miles, and death before his eyes was heartbreaking. Over 2 million were killed during the bloody regime.

Ta has a strong aversion to crowds, which is difficult when ones occupation is a tour guide at one of the wonders of the world! But he knows all the tricks. We left at 730am for our visit to Angkor Wat and entered along the lesser-known eastern gate and had just about a full hour to ourselves with the monkeys and apsaras (heavenly nymphs which appear all over the temple). It is enormous, considered the largest religious building in the world, aligned with the sun and surrounded by a huge moat, over a meter in length on each side. Construction involved over 300,000 workers (slaves) and 6000 elephants. By the time we hit the west gate, we found the crowds, while annoying they did not detract from the immense sense of space and scale.

I like the temple touring schedule a la Ta... early morning, relax by pool midday, and back for sunset. We visited Angkor Thom for the evening fix of templing. Another gated city, the most famous structure is called Bayon, a self-commissioned homage to King Jayavavnan VII, which contains over 216 faces which are a combination of the king himself and Avalokiteshvara (Buddha of Compassion). Big Brother (Buddha) is certainly watching over you here.
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