We had arranged for the hotel on our tuk-tuk for the whole day. Our plan for the day is basically going from one temple to another around the Angkor Wat area. We planned to take the 3 days pass to visit the temples ruins. So lepas ni berlambak la gambar temple2 ancient Khmer ni.
The temple pass bought at the the ticket counter near Angkor Wat is USD20 per person for 1 day, USD40 for 3 days, USD60 for 7 days. (Macam bole muntah darah je tengok temple tak abes for 7 days . Prolly more suitable for people who are really into ancient art carvings or history and wants to take note and such). For a tour guide, it will cost you USD25 per day. I do think hiring a guide is the way to go, but we don't have a lot of money to spare, so we opt out and bought a guidebook instead. But if you went there with family or with a group, a guide would be great in telling the history and the details of the places.
At first we went into Angkor Wat. We headed out at 8 a.m. But it felt like in the middle of noon. It is so hot. A hat is a must! The picture I took for the front view was turrible. But I am feeling pretty heady just walking on the huge pathway/bridge up to the building.
We wandered in inside, wondering where to go first. It is huge!
Some of the photos around Angkor Wat
It's gonna be painfully long if I want to tell it in details, so probably I will just say I enjoyed looking through the beautivul carvings of apsaras, devatas, warriors, statues and the intricate decoration lining the pillars, steps, overhead, and walls. Those who studied Buddhism and Hinduism or know the histories would probably enjoyed it a whole lot more. Especially when looking at the bas reliefs (the second picture below), as it is basically 'manga' (as what my husband called it) etched on walls.
The last picture from the left is the 'apsara'. The Khmer were obsessed on them. Almost all of the temples have the apsara carvings decorating their walls or pillars. The nicest thing is, the apsara dancers carved on these walls are all different depicted with different hairstyles or poses. I loathe to delete any pictures that I took that have apsara in them, because its all so beautiful and unique to me.
After wandering around Angkor Wat we decided to go to Angkor Thom. We walked up back of Angkor Wat (rather aimlessly), thinking that Angkor Thom is nearby (you need a tuktuk to go from 1 temple to the next usually) then was stuck at one of the old gate post (gopura I think it called) when the rain came pouring down. We are stuck for about 1 hour where afterwards we headed back to our tuktuk to ask them to bring us there.
Angkor Thom is basically an ancient city. So the place was even more huge. Inside Angkor Thom are several magnificent temples dedicated to all of these old kings. The sight of the gate itself is magnificent. We haven't yet came into this old city.
The south gate of Angkor Thom
Then coming into the city we were greeted by this sight and it is truly one of a kind.
Bayon
The above is Bayon. Sprawling temple with its enigmatic face towers. It is a massive complex where you can climb up to its face towers and the lower complex walls are full of bas reliefs, but many of these are in ruins. At this point it was beginning to get hot again. I was reapplying sunblock to no avail. A sunburn is imminent.
Bapuon
Next we went to Bapuon, a temple-mountain so to speaks. We only went up to the front as it is still under heavy restoration and construction. Love the walkway btw.
Elephant Terrace
Our plan was to go and see the ancient Royal Palace, but it looked like its gonna rain( just a tiny bit of drizzle ) then we went and sit around the Elephant terrace, enjoying the view. This terrace was actually once a royal reception pavilions (whatever that means). The terrace was full of garuda and elephant motifs carved into its walls. We were looking for the hidden 5 headed horse motif but couldn't find it.
Terrace of the Leper King
Right next to the Elephant Terrace , is the Leper King Terrace. Nobody knows for sure why it is called that tho there are many theories. One of the most amazing set of reliefs I seen in my opinion.
Suor Prat Towers
This we only looked around on the outside on one of its tower as there are 12 identical towers facing the Elephant Terrace and Leper King Terrace. No one knows what its functions are and not much to see there either. Amazing actually on how little does we know on so many amazing architectures. After these, we need to get into the tuk tuk for the other temple ruins.
Spean Thma
On the way to another temple, our tuktuk ( I love saying tuktuk) driver stopped by the road for a while and point us this.
This was the remain of a bridge built by the ancient Khmer where it crosses the Siem Reap river. The river had changed its course now.
Chao Sao Tevoda
Another minor temple. Very quaint-like. There was a persistent tukang sapu/monk there who asked me to bakar one of the colok and give some donations which I did. I believe it is important that we respect other people culture and religion when we come to their place as much as we want other foreigners to do the same (covering head, and decent clothes) when they want to see our old mosques. After all makcik tukang sapu tu nak makan jugak. Bagi je la.
The first picture is one of the carvings of the steps.
Thommanon
Another small temple just across from Chao Sao Tevoda. A bit like Angkor Wat design.
Ta Keo
The only temple we went for the whole trip that I didn't climb right up to the top. It was crazy steep and I am mortally afraid of stairs. I only manage the first level. (There are 3 levels). My husband went up the second while I roam around the lower level. He attempted the 3rd level but changed his mind halfway up. Keskeskes.
The last picture makes me think of Pompeii. Hehe.
This temple was called a giant temple mountain. It is indeed. It was unfinished actually. The king who built it gave the temple to someone else (another king?) and that person wouldn't occupy the top area (only used the lower parts) considering himself unworthy of such honour. I personally think that person was just afraid of heights.
Ta Prohm
The cherry on top of the whole day when we went to Ta Phrom. Also our last temple of the day. By this time both of us smelled a little better than kerbau (the hot sun and the climbing around). If you think we were the only one, you are wrong as at one point I was standing near a quite cute Mat Salleh woman and OMG her smell was even more gag inducing.
This is actually the famed "Tomb Raider" shooting location and it was breathtakingly beautiful.
The first picture is the doorway shown in the movie.
This used to be a temple monastery. The old gnarled tree roots intertwined itself into the walls and bricks. Lots of tourist in here tho, which is the downside. The nicest thing about these old sprawling temples are sometimes you find yourselves completely alone and you can just sit back and enjoyed the view while taking a sip of water. But still Ta Phrom is worth the visit and you can find yourself a quiet spot easy enough to enjoy the view of the work of nature gently prying apart these man made buildings.
At this point my camera is just about to give up on me. Afterwards we went back and head for dinner again at Maharajah (after searching futilely for a Muslim restaurant where we saw a signboard earlier, but when we walked back to the hotel we noticed the sign is actually near the hotel. Bah!). We just ordered fried rice. His was beef. Mine was fish. His was nice. Mine was turrible. I guess the fish is too hanyir for my taste.
Lepas tu jua sempat gi massage at the Angkor Night Market. USD3 for 30 mins for foot massage and I took the head massage. A good end after a tiring day I believe.
Also:
Siem Reap Trip - Day 1: Arrival and The Lake
p/s: Super long. I know, don't bitch but this post is mainly for me too. There are many places I like to remember. Sometimes I like to look back at my archive and read back the experience I had.
The temple pass bought at the the ticket counter near Angkor Wat is USD20 per person for 1 day, USD40 for 3 days, USD60 for 7 days. (Macam bole muntah darah je tengok temple tak abes for 7 days . Prolly more suitable for people who are really into ancient art carvings or history and wants to take note and such). For a tour guide, it will cost you USD25 per day. I do think hiring a guide is the way to go, but we don't have a lot of money to spare, so we opt out and bought a guidebook instead. But if you went there with family or with a group, a guide would be great in telling the history and the details of the places.
At first we went into Angkor Wat. We headed out at 8 a.m. But it felt like in the middle of noon. It is so hot. A hat is a must! The picture I took for the front view was turrible. But I am feeling pretty heady just walking on the huge pathway/bridge up to the building.
We wandered in inside, wondering where to go first. It is huge!
Some of the photos around Angkor Wat
It's gonna be painfully long if I want to tell it in details, so probably I will just say I enjoyed looking through the beautivul carvings of apsaras, devatas, warriors, statues and the intricate decoration lining the pillars, steps, overhead, and walls. Those who studied Buddhism and Hinduism or know the histories would probably enjoyed it a whole lot more. Especially when looking at the bas reliefs (the second picture below), as it is basically 'manga' (as what my husband called it) etched on walls.
The last picture from the left is the 'apsara'. The Khmer were obsessed on them. Almost all of the temples have the apsara carvings decorating their walls or pillars. The nicest thing is, the apsara dancers carved on these walls are all different depicted with different hairstyles or poses. I loathe to delete any pictures that I took that have apsara in them, because its all so beautiful and unique to me.After wandering around Angkor Wat we decided to go to Angkor Thom. We walked up back of Angkor Wat (rather aimlessly), thinking that Angkor Thom is nearby (you need a tuktuk to go from 1 temple to the next usually) then was stuck at one of the old gate post (gopura I think it called) when the rain came pouring down. We are stuck for about 1 hour where afterwards we headed back to our tuktuk to ask them to bring us there.
Angkor Thom is basically an ancient city. So the place was even more huge. Inside Angkor Thom are several magnificent temples dedicated to all of these old kings. The sight of the gate itself is magnificent. We haven't yet came into this old city.
The south gate of Angkor ThomThen coming into the city we were greeted by this sight and it is truly one of a kind.
Bayon
The above is Bayon. Sprawling temple with its enigmatic face towers. It is a massive complex where you can climb up to its face towers and the lower complex walls are full of bas reliefs, but many of these are in ruins. At this point it was beginning to get hot again. I was reapplying sunblock to no avail. A sunburn is imminent.
Bapuon
Next we went to Bapuon, a temple-mountain so to speaks. We only went up to the front as it is still under heavy restoration and construction. Love the walkway btw.
Elephant Terrace
Our plan was to go and see the ancient Royal Palace, but it looked like its gonna rain( just a tiny bit of drizzle ) then we went and sit around the Elephant terrace, enjoying the view. This terrace was actually once a royal reception pavilions (whatever that means). The terrace was full of garuda and elephant motifs carved into its walls. We were looking for the hidden 5 headed horse motif but couldn't find it.
Terrace of the Leper King
Right next to the Elephant Terrace , is the Leper King Terrace. Nobody knows for sure why it is called that tho there are many theories. One of the most amazing set of reliefs I seen in my opinion.
Suor Prat Towers
This we only looked around on the outside on one of its tower as there are 12 identical towers facing the Elephant Terrace and Leper King Terrace. No one knows what its functions are and not much to see there either. Amazing actually on how little does we know on so many amazing architectures. After these, we need to get into the tuk tuk for the other temple ruins.
Spean Thma
On the way to another temple, our tuktuk ( I love saying tuktuk) driver stopped by the road for a while and point us this.
This was the remain of a bridge built by the ancient Khmer where it crosses the Siem Reap river. The river had changed its course now.Chao Sao Tevoda
Another minor temple. Very quaint-like. There was a persistent tukang sapu/monk there who asked me to bakar one of the colok and give some donations which I did. I believe it is important that we respect other people culture and religion when we come to their place as much as we want other foreigners to do the same (covering head, and decent clothes) when they want to see our old mosques. After all makcik tukang sapu tu nak makan jugak. Bagi je la.
The first picture is one of the carvings of the steps.
Thommanon
Another small temple just across from Chao Sao Tevoda. A bit like Angkor Wat design.
Ta Keo
The only temple we went for the whole trip that I didn't climb right up to the top. It was crazy steep and I am mortally afraid of stairs. I only manage the first level. (There are 3 levels). My husband went up the second while I roam around the lower level. He attempted the 3rd level but changed his mind halfway up. Keskeskes.
The last picture makes me think of Pompeii. Hehe.This temple was called a giant temple mountain. It is indeed. It was unfinished actually. The king who built it gave the temple to someone else (another king?) and that person wouldn't occupy the top area (only used the lower parts) considering himself unworthy of such honour. I personally think that person was just afraid of heights.
Ta Prohm
The cherry on top of the whole day when we went to Ta Phrom. Also our last temple of the day. By this time both of us smelled a little better than kerbau (the hot sun and the climbing around). If you think we were the only one, you are wrong as at one point I was standing near a quite cute Mat Salleh woman and OMG her smell was even more gag inducing.
This is actually the famed "Tomb Raider" shooting location and it was breathtakingly beautiful.
The first picture is the doorway shown in the movie.
This used to be a temple monastery. The old gnarled tree roots intertwined itself into the walls and bricks. Lots of tourist in here tho, which is the downside. The nicest thing about these old sprawling temples are sometimes you find yourselves completely alone and you can just sit back and enjoyed the view while taking a sip of water. But still Ta Phrom is worth the visit and you can find yourself a quiet spot easy enough to enjoy the view of the work of nature gently prying apart these man made buildings.
At this point my camera is just about to give up on me. Afterwards we went back and head for dinner again at Maharajah (after searching futilely for a Muslim restaurant where we saw a signboard earlier, but when we walked back to the hotel we noticed the sign is actually near the hotel. Bah!). We just ordered fried rice. His was beef. Mine was fish. His was nice. Mine was turrible. I guess the fish is too hanyir for my taste.
Lepas tu jua sempat gi massage at the Angkor Night Market. USD3 for 30 mins for foot massage and I took the head massage. A good end after a tiring day I believe.
Also:
Siem Reap Trip - Day 1: Arrival and The Lake
p/s: Super long. I know, don't bitch but this post is mainly for me too. There are many places I like to remember. Sometimes I like to look back at my archive and read back the experience I had.
Comments
Dils, how much u spend for the trip? include makan & return flight? is it worth it?
actually i also plan for a trip but looking for budget onelah..bab2 trip ni..im a cheapskate bast***..lalal
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO NICEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
and i am now supremely jealous. angkor looks awesome!
Itu husband adalah tukang kira budget. But bole je nak pegi situ as budget traveller.
Tiket yang beli arie tu dalam RM400 pegi balik per person excluding tax. Prolly Air Asia or MAS yg skang ni ade better offer.
Room: 16USD - (tp banyak jugak yg offer 8USD, 10USD per room pon. Inn yg aku duduk pon tu ade room yg 10USD )
Makan: Paling kurang kalo kat restoran India or jumpa local Khmer makanan 5USD per person. Mahal sket. Tapi sebab tu aku makan sekali searie je, lenlain beli roti(bwk tuna) or mkn megi.
Yang lain2 tu kira la extra skit nak masuk Angkor Wat ke (macam yg aku cakap dlm post), bayar transport (but ade banyak options, basikal, bas, tuktuk. Lagi ramai, lagi save) and also tips untuk driver, guide and sume2.
Effi:
It is awesome. But hot! Also lots of debauchery to be had!