Our final cycling day brought us to the temples of Angkor Wat. Its the kind of experience that feels magical and spectacular. Knowing how much effort it took to get you to that place. Angkor Wat and the surrounding temples compare equally with arriving at Machu Picchu, the Coliseum in Rome, and the Great Pyramids of Egypt. It takes your breath away.
Rather than spew out dates and names and statistics, none of which I paid any attention to during our tour, I want to share with you the visual impact and highly recommend your own adventure! (On subsequent days, mom and I spent time at the history and preservation museums which recaptured and clarified some of the historical significance behind the wonders. However how exactly they were built, and the man/woman power taken to carve each face is still a true mystery!)
Ta Prohm- the jungle has definitely claimed this temple. The banyan trees snake around it like giant serpents. Much looting occurred here, and faces and jewels are long gone. Modern movies, such as Lara Croft: Tomb Raider were filmed here.
Entrance to Bayon Temple of Angkor Thom-
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| Bayon Temple |
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| Dancing Apsaras |
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| Bayon Temple |
Magnificent Angkor Wat-
Kbal Spean- River of 1,000 lingas-
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| Vishnu carving |
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| Lingas carved into the river bed |
Banteay Srei- Women's Temple
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| Intricate carvings |
Love traveling along with you, through all of your magnificent photos! I thought you were on a motorbike for three days?
ReplyDeleteWow, I'm dying to know more about these amazing temples. Were they all built in the same era, or over centuries? And did you get to interact with any elephants?
ReplyDeleteMy favorite photos in this series of blogposts are the lineups of the bicycle riders! Very cool color coordination!
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