Krong Siem Reap, Siem Reap Province, CambodiaToday, we celebrated Ryan's 38th trip around the sun by watching the sunrise over Angkor Wat. It was a pretty epic birthday, one that neither of us is likely to forget anytime soon.
Racing the sun to Angkor Wat
When the alarm went off at 4:15am, I won't lie, I definitely cursed it and was tempted to go back to sleep. Still bitten up and under the weather, I hadn't slept all that well the night before, so it was a rough start. But how many opportunities in life do we have to do something like this? So we got up, took our nicely packed breakfast boxes supplied by the hotel, and hopped into our tuk-tuk for the day. Our driver, Mr. Saroth, was the same guy who'd picked us up from the bus station yesterday. He was very friendly and helpful as he drove us around the "small circuit" classic temples route that every first-time tourist to Angkor probably does. He even had a cooler of cold water on the tuk-tuk, which he offered us liberally after every stop. It was much appreciated.
Twenty minutes or so later, we pulled into the parking lot at Angkor Wat, the largest and most famous of the temples in the complex. We followed the crowds of people in the dark, not really able to see where we were going very well, across the moat and down a long path towards the front of the temple. We certainly were far from the only early risers; by 5:30am, the good viewing spots in front of the inner moats were packed with people. Though these crowds certainly pale in comparison to the pre-pandemic numbers.
I should explain that Angkor Wat the temple is just one of 72 major and many more minor temples that have been uncovered in the absolutely huge area that is the Angkor complex. People think it's just a temple; actually, Angkor was actually a huge city, close to the size of modern-day London, that served as the capital of the Angkor Empire from roughly the 9th to the 15th centuries. Abandoned in 1431 when the Angkor Empire fell (for reasons still debated by historians), the site became overgrown and largely abandoned to the jungle until French naturalist Henri Mouhot visited in 1860, beginning a huge restoration process that has been ongoing since the early 1900s save for the Cambodian civil war. Archeologists are still uncovering new structures and temples that have long been hidden by the jungle.
Angkor Wat itself was originally built as a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Vishnu, and converted to a Buddhist temple somewhere in the 12th century. So it has elements of both. The iconic five towers that you see in all the photos are meant to represent Mount Meru, the home of the gods in Hinduism.
We walked around a bit looking for the best photo spots, trying to get around the people all doing the same. As the light came up, we headed inside the temple to explore.
I gotta say, I've seen some impressive structures in my life -- the Great Wall of China, The Taj Mahal, Chichen Itza. Angkor Wat blows them away. It isn't on the list of the New Seven Wonders of the World (mostly because of a rigged voting process), but in my opinion, it should be. So I'm declaring it an honourary Eighth Wonder. The intricacy of the temple, the thousands of aspara (carved figures of mythological women) on the walls, the way every single rock and tower and courtyard was constructed, it's just incredible. I took tons of photos, but also spent some time just taking in the peaceful stillness of the early morning. The weather was still pleasantly cool that early on, so it was lovely to just check the place out. As tired as I was, and as much as part of me wished I were still in bed, I couldn't help but appreciate the jaw-dropping beauty of the place.
Banana Pancakes with Angelina
We spent an hour and a half or so walking around Angkor Wat, exploring its many courtyards, and climbing Bakan, the Central Tower. Finally, when we felt like we'd seen what we came to see, it was time for coffee and breakfast.
A birthday breakfast needs to be a bit special. Well, how about banana pancakes with Angelina Jolie? Ryan and I were amused by the little restaurant stalls by the temple entrance that were all named things like James Bond (they're obsessed with James Bond here in Siem Reap, for some reason), Angelina Jolie (who starred in the Tomb Raider movies of course), and other movie characters or famous people. We sat down at the Angelina Jolie table,' cause it was the closest one, and Ryan ordered some coffee and banana pancakes that came with chocolate syrup and honey, while I dug into the breakfast box from the hotel.
Angkor Thom: Bayon Temple, Baphuon Temple, and the Elephant Terrace
We went back to the parking lot to find our driver, Mr. Saroth. Rather, I should say, he found us. He had an uncanny ability to spot us within minutes of arriving from each temple, which was handy 'cause there were a sea of tuk-tuks everywhere.
The next temple complex we visited was the largest of the day: Angkor Thom, which houses many temples and structures. We visited Bayon, the main temple at the centre. It's built as a square with four gates, one for each cardinal direction. There are hundreds of faces looking out at you from every column and pillar, likely of a former king, though historians debate this. The many rooms inside are maze-like, with many closed off for restoration work. We sorta ended up exploring that one backwards because we went the wrong way at first, but hey, whatever. Oh,and there were also monkeys at Bayon.
Then onto Baphon Temple, one I particularly enjoyed because it was quite small but there were few people there. We could climb up to the second and then third levels, up and then down again on very narrow staircases that felt more like ladders. Ryan isn't the biggest fan of heights, so I don't think he shared my enjoyment of this one. But the views were stunning.
By then, the sun was quite high in the mid-morning sky, and the day was getting hot hot hot. Feeling its effects, we explored the giant Elephant Terrace only briefly, noting the elephant, monkey, and lion carvings in the huge area. Very cool.
Ta Prohm, the "Tomb Raider" temple
The next temple on the Small Circuit, Ta Kheo, we opted to skip because it required a long hike up to access in the hot sun. Instead, we asked Mr Saroth to take us straight to Ta Prohm, one of the most awesome sights of the day. The so-called "Tomb Raider" temple because it was the filming location of one of the Lara Croft movies, this temple is only partially restored and feels like it has melded to become one with the jungle. There are trees growing out of rocks everywhere. The whole thing has a really cool feel to it. both figuratively and -- due to the shade cover -- literally, which was a relief as the day was turning into a scorcher.
At Ta Prohm, we had to wait a bit to get to some of the interesting sections because of the presence of tour groups, though again, I'm sure it was nothing compared to pre-pandemic crowds. We did get some fun photos, though, though it was definitely getting harder to not look sweaty and gross in them as the day got hotter. Pro tip: Visit the most picturesque temples early in the morning for the best photography opportunities.
Srah Srang and Banteay Kdei
Our final stop of the day was at Banteay Kdei, another very cool temple with trees growing everywhere and a maze-like structure. Across from it is a man-made lake, Srah Sranh, which has a few structures built at the lakefront. We headed there first to take a look, though we didn't linger by the lake for very long due to the heat.
Banteay Kdei is an impressive temple, though much smaller than the previous ones. It had intricate rooms within rooms, courtyards, and lots of windows to look through for views in every direction. We explored until the heat started to get to us, and then decided to call it a wrap on Day 1 here at the Angkor Temple complex.
Siesta time
We got back to our hotel around half past noon. By then, we'd been out for more than 7 hours, had walked 20,000 steps, and it was only lunchtime. We were hot, dusty, and exhausted. But it was worth it.
At that point, we settled in for a serious siesta. Shower, nap, lunch, some relaxing by the TV. Nothing to write home about, but it was much needed. I think anyone who stays out exploring the Angkor temples during the hottest hours of the afternoon must be rather insane. And this is January; I can't imagine what it must be like here in the summertime.
Birthday burgers and craft beer
Dinnertime rolled around and it was time to get some food. For Ryan's birthday, we wanted to celebrate properly, so the answer is always Go To The Pub. We found a craft beer bar, Pomme, that sells its own brews and has a pub grub menu. They had a lovely outdoor setup of tables around the pub area, and we happily grabbed a seat.
The upsides of the beer bar were: Craft beer on tap served in flights, $5 burger Tuesdays, and several patrons with dogs. The downsides were, tons of mosquitoes everywhere (I got four new bites before I even ordered my meal), and the fact that, once again, the place was nearly empty, with only a handful of people there. I suspect it's partly because the crowds haven't returned yet since the pandemic, and partly because there just isn't enough interest in the local craft brew scene. But so far, every beer bar we've visited in Laos and Cambodia has been essentially deserted. I hope for their sake that they got busier later on at night. But we were so tired that we just had the one flight and headed back after dinner to make it an early night.
So, a pretty good birthday for Ryan overall. Check in tomorrow, as there's a lot more of Angkor for us to explore.
MOM
2023-01-03
WHAT A WAT BIRTHDAY DAY. FANTASTIC….!
Birthday Boy’s Mom
2023-01-03
A birthday you will never forget!
Joanne
2023-01-03
How fabulous