Angkor

Trip Start Jan 06, 2008
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Trip End Dec 20, 2008


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Friday, June 20, 2008

I expected Siem Reap to be an ugly town next to the most beautiful breathtaking temples, a bit like Agra next to ther Taj... and I found Siem Reap to be a really nice place.

To fully feel the vibes of this huge site, I've decided to rent a bicycle for the 2 and 1/2 days of visits. That was a good choice because the real deal of Angkor (for me anyway) is the huge size of the site and the fact that it is in the middle of the jungle.

I wanted to do the small tour the first day (around 25km ride + lots of walking) and the big tour the day after (35km + even more walking) but it did not happen as predicted. First, I arrived at Angkor Wat to realize that I forgot to buy my pass before so I had to do 5+5 km back to get it.
After a great visit of Angkor Wat (Angkor Wat is the biggest but only one of the many temples at Angkor), I naturally lost the key of my lock and of course ride 5km back trying to find it.. Angkor Wat
Angkor Wat
 . which I of course did not. Knowing the Cambodian hawk eyes for details like this, I decided to limited the times when I had to leave the bicylcle under no surveillance for too long. That's how I ended up doing the big tour + 15km, visiting only partially several temples.

The second day, I did the small tour, spending much more time inside the temples to appreciate the details. It was really rewarding because some of the places like the "Bayon" with its huge faces and "Ta Prohm" with massive trees eating the stones, offer a unique feel about this place.

I am far from being an art connoisseur and I'm sure all the world professionals will disagree with my statement but if we take them one by one, I don't find the sculptures, the details and the monuments sooo beautiful, even if there are some exquisite carvings and faces. There are dozens of temples and some very nice but the state of the stones is such that we can't really appreciate them the way we should.
I think the pleasure at Angkor is more about the feel of the place, the majesty of the site, the harmony with the forest and the whole feeling that you get. I love it, that's why I believe renting a bike was the good choice.
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