Day two in Siem Reap and Angkor Wat. I definitely got my exercise today.

It started out easy enough, with a visit to Banteay Srei. Although small, this is one of the most finely decorated temples. It’s about an hour’s drive from the main archaeological park. We get there early in the morning, before the big tour buses have arrived. There were still plenty of people about. When I was here eight years ago, there were very few other visitors, and you could go where-ever you wanted. Now, the central sanctuary area, which stands on a low platform, is off limits. You can still easily see how delicate the carving is.

From Banteay Srei, we head further into the Kulen mountains to see Kbal Spean, otherwise known as "the River of 1,000 Lingas". Getting there requires a 30 minute hike up a mountain. Most of it is an easy walk up-hill through a thick forest of spindly trees, but there are a couple of very steep spots that require a little climbing. Along the way, you’ll see some fantastic rock formations as well as a couple of good view points. On the way here, my guide Dara was telling me that, as a teenager, he came here with some friends to see the carvings. At the time, the area was a hideout of the Khmer Rouge, and they had to bribe them with cigarettes and instant noodles to show him the way through the mines and up the mountain. Seeing the rock ledges and lookout points, you can easily understand why the KR used the area as a hideout.

While the natural scenery would be a good reason for visiting here in itself, it’s what the Khmer did to the river a thousand years ago that makes this an important spot on the temple trail. Along the stone bed of the river, from a natural stone bridge down to a waterfall, the ancient Khmers carved thousands of lingum shapes into the riverbed. There are also some carvings of Shiva and Vishnu on the boulders along the river banks. The waterfall at the end of the linga stretch is quite pretty, and apparently was once used as a royal bathing spot.

After Kbal Spean, we’re not quite done with today’s exercise. I have yet another ‘unknown’ temple to see: Beng Melea. While the temple was actually known in the 1800s, it was largely forgotten until quite recently. Some of the brush has been cleared, and there have been attempts at stabilization, but otherwise the temple is completely un-restored. Huge piles of stones cover some parts, and many passages are completely blocked due to roof collapses. In fact, to see much of the temple at all, you need to walk on top of the collapsed roofs. Wooden walkways have been built in some parts to make this easier and safer. Although Beng Melea is not a temple-mountain like Angkor Wat, there’s still a lot of climbing involved. At one point, you have to squeeze through a window, then climb up a pile of stones to get back on the trail. The temple is about two hours’ drive from Siem Reap, far enough off the tourist trail so that you’ll only see a small handful of other visitors, if any.

On the way back to Siem Reap, we stop by a couple of temples in the Roulos Group, Preah Ko and Bakong. The Roulos temples mark the spot of the very first capital of the Khmer kingdom, Hariharalaya. Preah Ko is a small temple with a simple platform at its center holding six towers. It’s very reminiscent of the Prambanan near Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The king who build Preah Ko was apparently held captive at the court of central Java, and so was perhaps inspired by the great temple complex there. The Bakong temple is very much like the temples at Angkor, which were built later. It’s quite pretty in the approaching sunset.

For more pictures of all the temples and sights mentioned here, see my on-line photo gallery.

Posted by michael under Just back from...