My last full day in Siem Reap is a busy, more typical day of seeing as many temples as possible. First stop is Preah Khan. The temple was undergoing restoration when I first visited eight years ago, and work is still going on. Big tour groups seem to avoid the temple, probably because it’s such a maze, with many nooks and crannies to get lost in. My guide leads me to one of those out of the way nooks where, if you crouch down and peer through a window, you can see a beautiful sculpture of a woman in amongst the fallen rubble outside the opening. Some people believe it’s the queen of the time, and there are little votives left to her.

From Preah Khan, the next stop is Neak Pean, one of the most unusual temples at Angkor. The temple seems to have served some sort of hospital function. The main tower of the temple sits on a circular stone island in the middle of a large square pond (which is dry most of the time). Four smaller square pools surround the large pond. Small chapels in each of the smaller pools contain gargoyles in different shapes that allow water to flow from the main pool to the smaller ones.

Our last stop of the morning is Ta Som, a small temple with many excellent carvings. Perhaps the most photogenic spot is the eastern gate, which is overgrown with a large tree.

After a good lunch in town at Khmer Kitchen, it’s back to temple trekking. First stop is Banteay Kdei, another of the temples built by that great builder king Jayavarman VII. The temple is still largely unrestored, but it looks a lot better than it did when I visited eight years ago. Dara gives me a good tip, which is to walk around the south side of the temple first, just beyond the dry inner moat. You get a great view of the wall of the ‘Hall of the Dancing Girls’ as well as the sanctuary. We then go in through the west gate and walk back through the middle of the sanctuary.

From Banteay Kdei, it’s just a short trip to Ta Prohm, the quintessential jungle enshrouded temple. Unfortunately, it’s become so famous that it’s crawling with tourists as all hours of the day. Restoration work has started, so it probably won’t be a jungle enshrouded temple for long.

Our last stop is the rather unremarkable Pre Rup temple, where we’ve come to enjoy the sunset, along with a few hundred other people. It is a nice sight, despite the crowd. Before it gets completely dark, we head into town, where I’ve just enjoyed a fantastic dinner are Les Orientalistes. I went with selections from the French menu, and was surprised by the generous portions.

Tomorrow, I’ll make a quick trip out to the floating village on Tonle Sap, and then head back to Bangkok.

Posted by michael under Just back from...