Angkor Wat and surrounding area

[PeteC]

A post-Covid visit by the article's author filled with photos so best read at link.

https://www.bangkokpost.com/travel/2361 ... f-the-gods

Cicadas sang a chorus as the forest opened out. I peered into the darkness and traced the distant contour of a monumental religious complex, a remarkable feat of human civilisation. Keyed up with my first visit, I crossed a floating bridge, a soon-to-be-dismantled construction, over a large moat in the midst of lush vegetation. Before dawn, I arrived at Angkor Wat.

"Sour sdey [hello]," said Pheakdey, a local guide, in his native language when a group of journalists joined other early risers in catching daybreak. All stood in awe of the world's largest temple. After two years of the pandemic, Cambodia officially reopened late last year.

"It is getting better," he said, "Around 1,000 tourists are coming [to Angkor Wat] at the moment."

Built in the 12th century by King Suryavarman II, the temple is modelled on Mount Meru, the abode of Hindu gods encircled by water representing the cosmic ocean. It is one of the main temples in Angkor, the capital of the Khmer Empire (802-1431). After its fall, the heartland moved to Phnom Penh, the capital of modern-day Cambodia. Angkor was added to the World Heritage List in 1992.

Each floor of the three-tiered temple features different facilities, including galleries, swimming pools and libraries. Walls depict epic battles and figures like apsaras (celestial nymphs in Hindu mythology). Upon closer inspection though, the temple bears signs of damage. Lichen dapple its structure made of sandstone and laterite. German and Japanese archaeological teams have been restoring it.

"It [lichen] absorb and erode stones. When they remove it, they can't use a chemical substance like in 1993. You can see those covers eroded because of the strong chemical. [Instead], they use a natural way. They have bamboo, a toothbrush and linen, which is a very old way of doing the job. Stones are having a break like human beings," he said...............

[buksida]

I would imagine now would be a great time to visit, before the Chinese hoards are unleashed again.

[wenshidi]

"Sour sdey [hello]," said Pheakdey, a local guide, in his native language when a group of journalists joined other early risers in catching daybreak.

Did you go as part of a fam tour?
Who was organising?

[PeteC]

"Sour sdey [hello]," said Pheakdey, a local guide, in his native language when a group of journalists joined other early risers in catching daybreak.


Did you go as part of a fam tour?
Who was organising?

No, haven't been, the above is a Bangkok Post travel article.

[sateeb]

I've booked a trip there mid October with a group tour sunrise visit to Angkor.