Cambodia - An old-shaped beauty and a quaint sacred holy place in my memory!

My plans this morning was ruined because it rains cats and dogs. Last night, I intended to collect the peppers in my garden then come back home and write blog as my diary. Lying on the bed, watching the rain falls down, I suddenly remembered about some of my journeys in the past when the Covid-19 still was outside the Earth. From Myanmar to Thailand and Laos, my mind jumped over the family trip in Cambodia with a lot of flashed memorable memories.

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We (I and two of my sisters) set a plan visiting our neighbouring country in a blink of an eye. Our trip started in the afternoon by getting off the night coach, crossed Moc Bai border gate and went ahead to Phnom Penh during in 8 hours (approximately 250km, including outbound operation at the border crossing).

In Phnom Penh

Phnom Penh is the capital and most populous city of Cambodia. It has been the national capital since the French protectorate of Cambodia, and has grown to become the nation's economic, industrial, and cultural centre. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phnom_Penh

Spending a day and a night in the capital of Cambodia, we did not go out to visit, all our time was for resting and swimming at the roof of hotel. As for my characteristic, I am quite fancy with this accommodation from their services to the food. All are absolutely perfect for me to get a return this hotel.

In Siem Reap

Siem Reap is the second-largest city of Cambodia, as well as the capital and largest city of Siem Reap Province in northwestern Cambodia. Siem Reap has French colonial and Chinese-style architecture in the Old French Quarter and around the Old Market. Cambodia’s Siem Reap city, home to the famous Angkor temples, was crowned the ASEAN City of Culture for the period 2021–2022 at the 9th Meeting of the ASEAN Ministers Responsible for Culture and Arts (AMCA) organised on Oct 22, 2020. - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siem_Reap

At 10 pm in that next day, we continued to get off another night bus and arrived to Siem Reap (our main destination to visit) at 4.30 am.
Actually, after watching "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider", the movie of Angelia Jolie played as a main actress in 2000 at Ta Prohm temple, Angkor Wat. I swore one day I must visit this place to contemplate such an ancient beauty. Siem Reap in my memories was a peaceful and elegant city, the weather was super cool in the day time, the street is not quite crowded, tho.

On the way to get the Angkor Wat.

Because the area of Angkor Wat is too larger for us to sightseeing by walking. We rethought a lot and made the same decision that we will rent bycicles to visit Angkor Wat in a day. Luckily for us, there was a cycle shop nearby our accommodation. She was very very kind and gorgeous with customers.

Before going in the Angkor Wat territory, we had to buy ticket for entrance in the check-point station. They required visitors to take one picture to create a card as a passport travelling. There are 3 levels of ticket cost (20$ for 1 day of visiting, 40$ for 3 days of visiting and 60$ for 1 week of visiting). Afterward, we met 2 guards outside to let them check out our passport with access card and our real face before let us in. And now, the journey to explore the world’s largest structure begin!

Looking at the map, we felt dizzy a bit, Angkor Wat just like a labyrinth with a lot of temples and sites. We first tried to located our current direction and we chose the left side to get in. There is a big lake in front of the main temple on the way we go into. I think the ancient people created it for air-condition but maybe I was wrong. One of the tourguide I met on the way said to me that they created this lake as a fence to prevent the aggressors (I need to verify this information).

• Ta Prohm temple
  

Finally we could meet Ta Prohm temple at noon. Those magnificient structures loomed out of the branches in the distance, just be amazing and majestic as the way it does in the movie. I saw a lot of large boulders have been collapsed and have been covered by green mosses.

I took a roundabout route with the purpose of searching for the ancient trees that rising up from the ruins. It must be a thousand of year, I guess, cause its tree-trunk is so big that about 10 people can hold it in their circle and the root of trees rose up the ground just like an enormous boa.

Behind the temple, there is a wooden bridge with a large park creating a green campus. I attentively looked at those patterns featured on the wall inside the temple - the Khmer’s construction with enigmatic patterns and its mystery.
Looking straight of the statue center, the hidden energy flashed from it made me goose bump but extremely attract me. If I was an archaeologist or a historian, I would get an insight into the knowledge of Khmer’s cultures and history. We dropped by this place quite such a long time, took a lot of photos to save it, we felt we are very lucky to have opportunity to visit this place.

• Angkor Wat temple

The temple was built in the early 12th century at the behest of Suryavarman II of the Khmer Empire, within the imperial capital Yaśodharapura (យសោធរបុរៈ, present-day Angkor). It served as the state temple for the empire. Originally dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu, it was converted to a Buddhist temple towards the end of the 12th century. Scholars are divided as to the significance of this. The temple is admired for the grandeur and harmony of its architecture, extensive bas-reliefs, and the statues of Buddhas and Devas that adorn its walls. -https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angkor_Wat

We arrived the center of Angkor Wat in the afternoon. It was like the moment you find out the way to get out of the maze, I could not interpret that feeling by words because there is never enough word for speaker to explain those deeply emotions inside each person.
In front of the Angkor Wat temple, there are two sides of ancient trees spreading shades along the lakes. Keep moving to the main gate, we met a lot of tourists standing and sitting in the campus.

To take a rest, we decided to get in and enjoy the ancient beauties of the main temple.

The ancients might care about spiritual life. A lot of green spaces has been built inside the temple which created the gentle feeling blended with grandeur.

I think the glorious days of Khmer’s King would be significant in the wolrd’s history, a city wall had been built with the strategy of economy development and protecting the king. Besides, there are plenty of paths, hallways and statues without head in the temple. The local people told me that those statues had been cut off the heads because of the robbers. They cut all heads to sell for private individuals to add to their collection.

We finished our 1 day of visiting Angkor Wat population in the hungry and thirsty condition. But all of us would be very excited to take part in this trip. Love to come back Angkor Wat in the next time.

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In each journey, I learned a lot of things, met a lot of people, got many loves and carings from others who adore me. Maybe that is the most precious thing that I stocked up in me. Nothing better than a rainy day sitting in the blanket and type words to recall the memories. ^^ Thank you for your patience to read my post today 😚.