We had a option of getting up before dawn to go back to Angkor Wat to try to capture sunrise pictures of the complex. Being of sane mind we passed and slept in as we figured seeing it at sunset the previous day was just as dramatic.

Today Joe wanted to talk us to several more “lesser” temples, one of which we would certainly recognize as it was the setting for the 2001 movie, Lara Craft: Tomb Raider starring Angelina Jolie.  Now you are talking!  Some of the movie was filmed at the Ta Prohm temple. Yvonne reminded me that Angelina has adopted some Cambodian children as a result of her early visits there and Joe says she owns property and is well liked by the Cambodian people.

The Ta Prohm temple is nowhere as large as Angkor Wat but it has that “jungle” feel that I had expected to find at Angkor Wat. It also was built by King Jayavarman VII in the late 12th-early 13th century in honor of his family.  It has purposely been left in a semi-jungle state to show what the area looked like when rediscovered in the 20th century. The major trees that have “occupied” the site over the centuries are either silk-cotton or strangler fig trees, both not strong enough to completely destroy what is beneath them. They certainly lend an eerie, fascinating look to the whole site.

After leaving Ta Prohm we drove 20 km through a rural area to the next stop, Banteay Srei. Banteay is not a royal temple; it was built by a counsellor to the king. Banteay Srei was built in 967 AD and dedicated to the Hindu god, Shiva. It was only rediscovered in 1914. The temple is constructed largely of red sandstone, a medium that lends itself to the elaborate decorative wall carvings which are still observable today. The buildings themselves are miniature in scale, unusually so when measured by the standards of other Angkorian construction. Because of the ornate carvings the temple is extremely popular with tourists, and have led to its being widely praised as a “precious gem”, or the “jewel of Khmer art.” I have to admit it really was lovely. 

Banteay Samre was built in the early 12th century and dedicated to Hindu gods. The design of its single ogival tower is immediately recognizable as Angkor Wat style along with other temples in the region. It is certainly not the most elegant temple in the area and I think we were taken there to simply fill out the day. But it was last on the list and we did not linger there very often before heading back to the hotel. By the way, a piece of trivia. Notre Dame cathedral in Paris was built in 1163, the same time frame as these temples.

 

 

 

It was now time for lunch and Joe took us to what looked like a high end restaurant featuring Khmer food, called Mahob. It was obviously a favorite with tourists but it had impressive decor and food. It was a worthy stop.

 

Joe asked if we wanted to visit the market in town and obviously we did. We spent about 45 minutes wandering around and, yes, finding a few new treasures to add to our collection, including a cool, carved wood frog that sounds exactly like a frog when you stroke it with a wooden stick.

 

Joe asked if we might want to attend a dinner and cultural show that night. Not having a great desire to eat more meals at a hotel we opted to try it. It turned out to be a very pleasant $20, set 4 course meal, and a one hour dance show featuring local folk dancing. We were glad we went.