Siem Reap? Angkor? Angkor Wat? What’s it all mean?

You can’t go to Cambodia and miss Angkor Wat, but what exactly are we talking about? Angkor Wat is a Buddhist Temple. Angkor Wat is just one of many temples in Angkor, an area that was once the capital city of the Khmer Empire, dating back to the ninth century. There’s nothing left of the city now, but temple ruins, and Angkor Wat is the most popular and recognizable.

Siem Reap is the capital city of Siem Reap Province in northwestern Cambodia, and is the gateway to the ruins of Angkor. If you’re going to visit Angkor Wat and the rest of the temples of Angkor, you’ll actually be staying in the city of Siem Reap.

Siem Reap

Siem Reap was the last stop of our Vietnam/Cambodia trip. We took a short flight from Phenom Pehn into the city. From the airport, we took a cab to Victoria Angkor Resort and Spa. I am sure there are many great options to stay, but boy, Day did a great job picking this place. I walked in, and the first thing I asked was, “how much did we pay for this place?” I was sure it was gonna be $300 plus a night, but she assured me, it was just $100 a night. The place was awesome! If you’re going to Siem Reap, be sure to check this place out.

Siem Reap is a pretty cool city, plenty of shopping, restaurants, and sightseeing. Grab a Tuk Tuk and start exploring. You use Tuk Tuks for everything, they are fantastic AND cheap! There are a couple of night markets worth a visit. Pub Street is one of them, and if you’re so inclined, grilled tarantula is only $0.50. The body is not bad, a nutty flavor with a pate consistency, but the legs were tough to get down. Yes, I ate a grilled tarantula!

There is a food tour company with tours for the adventurous and the more traditional eaters. We didn’t do a food tour here, but I am sure it is awesome. There were also a lot of great restaurant choices as well. Siem Reap has everything you’d want in a resort town, but it’s the temples people come for, so let’s get to it.

Angkor

Angkor (literally meaning capital city) also known as Yasodharapura was the capital city of the Khmer Empire. The city and empire flourished from approximately the 9th to the 15th centuries. The city houses the magnificent Angkor Wat, one of Cambodia’s most popular tourist attractions.

The ruins of Angkor are located amid forests and farmland north of the Great Lake (Tonlé Sap) and south of the Kulen Hills, near modern-day Siem Reap city, in Siem Reap Province. The temples of the Angkor area number over one thousand, ranging in scale from nondescript piles of brick rubble scattered through rice fields to the Angkor Wat, said to be the world’s largest single religious monument. Many of the temples at Angkor have been restored, and together, they comprise the most significant site of Khmer architecture. Visitors approach two million annually, and the entire expanse, including Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom is collectively protected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site (I copied most of the text about Angkor from Wikipedia, it’s all just history and facts anyhow).

We visited only three of the many temples: Angkor Thom, Ta Prohm and of course Angkor Wat. Angkor is huge, with lots of temples. You can do what they call the grand circuit or small circuit. You could visit temples outside the circuit I guess, it all depends on how much you love temple ruins. Do your research, and pick the ones that interest you. It is either hot, or it’s raining, so I would recommend doing temples for a half day, then back to your accommodations to relax and get ready for a night in Siem Reap. But again, that’s up to you. Let’s save the best for last, and start with Angkor Thom.

Angkor Thom

An easy mistake made by many visitors to Cambodia, is that Angkor Thom is “another temple”. It’s not, it’s a whole city. Angkor Thom refers to what once was a great Khmer city and includes a whole host of temples and sites of historical interest. Angkor Thom is a huge site. For locals, it’s a park, a place to bring your family for the day to relax, play and barbecue. For tourists, it’s home to the Bayon Temple.

I’m gonna copy and paste a little bit from Wikipedia again:

Angkor Thom (literally: “Great City”) located in present-day Cambodia, was the last and most enduring capital city of the Khmer empire. It was established in the late twelfth century by King Jayavarman VII. It covers an area of 9 km², within which are located several monuments from earlier eras as well as those established by Jayavarman and his successors. At the centre of the city is Jayavarman’s state temple, the Bayon, with the other major sites clustered around the Victory Square immediately to the north. It is also a very big tourist attraction, and people come from all over the world to see it.

We visited Angkor Thom first. We entered through the South Gate, which is quite the site itself. There’s plenty of parking, so hop out and take a look.

South Gate of Angkor Thom along with a bridge of statues of gods and demons. Two rows of figures each carry the body of seven-headed naga.

Once through the gate, you really get an idea of how big Angkor Thom is, it takes a few minutes to get to the center and to the Bayon Temple, the main attraction in Angkor Thom.

The Bayon Temple (also know as the Face Temple) was built in the 12th century and stands in the center of Angkor Thom. The most distinctive feature, are the many smiling stone faces on the towers, 216 faces to be exact.

If you like really old, cool stuff, you could easily spend a couple of hours here. The stone faces makes this temple one of the top sites to see in Angkor, and I would agree, the temple was awesome. A little tip: crowds of people go to Angkor Wat first, then Bayon. Do Bayon first, while the crowds of people are at Angkor Wat for the sunrise. From Bayon, we went to the Tomb Raider Temple.

Ta Prohm

Ta Prohm made an appearance in the Tomb Raider movie, because of this, it’s become incredibly popular with tourists, and crowded. But, this is a pretty cool temple and shouldn’t be missed, in my opinion.

Ta Prohm is cloaked in dappled shadow, its crumbling towers and walls locked in the slow muscular embrace of vast root systems. Undoubtedly the most atmospheric ruin at Angkor, Ta Prohm should be high on the hit list of every visitor. Its appeal lies in the fact that, unlike the other monuments of Angkor, it has been swallowed by the jungle, and looks very much the way most of the monuments of Angkor appeared when European explorers first stumbled upon them.

Most people visit Angkor Wat, Bayon and Ta Prohm in a day, in that order. If you wanna miss the crowds, do something different, for instance; we began with Bayon first thing in the morning while the crowds were at Angkor Wat for the sunrise. From there we went to Ta Prohm while while the crowds were just getting to Bayon. We aren’t the only ones to try this, so it’s still crowded, just not as bad. Anyhow, don’t miss Ta Prohm, it’s pretty freaking cool. That leaves Angkor Wat, the largest religious monument in the world, the granddaddy!

Angkor Wat

I’m trying to think of what to say, trying to find the words, the adjectives, that would adequately describe Angkor Wat…I remember our friend K saying at one point, “Holy crap, we’re at Angkor Wat!” So I guess, Angkor Wat, holy crap! Angkor Wat is the largest religious monument in the world, it’s huge, it’s awe inspiring. Angkor Wat is the Grand Canyon, the Roman Colosseum of temple ruins.

More from Wikipedia:

Angkor Wat (“City/Capital of Temples”) is a temple complex in Cambodia and is the largest religious monument in the world, on a site measuring 162.6 hectares (402 acres). Originally constructed as a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Vishnu for the Khmer Empire, it was gradually transformed into a Buddhist temple towards the end of the 12th century. It was built by the Khmer King Suryavarman II in the early 12th century in Yaśodharapura (Khmer: present-day Angkor), the capital of the Khmer Empire, as his state temple and eventual mausoleum. Breaking from the Shaiva tradition of previous kings, Angkor Wat was instead dedicated to Vishnu. As the best-preserved temple at the site, it is the only one to have remained a significant religious centre since its foundation. The temple is at the top of the high classical style of Khmer architecture. It has become a symbol of Cambodia, appearing on its national flag, and it is the country’s prime attraction for visitors.

In 1860, the temple was effectively rediscovered by the French naturalist and explorer Henri Mouhot, who popularised the site in the West through the publication of travel notes, in which he wrote:

One of these temples, a rival to that of Solomon, and erected by some ancient Michelangelo, might take an honorable place beside our most beautiful buildings. It is grander than anything left to us by Greece or Rome, and presents a sad contrast to the state of barbarism in which the nation is now plunged.

In the absence of poet words that could adequately describe Angkor Wat, I’ll post my photos instead. I’ll start with Angkor Wat at Sunrise, first, photos from Google Images, and then mine, the reality of Angkor Wat at Sunrise.

So those pictures are from Google Images. I don’t know who took them or when, but they are spectacular. The reality is not so spectacular. These are mine.

The truth is, there are a lot of people there, all trying to get the same shot. There’s always someone in your shot, everyone has a flashlight, and the reflection pond was under construction when we were there. You should absolutely go to Angkor Wat and watch the sunrise, just don’t get hung up on getting that perfect picture, it probably won’t happen. Sit and enjoy the sunrise, it’s amazing. I got a few nice shots, after cropping everyone out. The color is real.

Pictures, pictures, pictures

I’m hoping the above photos can give you some sense of the size of the temple, and help orient yourself while looking at my photos. As do all visitors, we came over the floating bridge because the real bridge is under construction. We then came through the center gate, down the main walkway and to the Terrace of Honour before entering the temple.

Once inside, you realize how big the temple is. It’s in great shape for being 1000 years old.

The size of the temple, the age and the beautiful stone sculptures and murals or bas reliefs makes Angkor Wat awe inspiring and a “must see.”

I never got that one spectacular shot of Angkor Wat. I will leave you with one from Google Images. The mighty Angkor Wat, the largest religious monument in the world.

Well, there you go, Siem Reap and the temples of Angkor, what a fantastic trip. Cambodia exceeded all my expectations. Please read my previous post: Saigon to Phenom Pehn. I loved Cambodia and the Cambodian people! Travel, open your heart and mind. Explore. Dream. Discover. Travel.

Luv ya,
Curly