..postcards...

..breakfast...

...

At one shrine Lees took a photo of a young monk, wrapped in his mauve robe. I am surprised to see him smoking. Later we see lots of monks relaxing in the whole complex...

the pavilion

...as the sun rose the sky turned a golden hue and the clouds were streaked with pink. We climbed the Watpavilion and were immediately drawn to the bas-reliefs. Lees tries to capture a few forms by rubbing with soft coloured pencils. We were not the only tourists transfixed by the detail of the stone carving of the scenes of the Ramayana & Mahabharata. In one complex there was so much to explore.

Angkor Wat

We miss our alarm but manage to scramble out of bed to a waiting Sokry. Squeezing together on his moto we head to sunrise at Angkor Wat. Light rays are already piercing the morning haze, the surrounding moat shimmers as we stride across the stone boulevard bridge and step through into the main courtyard. There are hundreds of tourists already inside sitting quietly. We find a vantage spot amongst them and wait. The main spires ahead are cast in shadow. The atmosphere is quite serene...

SNAKE!

..takes me a moment to comprehend what's underfoot. It felt very soft and springy and then slips down the shiny boulders into the jungle. I'm sure there must be some symbology in Cambodia about stepping on a snake. Later I ask Sokry if there is any superstition regarding snakes, but he just grinned at me! I'm still feeling very lucky!

... until we were all asked to leave down the steep temple stairs

..photos...

And the sun went down and the tourists took photos...

...throngs of tourists...

We join the throngs of tourists and scramble up this very steep slippery incline. A band of traditional Khmer musicians accompanies the mass movement, a never-ending tide of panting tour groups heaving themselves up the dusty rocky path. It's quite a struggle for some people. There are more crippled beggars up here too. How they manage is beyond me. Lees points out there are lots of children tourists. It feels very calm inspite of the activity as we reach the grassy knoll. I'm reminded of travels to exotic places with my own parents in the mid 70's. I feel lucky to be alive, strolling around the massive stone ruins on this barmy evening...

Sunset...

We get our first glimpse of Angkor Wat as we follow the traffic congestion ...workers are planting grass around the moat. The first temple across the water is stunning...

...

Every man, woman, child and their dog is heading north to see the sunset at Phnom Bakheng

Angkor Tickets

Krousar Thmey

We're early for the sunset ticket, so Sokry takes us to Krousar Thmey or "New Family" up the road from the ticket office. Krousar Thmey is a french NGO in Cambodia committed to supporting abandoned children and their families. The french colonial house, its shutters wide allowing a cool breeze inside, is a museum describing all things found on Tonle Sap Lake; the seasons, fishing techniques, housing, boat designs, ecology, ancient history and flora and fauna. Lees makes some diagrams describing stilt lake dwellings. We buy a Travel Sketchbook by some french travellers called Les 3 Moustiquaires. We run out of time but know we have to return to have a massage by some blind masseurs.