Angkor Night Market

One of the stalls at the Angkor Night Market

I had a pretty lazy day in Siem Reap today.  Slept in until 12.  Or maybe it was 1.  Doesn’t really matter.  Then hit up the Italian Café that has free internet for a few hours.  Then decided on taking a leisurely bike ride around the town, which only lasted around 20 minutes because I happened across the Angkor Night Market.  Dangerous territory for me, but I wanted to explore in nonetheless.  Its amazing though.  Cambodian markets seem to have all the same stuff as the markets in Thailand.  Claiming that this is Cambodian silk and Cambodian this that and the other.  But it all looked extremely similar to things I had found in Thailand so it makes me skeptical of both countries!  Is the scarf I bought my mother Thai silk or Cambodian silk?  I guess I’ll never know!

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Prasat Preah Vihear

The view of the Cambodia flag and the UNESCO World Heritage Flag through one of the Temples at Prasat Preah Vihear

I took a little day trip up to Prasat Preah Vihear today, and by little day trip, I mean over five hours there and almost 7 hours back (our driver decided to take multiple 30-minute breaks in a desperate attempt to find more passengers). 

But it was incredibly worth it.

The temple was amazingly beautiful and had stunning views of both Thailand and Cambodia (the temple is located right on the Thai-Cambodian border and has been a source of an ongoing border dispute for years). 

There’s nothing like the feeling that you are standing on the edge of the world.

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A Powerful Reflection

A couple hours before sunset at Angkor Wat

I began my tour of the Temples of Angkor with Angkor Wat and I decided that the best way to end it was right where it all began.  I also wanted to catch it in a different light (the first day I was there the sun was right behind the towers and it blew them all out) and was pleased with the warmness that the sun yielded in the late afternoon. 

Just disregard the green construction tarps on the towers please!

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Heading to the Fields

Along the river in Kompong Khleang

I headed to the floating village of Kompong Khleang today with a few other couchsurfers.  It was a nice tuk tuk ride through the countryside and then a peaceful boat ride down the river to the Tonle Sap lake where the village was located.  Along the river, I spotted this man alone on his tractor.  I quickly shot a picture and did not think too much about the composition, but when I was going through the photos on my computer there was just something about this picture that I loved!

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Preah Khan Ruins

The ruins of Preah Khan

Preah Khan was the last temple we visited today and even though we were exhausted, incredibly hot and maybe experiencing an inkling of what we called “Temple Fatigue”, we still were amazed by the beauty and power of these ruins.  The complex was a huge labyrinth of rock piles and secret rooms and corridors.  I felt like I took a picture every second and even that wasn’t enough!

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Peaceful Protectors

The ruins at Angkor Thom

The Temples of Angkor Wat are not only a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but they are part of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.  I had the most amazing privilege today to witness these ancient ruins of the once powerful kingdom of Cambodia. 

This picture is from Angkor Thom, a temple about one kilometer from Angkor Wat.  My favorite part about the temple was the numerous faces spotted throughout the ruins.  The smiling depictions created a sense of peaceful protection as I ambled through the labyrinth of winding corridors.

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Exhausted Bike Rider

Spotted on National Highway 6 into Siem Reap

 

I arrived into Siem Reap today and took a tuk tuk ride to meet my couchsurfing host.   I don’t usually try to shoot on the go like this, but I knew that I needed to take some “first shots of Siem Reap” photos since it was already late afternoon and I figured I wouldn’t get a chance later.  

Most of the pictures came out blurry because the tuk tuk was moving pretty fast and mix that with an extremely bumpy road and I feel like there is no shutter speed fast enough to counteract that lethal combination.   I’m sure there is, but on my small traveler’s budget, I don’t have the funds to invest in one.  So what you see is what you get.  

The small town was bustling to and fro.  Except for this guy.  He was tired and he decided his bicycle was the perfect place to take a nap.  And who can blame him?  Looks comfy right?? 

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