We made our way
to Cambodia, and to be more specific, the small city of Siem Reap.
Siem Reap is most
famous for the temples of Angkor Wat which has been designated a UNESCO
Heritage Site. There are more than 1000 temples, many of which were built Hindu
between 800 and 1200 AD, though most of which are now Buddhist.
We arrived at our
first temple before dawn to see the sun rise over it. Before the morning was
over, we had visited 3. They are all massive structures of stone and in various
stages of restoration.
Each temple was not only an architectural marvel, but they contained walls of bas
relief art or carved pictures telling stories and depicting life at the time of
construction.
Since, the centuries
have taken their toll. Large trees have grown up within some of the temples,
and during storms, the tree roots have caused excessive heaving. This has left
some walls and archways collapsed or unstable, and in need of large scale restoration.
While there, Marlene was blessed by a Buddhist Monk in a hurried ceremony. I had hoped that visiting the Temples would be quite spiritual, but that was not the case.
We were
overwhelmed by the complexity of the temples, and left in awe of the architecture and historic significance.
Temple hopping wasn't adventurous or spiritual, but it was interesting and educational.
For the next story in this series, click here:
http://travellingwithsteveandmarlene.blogspot.com/2017/03/phnom-penh-half-world-away.html
Temple hopping wasn't adventurous or spiritual, but it was interesting and educational.
For the next story in this series, click here:
http://travellingwithsteveandmarlene.blogspot.com/2017/03/phnom-penh-half-world-away.html
