Cambodia Wat?

The Scenery while driving through Cambodia was everything I was hoping Asia would be, sprawling fields of green, scattered lakes and river and very little human habitation. On the bus from Vietnam into Cambodia, some guy next to me said “Geez look out there, there's nothing” with a tone of voice that sounded disappointed, I didn't pick up on the tone and my reaction was “Yea! Isn't it great.” Cambodia is a country with a deep ancient history, and a sad and torturous recent past marred by internal genocide carried out by Pol Pot and his Khmer Rouge regime. Phenm Phen Cambodia's capitol is known for being some what of a depressing city to be in; lots of poverty, people living in the streets which are the definition of disgusting. Outside the city there is a place called “The Killing Fields”, where they killed and buried people suspected of being against the regime. After they killed them, they buried them in mass graves, at the Killing Fields they unearthed many many mass graves containing 10'000's of bodies, some headless. Walking around the grounds you see all the holes and you can see cloth eroding up out of the ground, you don't make the connection at first that those are the clothes of the victims buried there. On the grounds of the Field they have erected a memorial to honor those who died and to remind the people who visit of what happened. The monument is about 80 feet high and inside contains large shelves all the way to the ceiling, on these shelves are the skulls of all the people they unearthed in the graves at the Killing Fields. Walking around there is a heavy experience, not much talking or joking around goes on.

Deciding to get all the truly depressing things out of the way in one day, Myself and Silvia and Eva (two German sisters) went to the S-21 museum which was a school converted by the Khmer Rouge into a prison for torture, interrogation, and death. The school complex is huge and every room was used for horrible, unspeakable acts. They also had pictures of people who had died died there. One could be killed for any thing from: speaking ill of Pol Pot to eating an extra portion of rice. Pol Pot had spies in every small village through out the country, it truly was a cruel reign and it happened only 30 years ago, so walking around Cambodia you see people missing limbs or disfigured in some way or another.

Phenm Phen done it was time to turn our sights to the ancient side of Cambodia, Siem Reap is the gateway city to explore Angkor, a series of temples (Wats). Angkor houses more temples than you can see in a week of running around. Seriously if you spent about 30 minutes at every temple large or small it would take you more than one week to get through all of them. Some temples are as small as my apartment was in Miami and others, the biggest ones, the really impressive complexes that house a huge temple and several smaller ones, the biggest is Angkor Wat and it is large than the neighbor hood I live in, in Virginia Beach. We went for sunrise at Angkor Wat and that was just sheer beauty, walking around with the early morning mist made for great photographs.

Unfortunately at our fourth temple of the morning I was climbing some steep steps, slipped down about 7 feet and upon landing twisted my ankle so badly I at first though it was broken. Luckily Silvia and Eva my two lovely German Nurses as I dubbed them got our guide who got his tuk tuk (motorbike carriage thing) and took me to a clinic. By this time I realized it was not broken since I could in fact wiggle my toes and roll my ankle around a bit, either way I asked the Dr. to take an X-RAY. Dr. No Broken came back and told me in fact it was “No Broken” that was the extent of his command of the English language but he was a first rate Cambodian Dr. and quickly made up a concoction I call medical mud (because it looked like mud and smelled medicinal) applied it to my swollen ankle and wrapped it up for me. Another clinic wanted to sell me crutches for something like 125 bucks, so I declined and used my tripod to hobble around on. I took it easy for the rest of that day (although we did go back to the temples, I just viewed them from the Tul Tuk) and the next afternoon I was back at the temples for sunset and out for dinner and some drinks at the bar tripod in tow. The day after we did a full day of templing as I call it (it's not a word, I know because spell check is protesting it but seriously if you went to Angkor you would use templing too, to describe the activity), still hobbling along with the aid of my trusty tripod. It was the night of our third day that the rest of the Viet Nam crew came into town and we had a nice big reunion session at the bar that evening and I was finally off the tripod. The following morning I went out for a half day of templing and was limping along fine. Right now it has been a week since I busted my ankle and it is almost perfect I even am planning on going for a 2 day hike tomorrow (Wednesday) being that I am now in the north of Thailand. So I have the distinct honor of being injured and not by motobike like everyone else who comes to this part of the world no I fell off a temple. (Note to Family: I don't report injuries until I have fully recovered from them, that way you don't spend any unnecessary time worrying about me, however had it been broken I would be telling you this story from the couch as I would have flown home already.)


Back to the temples, all the adjectives I have ever heard in the English language can not fully describe the temples these people built some 800-1100 years ago. Some of the carvings into the stone are so impressively detailed it's hard to wrap your mind around it. My favorite was a temple called Ta Prom and they actually filmed a part of Indian Jones and the Temple of Doom at it. This complex was huge, 500 year old “Strangler Figs” grow inside, out, on top of and through it everywhere you look. I wen there at sunrise to photograph it with the early morning misty light that works so well for that place. I practically had the place to my self for an hour , it was so peaceful and serene you almost forget the world can be that silent.


My German Nurses and I spent almost a week in Siem Reap and I almost wanted to stay another. If I ever come back it will be for a month and I will go the temples everyday and go to everyone with all the camera gear I can find and just shoot until I pass out. Cambodia is both beautiful and tragic, but I think you need to experience the ugly, dark and events of the World to fully appreciate the beauty that can be found laying under the weeds. I enjoyed Cambodia even though I only spent about a week there, it's place that will force you to reflect on yourself, and on the many levels of life.


Now I am in Chang Mai in the north of Thailand, having spent a day in Bangkok and a day here in the mountains enjoying its nature beauty. I fly home in 20 days and will try to get a post up for both North Thailand and South, Thanks - Bryan