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| 小吴哥 |
The main – and for some people the only – reason to visit Cambodia is to experience at first hand the world-famous temples of Angkor, a stupendous array of ancient religious monuments virtually unrivalled anywhere in Asia (only the roughly synchronous temples of Bagan in Myanmar come close). The majestic temple of Angkor Wat, with its five iconic corncob towers rising high above the surrounding jungle, is the chief attraction, rivalled by the magical Bayon, embellished with superhuman images of the enigmatically half-smiling Avalokitesavara, and the jungle-smothered temple remains of Ta Prohm, with crumbling ruins squeezed between the roots of enormous trees and creepers. The sheer numbers of tourists descending on these sites may have eroded some of Angkor’s prevailing mystery, although with judicious planning the worst of the crowds can still be avoided – and whenever you visit, the ruins will leave an indelible impression.
Headline monuments aside, Angkor has an extraordinary wealth of attractions. Literally hundreds of major temple complexes dot the countryside hereabouts, spread over an area of some four hundred square kilometres, and for many visitors it’s at these lesser-known destinations that the true spirit and magic of Angkor can still be found. Even a cursory tour of the more outlying temples of
Roluos gets you somewhat off the beaten track, while the intricately carved shrines of
Banteay Srei are also within easy reach. Further afield the magnificent temple-citadels of
Beng Mealea and
Koh Ker can be conveniently combined in a single day-trip (perhaps with a visit to remote
Preah Khan (Kompong Thom). Further north, the memorable temple of
Preah Vihear, perched on a mountaintop overlooking Thailand, has finally re-entered the tourist mainstream after years of Khmer Rouge occupation and cross-border squabbles. It’s easily combined with a visit to the border boomtown of
Anlong Veng, famous for its Khmer Rouge associations, and as the site of Pol Pot’s death. Further east, the affable little town of
Kompong Thom provides a convenient jumping-off point for visits to the great pre-Angkorian temple complex at
Sambor Prei Kuk, along with other nearby sites.
Gateway to the temples is
Siem Reap, a former backwater town that has reinvented itself as Cambodia’s tourist honeypot par excellence. It’s crammed with tourists and touts, but remains one of the country’s most enjoyable destinations – if you don’t mind the fact that it bears increasingly little resemblance to anywhere else in the country. Siem Reap is also the starting point for visits to the remarkable
floating villages on the great Tonle Sap lake and to wild
Phnom Kulen, at the borders of the Kulen Mountains, which divide the lush lowlands from the barren north.
Three days is enough time to visit most of the major sites in the vicinity of Siem Reap, although adding a day or three allows time to visit one of the nearby floating villages and to take a more leisurely approach to the Angkor archeological site itself – temple-fatigue can set in surprisingly quickly if you go at the ancient monuments too fast, and the slower you approach the vast treasury of Angkor, the more you’ll gain from the experience. This is one of the world’s great sights, and well worth lingering over.
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| Angkor Wat （小吴哥） |
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| Sunset Scence (日落的景象) |
roasted fish on the beach
Unique, even among its cherished contemporaries, Bayon epitomises your current creative genius AND ALSO inflated ego involving Cambodia’s legendary king, Jayavarman VII. It has a great location of stooped corridors, precipitous flights of stairs and, Easiest regarding all, a good collection associated with 54 gothic towers decorated in 216 coldly smiling, enormous faces connected with Avalokiteshvara The item bear greater than a passing resemblance to the amazing king himself.
These huge heads glare lower via every angle, exuding power AND control using a
hint involving humanity – the actual feel precisely the blend required to hold sway a lot more than most of these a vast empire, ensuring your own disparate IN ADDITION TO far-flung population yielded to be able to his magnanimous will. In the same way people walk around, a good dozen or even further of any heads tend to be visible in just about any individual time frame — full-face or in profile, almost level In your eyes or even staring straight down from on high.
Bayon can be today known for getting been produced via Jayavarman VII, even though intended for years it is origins were unknown. Shrouded in dense jungle, It additionally took researchers a series of day to be able to realise The idea The idea stands at the exact centre of a city connected with Angkor Thom. there exists still much mystery relevant to Bayon — just like its exact function AS WELL AS symbolism — IN ADDITION TO this seems singular right intended for the monument whose signature is usually an enigmatic smiling face.
The eastward orientation connected with Bayon leads most visitors to Click on early on the morning, preferably soon after sunrise, While your current sun inches upwards, lighting face right after face. Bayon, however, looks Just as good with the late afternoon, AND ALSO whether or not anyone stay for the sunset anyone carry ones same effect Just as with sunrise, in reverse. a Japanese office is usually restoring a lot of outer areas of the temple.
