Visiting Cambodia and the Temples of Angkor have always been high on the list of places to visit and see during my travels. Ever since seeing pictures of some of the temples a few years ago I’ve been fascinated in the sheer scale of them ever since.
We had already been on the road for more than 4 months by the time we made it as far as Cambodia. In this time we had seen more of our fair share of Buddhas, Wots and other sacred temples, mainly throughout Northern Thailand. You might even say we were suffering a bit of Temple fatigue. So we put ourselves on a bit of a temple diet throughout Vietnam to try and regain some interest for the most magnificent Temples of all. Upon arriving in Siem Reap we took a couple of days to climatise and suss the place out before arranging a Tuk Tuk for the 3 days adventure around the temples themselves.
A new ticketing system had come into place a couple of months earlier meaning we could purchase a 3 day pass (valid on any 3 days within a week of purchasing) for $40, the same price as the consecutive 3 day pass. We decided d0 the sunrise on the first day of exploring which meant getting up at 4.30am to head to the Angkor Wat complex and wait for the sun to rise behind the magnificent Angkor Wat itself. The early morning proved more than worth it when the darkness slowly turned to daylight and the sun surfaced behind the temple. After the sunrise, hundreds of photos an a mich needed breakfast it was time to go and explore the other temples while most of the crowds stayed around the main temple. This proved to be a good idea because we were able to see many of the other temples with relatively few people around. The only downside with the sunrise was the searing April heat (hottest time of the year in Cambodia) that came with it. Before we knew it we had turned into sweaty messes melting in the 42+ degree heat. I’ve never experienced anything like it. We lasted until about 1pm on the first day before the heat and the tiredness got to us and we made our retreat back to the air conditioning of the hotel.
The temples are amazing and it was an experience that I will never forget. I never thought I would be so excited about exploring old temples but the temples of Angkor really are something special and left me wanting to explore more. Cambodia and the Temples of Angkor is definately a place where I feel that I will return to in the future for more exploring and travelling.
You can see some of the pictures from the 3 days at the temples below. You can also view a full set of pictures from the temple by clicking here.
You can also view a full set of pictures from the temple by clicking here.
