Siem Reap

We were greeted in our hotel room by this message written in leaves on our bed, which was further decorated with flowers.  I don't know why they put that strange man on the bed, I was hoping for Brad Pitt!

As you can see, building work is well under way at Ta Prohm.  I will be very sad if they clean up all the rubble, it is after all, part of the famous charm of this temple.

Sadly, gone are the days when one could enjoy Ta Prohm in relative peace.  Now, coach loads of tourists descend on it and all with one thing in mind, to get a photo in front of all the main attractions.  This means it is next to impossible to get a photo of some of the more famous tree roots growing through the building.  This has not been helped by a small stage having been erected in front of some of the roots, so that people may better pose for their photos.  I only managed to get this shot by shouting at people to get out of the way.  As you can see, I didn't even get the chance to close the shutter before the next person came to get their photo taken.  The sad thing is, very few of them appeared to even look at the attractions, just pose in front of them.

I was so saddened by Ta Prohm, that I wish I had not gone back.  The first time Alan and I went, which was 6-8 years ago, we were alone but for one other person.  You could clearly hear strange bird noises and it was very eerie and beautiful.

Something else that we noticed, was that there are now artists just sitting around the monuments, painting indifferent paintings for tourists.  There was a time when this sort of thing wasn't allowed, but there appear to be more people just hanging around.

My favourite part of the whole trip was taking  the tuk-tuk out to Mebon.  I have to say that I love Cambodian tuk-tuks, which are far more comfortable than the Thai ones.  You can get four people in them, your legs are not around your ears, they are easier to enter and exit and most importantly, you can actually see the view without having to sit at an unnatural angle.

Our ride out to Mebon was 2 hours long.  Initially we were on a very busy road, but then the driver turned off onto a small road and soon we were whizzing our way through tiny villages, rice paddies and bustling markets.  It was great.  Nearly everywhere we went, children of all ages would wave at us or shout hallo.  On the downside, some of this was pretty rough track so at times I felt like my bones were being shaken free of my body.  Never mind, it was all great fun.

Bayon is another temple that I am fond of.  It never fails to spark my imagination.  I wonder at what it must have been like for people catching glimpses of these giant faces through the trees and then emerging from the jungle to be met with so many of them covering the building.  I was quite caught by this face when I looked at my photos.  It doesn't look like it is in relief, more like it is coming to life through the stone.

The rains have already started in Cambodia it seems, so on some days we got caught in some heavy showers, such as when we visited Bayon.

However, when the sun did come out and the light filtered through he trees, it was magical.

I am sure that every time I visit this temple, this building looks a little more crushed.  Even dead, this tree looks as though it is eating the building.

Can you imagine this happening in the west?  We were standing on a flat walking area.  People scrabbled from that area over these blocks and down to the lower level.

Just look at the drop, let alone what they would have dropped onto.  The man next to the tall block did stumble a bit.  I should name that photo 'Litigation waiting to happen'!!!