Angkor Thom by Matt

Built by the king Jayavarman VII, Angkor Thom was the capital of the Kymer empire covering 10 sq km. We entered at the South gate, of which there are 5, flanked by 54 gods and 54 demons engaged in an epic tug of war, known as the Churning of the Ocean of Milk. They collaborated in this event to turn a mountain to churn the ocean and create a nectar of immortality.

Each gate has a different face of Buddha representing the four principles; sympathy, compassion, charity and equality. Carved into the base is a 3 headed elephant which emerged from the Ocean of Milk and symbolises luck.

We drove inside and visited the Terrace of the Elephants, a viewing platform from which the king could watch the public ceremonies and his army gather in their splendor before heading to battle through the victory gate.

Nearby is the Terrace of the Leper king, who supposedly contracted leprosy from a snake that spat at him. We walked to the small Baphuom temple which was inside the Kings palace complex and would have been for his private prayer and meditation. Meticulously rebuilt it has a long causeway.

We were starting to flag at this point as the heat and 4am start were taking their toll. Our little tour bus provided welcome relief with air conditioning and cold water and the reclining seats were going further and further back!

At the heart of the citadel is the Bayon temple, also known as the 'face temple' due to 216 giant smiling faces decorating the 54 towers. Around the outside is 1.2 km of bas relief depicting life in 12th century Cambodia, such as a woman picking nits out of her child's head, another giving birth, cock fighting, pig roasting and hunting. I think Narin was sensing our exhaustion by this point as we didn't do the whole thing!Read more