5 November Siem Reap evening

 A farewell dinner in a restaurant connected with an art gallery, Theam, featuring artwork and musical instruments of Cambodia.  The food was excellent and the entertainment was from a group of traditional Cambodian dancers - similar to those pictured on the walls of the Bayon Temple. 

Models of Cambodian houses

The walls of the restaurant were decorated with traditional musical instruments

The entree  plate

 

Palate refresher

5 November Angkor Thom

Today would gave been my mother's 106th birthday so happy birthday mum. This morning we visited what was once the great city of Angkor Thom,  established in the late twelfth century by King Jayavarman VII. We saw two temples. First the Bayon Temple with its 54 towers each with a face on all four sides

The moat around Angkor Wat, dug by hand, 1.3 km X 1.5km 

The entry way to Bayon Temple lined with statues of creatures holding a very long snake. 

One of the towers with a face looking out at us.

Images of daily life carved into the walls

A stone Buddha in one of the alcoves

 

Dancers and acrobats carved into the wall

 

Bayon Temple 

Then came the Ta Prom Temple now known as the Tomb Raiders Temple

 

As we walked through the temple complex we could see the ways the trees have sent their roots between the building stones and legally torn them apart. 

The building was completely rebuilt in the last 15 years using computers to map where each stone should be. 

 

Back and front of the same tree. 

 

The entrance to the tomb 

4 November Siem Reap

These are two of the lakes around the resort were staying at

 This afternoon we had a selection of activities to choose from.  Di went for a massage, these ever she says, while I chose quad biking.  It was lots of fun riding down must road through ride pairs and herds of water buffalo.

3 November Phare Circus

 In the evening we went to a performance of the Phare Circus, featuring Cambodian acrobatics.  It was an amazing spectacle of music and acrobatics. 

3 November Siem Reap

 We left Hanchey at 7.30 for a five and a half hour bus ride to Siem Reap. We drove through rich tropical farmland with two stops en route to stretch our legs. 

We noticed a great discrepancy between new fancy houses and old worn buildings, possibly 100 years old. 

 

Lots of banana and coconut trees as well as broad fields of rice and corn

One of our rest stops had a pretend zoo

A small lake as we were approaching Siem Reap 

Welcome performance as we arrived at our hotel.