Yukon Jay - 小祥

Angkor Wat

For the second time on this blog I have posted a picture of Angkor Wat. First time was when my cousin Cindy visited this place... and now it is my turn. Reason why I went back to southeast Asia was to see this.... I just had to see it for myself.

The main attraction for visitors to Cambodia is undoubtedly Angkor and the Angkor Wat temple complex. Angkor Wat literally means 'city of temples', and it is the biggest religious structure in the world. Billed as the eighth wonder of the world, it was built in the 12th century and is now one of the most enduring architectural achievements in the world. Shrouded in legend and mystery, this once lost city boasts 1000 archaeological sites and covers an area of 170 square miles.

As I walked along the causeway toward the intimidating structure, the feeling I had was just indescribable... sends a chill down your back. The lighting and exposure from this shot is quite different from the other pics... looks kinda weird.

Take a note of the 3 towers because I will have a picture taken from inside the towers..... (how can you not notice the towers eh?)

Do I need to say those towers are extremely high.... not to mention the steps are steep!! When climbing the steps you need to have your hands holding on to the steps right in front of your face. While I was climbing on the left side of the steps... these 3 Japanese girls were climbing on my right side. One of them froze halfway up there and started crying... had a tough time getting her down as she was afraid to go up and down. I wasn't even going to go up at first but I kept telling myself I've come a long way just to see this, I might as well go up and worry about getting down when the time comes.

This is the view from the towers once you have made it up there. Now the trick is going down... Since I am afraid of heights, it took me at least 10-15 mins to find a good set of stairs to climb down (there's at least 6 sets of stairs) and actually going down.

One of the things to do in Angkor Wat is to have the chance to talk to monks... most of them do speak a little bit of English and they are more than happy to converse with you because then they can practice their English. I met these two monks and chatted for a while. Very friendly guys.

This is by far the most amazing, peaceful, and overwhelming place I've ever been to. The only other place I can think that might be better is Tibet... I hope to be there sometime within the next 2 years.

Posted by Jay at August 23, 2004 01:40 AM