Last days of the temples

All too soon our three day temple pass was coming to an end. You can get three sorts of passes - a $20 one day pass, a $40 three days to be used within seven day pass or $60 for seven days over the month. Khmer people get in for free, which is totally as it should be.

Tiring as these sunrises are we wanted to make the most of our pass and get some space without coachloads of tourists pushing us over. 

"There was never a night or a problem that could defeat sunrise or hope." - Bernard Williams

"I like that time is marked by each sunrise and sunset whether or not you actually see it." - Catherine Opie

I never get tired of Ta Prohm and mum wanted to see it without tons of people, so we started back there at sunrise.

I think I likely love this temple due to all the beautiful door ways and the way there trees have taken it back, its truly amazing, I love the atmosphere here when there is no one else too, so peaceful.

So lovely when its empty!

"There is pleasure in the pathless woods, there is rapture in the lonely shore, there is society where none intrudes, by the deep sea, and music in its roar; I love not Man the less, but Nature more." - Lord Byron

 

I love these small temples that are all separate within the larger temple complex.

 

 

"Every flower is a soul blossoming in nature." - Gerard De Nerval

Every time I come here I find more bits to this temple - on this visit I found a secret little garden.

"On earth there is no heaven, but there are pieces of it." - Jules Renard

 

 

"In all things of nature there is something of the marvellous." - Aristotle

A small place for offerings.

Some of the trees hold the temples up and in turn their roots need to be held up too.

Back through the Angkor Thom gates, which are Bayon (faces) style.

On to the elephant terrace - where elephants used to be raced for entertainment centuries ago

"Nature's great masterpiece, an elephant; the only harmless great thing." - John Donne

 The elephant carvings and brixk work is very impressive, the ones below are as tall as me.

Nest stop was Preah Khan, at the center of which is the resting place for one of the kings. There are four sets of door ways that lead to the center shaped in a cross and as you progress through the door ways each one gets smaller - forcing you to now to the king, very clever.

"The day of the sun is like the day of a king. It is a promenade in the morning, a sitting on the throne at noon, a pageant in the evening." - Wallace Stevens

Entrance.

A pre runner for gargoyles - all along the bridge fierce statues watch and guard.

Some clever kids had took to making artwork for money, rather than begging or selling bracelets,  At least they are honing some for of skill, but generally giving to them encourages parents to keep them off school to earn this money, so its best to compliment only.

"Every child is an artist" - Picasso

I loved some of these smaller 'less sophisticated' stone carvings.

 See how the door ways shrink?

Another example of the linga statues, representing fertility.

Simply stunning carvings

"Each of us is carving a stone, erecting a column, or cutting a piece of stained glass in the construction of something much bigger than ourselves." - Adrienne Clarkson

"A tomb now suffices him for whom the whole world was not sufficient." - Alexander the Great

The tomb where the king is buried. There were police guarding this when we were here and we were talking to them about all the holes in the wall of the chamber - how these would have had precious stones in back in the day. The police man had loads of info for us, and almost guided us round the rest of the temple, but that was quite awkward, so we managed to dissuade him!

We sat on an old balustrade in the back bit of this temple for some time, the sense of peace was so beautiful.

Another place where nature has taken over.

"Mother Nature is always speaking. She speaks in a language understood within the peaceful mind of the sincere observer. Leopards, cobras, monkeys, rivers and trees; they all served as my teachers when I lived as a wanderer in the Himalayan foothills." - Radhanath Swami

I also found a mimosa plant - if you touch the leaves they close in towards the centre. When I was a kid a neighbour gave me one of these - I was so impressed by it I touched it to death as it used all its energy closing its leaves from my six year old fingers - oops!

Great example of a linga statue still in one piece.

A doorway nearly too short for mum!

Next up for the day was Neak Pean - a temple over the waterway. 

The lake here is petrified in places and its a truly awesome site to behold as you cross a bridge and see all these trees standing tall in the water.

You head across a wooden walkway.

To find a small and unusual water based temple - this one is really tiny and like no other temple on the whole complex.

"Rivers, ponds, lakes and streams - they all have different names, but they all contain water. Just as religions do - they all contain truths." - Muhammad Ali

Our final temple visit was at Ta Som, I loved the lotus shaped towers here.

We were practically 'templed out' at this point and very hot. This would be our last temple of this visit and we took some chill time in the shade and had a chat with some really interesting monks visiting the temples from Wat Bo Pagoda. 

"I describe myself as a simple Buddhist monk. No more, no less." - Dalai Lama

Soon it was time to go home for a rest and a couple of days of relax time before we headed to Laos!