Quiet time with the faces, a few more and saving a monkey.

After how crowded Bayon had been the day before we didn't feel we saw it at its best, so decided to start there for our next sunrise and almost had the place to ourselves...

We could see down the passageways and get some great photos of the place quietly.

"God has given you one face, and you make yourself another." - William Shakespeare

And actually got to see the Buddha who is placed at the innermost and top most point of the temple.

We were also able to get our 'tourist shots'!

We moved on from Bayon to see some of the other temples and palaces.

The Angkor Park is really very big and there are so many more temples than most people have heard of, as you can see from the map.

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One of the palaces.

So much ornate, beautifully carved stone lying around - you could build another temple.

Some really interesting trees too.

 This one we climbed to the top of.

Kravan is one of the oldest temples and instead of being build out of carved stone, it is made out of fired brick.

"You say to a brick, 'What do you want, brick?' And brick says to you, 'I like an arch.' And you say to brick, 'Look, I want one, too, but arches are expensive and I can use a concrete lintel.' And then you say: 'What do you think of that, brick?' Brick says: 'I like an arch.'" - Louis Kahn

Inside some of the smaller rooms the brick has been made in shapes to make sculptures on the walls.

Here you can see some colour from paint and some black burn marks where the temple experienced a fire.

And if you look up, you see the light at the end of the tunnel! 

"No matter what you're going through, there's a light at the end of the tunnel and it may seem hard to get to it but you can do it and just keep working towards it and you'll find the positive side of things." - Demi Lovato

All the door ways have gorgeous pali / khmer writing on them.

 This is a great example of the brick work.

We drove on to Banteay Kdei, with mum on the back of my moto.

This is one of my favourite temples, its smaller and quieter, but the atmosphere and carvings are beautiful.

Front

Left as you look at it.

And a zoom in on the left.

There is usually a nun here giving blessings, and I am still wearing her blessing bracelet.

"A blessing is a circle of light drawn around a person to protect, heal and strengthen." - John O'Donohue

I love how the lichen on the stone emphasises different parts of the carvings, or almost hides some totally.

I fell in love with so many window frames and doorways!!

"Freedom is the open window through which pours the sunlight of the human spirit and human dignity." - Herbert Hoover

Some of the walls here are made from a type of lava rock, usually these are covered by the smoother stone.

Again some great and ornate stone carvings and window frames.

From just outside you can see how nature is taking it back.

Mum taking a break in the shade.

Amazing how beautiful a 'ruin' can be. When I was a kid and dreamed of being an archaeologist, this was the kind of thing I hoped to 'stumble' across. As I got older I realised that the life of an archaeologist was likely more digging small bits of pot out of a pit in the rain or baking sun. Happy just to visit these bigger sites I think!

We finished at Banteay Kdei and walked over the way to Srah Srang - one of the epic pools on the Angkor park. Alongside the water is a row of shops and cafes, so we grabbed some shade and a cool drink. Half way through our drinks we noticed a very young monkey on a very short chain, it was hopping around the 1 meter square space the chain allowed for and looked thoroughly miserable. Additionally it was far too young to be away from its mother. We left quietly and said nothing and as soon as we were home I reported it to the Wildlife Alliance here. I figured if we tried to talk to them about it they would move the monkey or mind a way to dispose of it, as keeping monkeys is not allowed. The best chance for the monkey was not to alert them and report it. I stayed in touch with the organisation after the report and around 1.5 months later, after checking a few times, they were able to find and collect the macaque, who I believe is now safely re-homed at Phnom Tmao sanctuary. 

"Just cause you got the monkey off your back doesn't mean the circus has left town." - George Carlin

We headed back to town for an afternoon watching the boat racing and a night at the circus....

"Live life to the fullest, and focus on the positive." - Matt Cameron