Feb 13 Angkor Thom and Angkor Wat

What a full day this is....first exploring the fortified city of Angkor Thom, the Terrace of the Elephants, the Bayon Temple with beautifully preserved bas reliefs and giant stone faces. 

The city of Angkor Thom was founded by Angkor's greatest king, Jayavarman VII (reigned 1181-1219), who came to power following the defeat of the former Khmer capital by the Chams. At its height, Angkor Thom may have governed a population of one million people in the surrounding area.
Angkor Thom was built in a nearly perfect square, the sides of which run north to south and east to west. It was surrounded by a square wall (jayagiri) 8m high and 12km in length and further protected by a 100m-wide moat (now dry), said to have contained ferocious crocodiles.
A gate opens exactly in the middle of each wall, from which a bridge extends over the moat to the area outside the royal city. The original royal palace at Angkor Thom, built in the 10th and 11th centuries, was probably built of wood and no longer stands.

I wish I could remember a fraction of what our local guide Bun told us.  But it was just so much information and so fast all at once in the heat.   (We did retain the fact that Lara Croft: Tomb Raider used this area as a location.  So when we returned home we watched the movie.  It was terrible and had nothing to do with Angkor Thom.)

And then we had lunch at a local restaurant.  More meals were included in Cambodia and the food was good and beautifully presented.

Then back for the highlight of Angkor Wat. Angkor Wat is a temple complex at Angkor, Cambodia, built by King Suryavarman II in the early 12th century as his state temple and capital city. As the best-preserved temple at the site, it is the only one to have remained a significant religious center since its foundation – first Hindu, dedicated to the god Vishnu, then Buddhist. The temple is at the top of the high classical style of Khmer architecture. It has become a symbol of Cambodia, appearing on its national flag, and it is the country's prime attraction for visitors.

Yes, we climbed to the top

 

Nancy and Penny among the apsaras

Sunset at Angkor Wat