SUNDAY April 19th – Second Day in SIEN REAP, CAMBODIA

SUNDAY April 19^th – Second Day in SIEN REAP, CAMBODIA

Yesterday we were wondering why we spent so much money and time to come to Cambodia and today we found out the answer to this question. The day was long and hot and we walked forever and it was worth every minute. The ruins of Ta Prohm (The Temple of the Trees) and then Angkor Wat are extraordinary. Much of the excavation has been done with the support of the governments of France, Germany, and of course, the US. The people here thank us all the time for coming to Cambodia and for our support as a nation.

Perhaps our pictures will give some idea of what we have seen today as I am not sure that I have the words or the skill to describe it.

Angkor literally means capitol or holy city. Khmer refers to the dominant ethnic group in modern and ancient Cambodia. In its modern usage, Angkor has come to refer to the capitol city of the Khmer Empire that existed between the 9^th and 12^th centuries as well as to the empire itself. The Temple Ruins in the area of Siem Reap are the remnants of the Angkorian capitols and represent the pinnacle of the ancient Khmer architecture, art and civilization. There were a million people in the area during this time.

The Temple of the Trees was one of the most interesting sites we have seen. Over the centuries after it was abandoned, it became overgrown with vegetation and kapok trees so much so that the trees actually grew through the ruins and entwined about them. When they were discovered by the French in 1850s, excavation started and continued over the next century and is still going on today. The trees have been left as is because when they tried to remove them, the buildings crumbled. Work on this site, but many countries, started in the mid 1990s and has brought much tourism and money into the country for which the people seem so grateful.

It is hard to describe how huge the Angkor Wat ruins are. The ongoing restoration is both fascinating and awesome in its own right. It is a massive three tiered pyramid crowned by five lotus like towers rising 65 meters (200 ft) from the ground and is the centerpiece of the temples of Angkor. The stone carvings and etchings showing the history of the people including the king, generals, soldiers, local people and their lives and wars and superstitions are awe inspiring. Our tour of Angkor Wat in 100+ degrees lasted more than 2 hours, many bottles of water and use of an umbrella provided by our guide to shield us from the strong sun. They are correct when they say there are three seasons in Cambodia, hot, very hot and extremely hot. The bad part of our trip is that we are visiting in the extremely hot time and the good part is that there are few tourists, no crowds and no lines.

We made a stop at the government approved gem store and Lenny commisioned a beatiful topaz ring for Geri in honor of our upcoming 43^rd anniversary. We were able to bargain for the price. What we saw in the shop was very ornate and Geri wanted a very simple gold pinky ring with a topaz. They called their goldsmith to learn what I wanted and they told us that it would be ready in less than 24 hours. We then went to the street market where we purchased two pairs of earrings for a very good price.

Our evening was spent at the typical tourist Cambodian show with dinner. The costumes and music reminded us of The King and I. We enjoyed it for about 15 minutes and the next 45 tolerated the music and perfmance.