Teewan was outside the guesthouse waiting for us at 5am. We're happy he did not ditch us, and I am sure he felt the same, as he said he had to wake at 3:30am in order to drive into town to fetch us. It was totally dark and somewhat quiet. Not totally quiet since a lot of other people had the same idea as us. The sunrise at Angkor is not to be missed. The day before had gray skies all day, so we thought the morning sunrise might be poor. We thought we would give it a chance anyway.
The early morning air on the ride was cool, which was a surprise. Many Tuk Tuks were on the road, and we were all going to the same place. Teewan took us right to the front of Angor Wat. People were hurrying inside to get to the front reflecting pool. This is the most popular spot to take pictures. We decided to stay out away from the crowds at the exterior lagoon. This ended up being a great idea. The sunrise was beautiful and Teewan thought it was the best in a few weeks of gloom and rain.
After that, we headed to a few more temples. It is like going back in time walking around these epics. It feels old and part of another life, but what the temples actually are is something of today. They would not look the way they do without time. If you traveled through time, we would see them in their full might. Crisp, clean, and the way that they we intended. But, nothing lasts forever, and we are witness to what the Earth can do to something thought to me immortal. The construction is outstanding and the choice of materials was the best of the time, but weather and growth has devoured these structures. Today, people are trying to resurrect the temples from the ground in various ways. Many organizations are trying to do something about them, and have been for a hundred years. The French did a good job in the early 20th century, but today the groups are getting meticulous in their rehabilitation. What I like, is that some temples are heavily worked on, while others are left very close to the way they were found. Either way, I just like the vegetation cleaned enough to keep the big snakes out. I can also do without the spiders.
Teewan took us out to a very far temple named Banteay Kdei. This required a long drive on a country road that brought us past many homes and rice fields. This is where the Tuk Tuk is the best! Being in the open air really cools things down and it's really easy to take photos.
The last temple was small yet beautiful, in his words. It was really worth the drive and other people had the same idea. It was crowded. Oh well, I just waited my turn and still tried to be polite in a tourist sea of madness. Little did we know that it was Vietnam's independence day, so they were all here on holiday. I think all of Korea and Japan were here too. Everyone was really excited to be at these temples and getting angry at the crowds would only ruin our experience. We stayed sane, somehow.
On the way back, we stopped off by the
Land Mine Museum. I knew of it from TV and had seen it mentioned in magazines. What a place! The bombs and mines of wars past are a continuing problem in Cambodia. As you travel through Cambodia you see people with limbs missing and faces burned off everywhere. Not a couple, more like 10 different people every day. Many countries are to blame, and not many are helping to clean up the landmines, which is expensive. This place gets donations from all over to slowly clean the land, which is the most mine littered in the entire world. They take the info from farmers and soldiers to find these explosives. But other times it takes a detonation to find where the mine is. This group at the museum has been set up by Aki Ra, and not only do they clean up mines, but they also help children and people that are affected by them. Out back is a bunch of rooms for children who are the victims of landmines and their parents can no longer afford to take care of them, or those that have been left orphaned due to landmines. The kids get a place to live, an education, and scholarships to go to University. This place is the essence of good being done in its purest form.
Please read a little about Aki Ra. Here a wonderful site.
AKI RA. The man!MK 83 USA bombs
After all that sightseeing, and another emotional museum, we just returned to the guesthouse and took a nap. Dinner out front was easy and simple. We had to get to bed early for another early sunrise.
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