Temples in Cambodia

It's a swirling soup bowl of tourists.  And for every tourist there must be three tuk tuk drivers, two prostituting masseuses, and an equal amount of money-begging infant-holding 10 year olds roaming the streets barefoot. Culture shock to say the least. I've said this a few times on this trip but the adjustment process after switching countries can be shocking! The local food, as we read in the guide book, was fresh water fish in soup. Hardley our style, "fish amok" reminded me of mucky water back home in the duck ponds. It just sounded bad, looked ominous with those fish heads and bones, and yet it smelt descent.  All in all, we tried it, didn't love it, and didn't give it another chance.

The big draw to Cambodia, of course, was the famous temples of Angkor Wat. Built during the 14th century, correct me if I'm wrong, and still standing in moderate condition today. Though the recent civil war battles in the 90's resulted in the beheading of many of the statues, the temples were splendid. Lots and lots of tourists crowded the pond outside the main attraction, which was the cliche yet ideal location for the morning sunrise. Morgan and I hired a tuk tuk driver for the day, a measily $13 arrangment.

A side note. you have to be on your toes, especially in high traffic tourist areas. Tourists have money and under the principles of "perfect competition" you must know the bargaining power you posses. Many tourists, and I'll go so far to say especially the older ones (who have the coin), cause prices for services to be inflated because of their willingness to fork over the cash.  So the tuk tuk driver who wishes to start at $20 per person for the day gets a cold shoulder from me and no privelage of negotiating further. I take offense to their greed. It's not a matter of money, and never is, but rather of principal. I'm more than willing to pay the going rate for services rendered and even more willing to refuse at the onset of deception. Ok, ok, I'm done ranting. It was obviously an ordeal here in Siem Reap.  And if we had been approached by the honest, funny, and witty "Batman" tuk tuk driver a day earlier, we would have happily emplored his experience.

The temples, well the three main ones Morgan and I visited, were similar in that they were all made in sand stone but differed in character. It was fun walking the steps. We made blessings by giving thanks to our families and lit an incense at the foot of buddha. It was odd because you could feel the age, the power, and peace  in the air. But you are torn. The seriousness of it all was trumped by locals offering lattes near the pond at dawn, laughing and loud bantering of the tourists, and endless tugging, nudging, and impeeding of the cart vendors. The monkeys were cool. But oddley they were shewed away by the vendors too? 

My favorite moment was witnessing Morgan take calm as she meditated in front of the giant gold sash wearing buddha. There was a group of locals sitting directly next to the statue and were offering us, from a great distance, some sort of craft or service. But once they saw Morgan take peace, cross her legs, and free her mind, they showed respect. As if they felt guilty for having been so presumptuous for bundeling us into the "ungrateful tourist pile", the locals gave awknowledgment and nodded as Morgan rose. I couldn't control my smerk for my pride was overwhelming. Morgan managed to push aside the touristic Disenyland mentality so prevelent here and grounded herself in a classy and dignified manner. It made me proud.

We finished in a temple where the trees literally were growing out of the toops of the sandstone. It wasn't little shrubs either. Giant canopies resided above as we wandered through the maze of interconnecting corridors. Ducking overhangs and stepping over door bases as if we were navigating the inner linning of a submarine, we fared the labyrinth looking for memorable photo opportunities. Though it ws difficult to get a shot without someone in the background, we managed to capture much of the feel and beauty.  The movie "Tomb Raider" was filmed in this section of the  temples and made for an amuzement line for photo ops'.

The intricacy and detailed workmanship of the stone temples is unimaginable. Every piller, step, and doorway has been paistakingly handcrafted and detailed in some pattern. The time, dedication, and sheer number of man hours is really tough to relate to. I was amazed at the craftsmanship and will always remeber my experience at Angkor Wat.