Hola La Niña!

Sunrise is Siem Reap.
Causeway over the outer moat of Angkor Wat.
Angkor Wat, the crown jewel of Cambodia. Dating back to the 8th century, this temple has turned into the biggest tourist attraction in Cambodia. It was interesting to find out that the design of the temple was largely influenced by Hinduism, and that the Buddhist art and statues were later additions.








Bayon




Khmer kids

Angkor traffic at the west gate.

Ta Prohm - my favorite of all the temples because most of the trees that had overtaken the temple were left intact.





Climbing the stairs of some of these temples was a bit sketchy.
Cambodian forestland: this was one of the biggest surprises of the trip. I had assumed that due to all of the war and anarchy of Cambodia's past, that the large tropical trees were going to be few and far between (i.e. Thailand). This was not at all the case; there were huge trees everywhere, even in the city of Siem Reap. This definitely added to the allure of Cambodia for me.
We were in Cambodia during the Khmer new year (mid-April) so the majority of tourists at the Angkor temples was usually Khmers.








We weren't the only ones here at the Phnom Bakeng Temple, which is perched on a hill overlooking Angkor Wat.
The sunset views here at Phnom Bakeng draw the crowds.
A shawl for Buddha in anticipation of the cold season.

The hike up to Kbal Spean during the calm before the storm.
A strangler fig: a tree that initially grows like a vine before it strangles its tree victim and eventually becomes a tree itself.
Here's the first of many shots of Kbal Spean, commonly known as the river of a thousand lingas. Kbal Spean has an impressive collection of Hindu art carved into a riverbed located in the headwaters of a river that once provided water for the Ankor cities. This area was largely off-limits until the late '90s when Pol Pot finally kicked the bucket. Landmines are also very common in the area; leaving the trail to this site is prohibited and extremely dangerous.

This is a picture of a whole bunch of lingas, which are phallic-like objects of fertility. Rituals were performed in which water would be poured over the top of the lingas to ensure fertile crops downstream.




A very wet Lawan following the complete downpour during the walk up to Kbal Spean.
Monk cam!
The rain forest outside of Siem Reap.
For a little contrast, ultra modern dining at the Blue Pumkin in Siem Reap.
Notable artwork due to the combination of Buddhist and Hindu images.

Land Mine Music - everyone here had been injured by a landmine in one way or another. The guy on the far right was playing the lead instrument: a leaf!

The last day of our Ankor tour and it showed here with Barry looking a little fried.
Fine french dining in Siem Reap; lots of courses.