We started at 6:30 this morning and spent 12 hours touring by bike Angkor Thom and 3 nearby temples. I am thoroughly exhausted not just from the heat and physical exertion but from the amount of information I absorbed today.
First some basic history: Angkor was the capital of the Khmer Empire during its zenith. The Khmer empire existed from the 9th to 13th centuries. It was mostly a Buddhist empire but had periods of Hindu kings as well. The struggle between Buddhism and Hinduism eventually caused enough internal divisions that the empire collapsed. Angkor Thom was the last and largest capital city of the Khmer Empire.
The first stop on our journey was Ta Prohm; a temple outside of Angkor Thom and most famous for being featured in the Tomb Raider movie.
J7 was a Buddhist but subsequent rulers were Hindu so the Buddhist temples were repurposed by removing all images of Buddha. See how there is a missing figure above these dancing figures
Ta Prohm has trees growing on top of it. This is the tree made famous by Tomb Raider.
All of the temples we visited today were abandoned at the end of the Khmer Empire and rediscovered when the French explored Cambodia in the 1700s. Many of the temples have been reconstructed but there is still a lot of work to be done.
Since we were on bikes the next stop was deep in the jungle. Ta Nei Temple was also built by J7 and dedicated to one of his generals.
Our third stop was a Hindu temple, Ta Keo, which was never actually used because it was struck by lightning before it was completed. Hindu temples are much higher because they are supposed to represent the Himalaya Mountains.
After lunch, we rode to Angkor Thom which was the capital city. 300,000 people lived within its walls and it contained the Royal Palace in addition to many temples. A thick wall with 5 gates and a moat protected the city.
Angkor Thom gate
We stopped at a few temples but the most impressive was the King's Temple. It has 49 towers and each tower wall has a face of the king.
The detail on the temple walls is incredible
We start at 4:45 am tomorrow to see the crown jewel of temples, Angkor Wat.
First some basic history: Angkor was the capital of the Khmer Empire during its zenith. The Khmer empire existed from the 9th to 13th centuries. It was mostly a Buddhist empire but had periods of Hindu kings as well. The struggle between Buddhism and Hinduism eventually caused enough internal divisions that the empire collapsed. Angkor Thom was the last and largest capital city of the Khmer Empire.
The first stop on our journey was Ta Prohm; a temple outside of Angkor Thom and most famous for being featured in the Tomb Raider movie.
Ta Prohm was built by Jayavarman VII (subsequently referred as J7) in the 1100s and dedicated to his mother.
The famous stegosaurus carving. Is it a hoax or did the Khmer civilization have knowledge of dinosaurs?
All of the temples we visited today were abandoned at the end of the Khmer Empire and rediscovered when the French explored Cambodia in the 1700s. Many of the temples have been reconstructed but there is still a lot of work to be done.
Since we were on bikes the next stop was deep in the jungle. Ta Nei Temple was also built by J7 and dedicated to one of his generals.
Our third stop was a Hindu temple, Ta Keo, which was never actually used because it was struck by lightning before it was completed. Hindu temples are much higher because they are supposed to represent the Himalaya Mountains.
After lunch, we rode to Angkor Thom which was the capital city. 300,000 people lived within its walls and it contained the Royal Palace in addition to many temples. A thick wall with 5 gates and a moat protected the city.
Angkor Thom gate
We stopped at a few temples but the most impressive was the King's Temple. It has 49 towers and each tower wall has a face of the king.
We start at 4:45 am tomorrow to see the crown jewel of temples, Angkor Wat.
Kindred Group, William Hill, StarsGroup.com, Flutter Entertainment Plc., Betsson AB, Buffalo Partners, GVC Holdings Plc., and DraftKings Inc. are the highest gamers available in bet365 the market}. The ease of on-line payments is vital thing} factor driving the market progress. December 2020 – GVC Holdings Plc., in partnership with MGM Resorts International, announced the launch of an online BetMGM Casino in Pennsylvania. The company is providing a hundred and forty kinds of on-line video games obtainable on android and iOS.
ReplyDelete