August 20, 2007

Siem Reap (CAMBODIA)

A Slow Day Highlighted by Angkor Wat

After a late night partying, I slept in this morning. I hope I don't get addicted to this kind of thing because it felt great to be worry-free. This is  the first time I have felt like my batteries are fully re-charged in a long time - I am talking months - so I was not disappointed about only focusing on Angkor Wat for the day.

I caught a moto to the temple complex at 3pm, and even after an hour of walking I still hadn't made it to the main temples in the Angkor Wat compound. I don't think pictures do justice to how massive everything is out here, but when you are on foot and enduring the mid-afternoon heat such things become readily apparent.

Besides the normal routine of walking around admiring the carvings and architecture, I had a small bit of cultural interchange at a shrine I came across in a tucked away corridor. Only a few Buddhist pilgrims were out this far, and each were prostrating themselves in front of a magnificent statue of Shiva. One of the Buddhists spoke good English, and he explained the reasoning behind the various offerings being made. He went on to point out that the statue of Shiva had four arms on each side and each wielded a weapon for protection or the administration of justice. Although I have never been a very religious person, I am always taken aback by the devotion and benevolence of Asian religions.

The following story is embarrassing to tell and it nearly wrecked my week... In Cambodia, it rains nearly every afternoon at around 4pm, and today was no different. I was fortunate to find shelter in a well-preserved library where I sat on a ledge and admired the temples through mists of rain. Unfortunately, those mists of rain soon became torrents of rain, and I was forced from my small hideaway. As I got up to move I forgot my camera was on my lap, and it wasn't until I heard the smack of the camera on the stone floor that I realized my mistake. Although the camera looked like nothing was wrong with it, the shutter is now broken and it is useless until I get this fixed. No matter how trivial the problem may be, such a repair is not likely to happen in a place like Cambodia. I am now confronted with the dilemma of figuring out how I am going to capture everything I see for the rest of this trip.

With my broken camera tucked away in my backpack, I finished touring Angkor Wat. Obviously, my mind was elsewhere as losing my camera was a serious blow. It was somewhat of a shame because I did not get to enjoy Angkor Wat as much as I would have liked, but all the other tourists would have made life difficult no matter what.

I spent the evening along the East side of the moat watching the sun fade away. There were 20 or so monkeys near to where I was sitting so I spent half an hour observing the small animals looking after their young and approaching the tourists who stopped by to feed them. It was amusing to note how the locals were so at ease with the monkeys while all the westerners approached tentatively and then jumped in front when the monkeys went after the offerings of food.

The rest of the night was spent figuring out how to sort out the camera situation, but I decided I would sleep on the issue before making up my mind. There really wasn't much else I could do about it at the time.