It turned out that one of the two tourists, was from Bethesda, about half an hour from my apartment in Arlington.
Susanne noticed that there was a nice view of them from another courtyard window, so she offered to take their camera and get a picture of them. In one corner we found a western couple who appeared to have claimed the sunniest spot in which to sit and enjoy a soda. The view of the surrounding landscape is lovely, and we weren't even halfway up. We decided to cut through to the back and then walk around along the sides. The path took us about 30 minutes to walk all the way around, so we moved up to the second tier: four stupas stand at the corners of the tier, with large courtyards and courtyards-within-courtyards in each quarter of the tier. Walking became an introductory step aerobics class as we maneuvered our way down the corridor. It's somewhat difficult to walk through the corridor for each compartment is separated by raised stone blocks as high as 18 inches above the ground. The corridors were shaded on both sides by stone columns that are chiseled so intricately you would swear they were wood and carved with modern molding tools. Just beyond the entrance I saw dark corridors extending both left and right, running in a square around the central tier.
Susanne standing in temple courtyard, Angkor Wat The old nun smiled and said "Sok Sabai." "Aw kohn, Sabai te," I say back - "thank you, be well" - at least I think that's what I said. I decline for now - I figured I'd wait til I reach the top. As we reached the columned entrance, I am greeted by the first of many old Buddhist nuns inviting me to light some incense. Another row of columns cover the second tier of the temple above these I can see the temple's five towers that make Angkor Wat so recognizable. Another long causeway terminates at the temple entrance, its column-studded base stretching far to the left and right.
#Jollyjack apsara going for the record full
I'm sure this was the intended effect, for as we cross through the darkness, suddenly the arch opens to reveal the full glory of Angkor Wat itself. The sun begins to shine brightly as we reach the gate, a shadowy stone arch that obscures the view of the structures beyond it. I've got a noticeable bounce in my step as we walk down the causeway to the main gate - I still can't believe I'm actually here. Meru, the symbolic center of the universe and the source of all life.Īnd despite our profane reality of sweat, tourists and children selling flutes and postcards, Angkor Wat delivers a profoundly holy and thoroughly mystical experience. Similarly, by going inward you cross the rivers and oceans, the land of the continents, the sacred foothills, and (again) the summit of Mt. As you walk inward - across the causeway and moat through the main gate, along the internal causeway and up the tiers to the summit - you in turn go back through time, from the present moment to the birth of the universe at the top of Mt. The temple itself faces west, acknowledging the setting sun and the symbolic passage from life to afterlife.Īngkor Wat maximizes its symbolic potential by serving as a physical representation of both time and space. Dedicated to Vishnu and its builder, King Suryavarman II, Angkor Wat served as the king's funerary temple. Occupying more than two square miles and surrounded by a 500 foot wide moat, Angkor is the pinnacle of classic Khmer architecture.
The rest of the day would be dedicated to Angkor Wat, the most famous of the Angkor monuments.
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