Hello Everyone

After Delhi, Mark and I traveled to Cambodia via a couple of days in Bangkok where we have traveled previously. I was almost not allowed
in the country because I did not have any more pages in my passport for a
visa stamp. Luckily, they wanted my tourist money bad enough to bend some
rules and let me in. We flew straight to Siem Reap, which is an old french
colonial town near Angkor Wat. Angkor Wat is the name given to a large area
of ancient cities and temples which were part of the Kmer Empire which had
its heyday around 1000 - 1100. The Temple, (Angkor Wat itself) is actually
the largest religious structure in the world, its like 1 mile by 1 mile.
Most of the sites exhibit incredibly advanced stone work and carvings for
the period, as well as pyramidal structures of some height similar to those
seen in Central America.

We hiked about 11.5 miles the first day and 8 miles the second day. The site
had many temples that involved steep narrow crumbling stairs and some that
were being swallowed by the jungle with Danger signs everywhere. Exploring
the site felt very much like you were a character in the Raider of the Lost
Arc and Tomb Raider movies, both or which had scenes from here.

After 8 hrs of hot sweating hiking around the temples, it was great to eat a
delicious Cambodian meal, which is very similar to Thai food. The Cambodian
people are so very nice and the prices of accommodations and food are
reasonable. The country is less developed than other Asian Countries that we
have visited. There is not much evidence of the war violence and genocide
that devastated this country in the 70's and early 80's. Except, there are
signs warning you to stay on paved roads to avoid the land mines. I
reflect many times a day on the fact that a person my age in this country, Cambodia, has experienced so much hardship in their lives.

We are off to Beijing tomorrow. I will write an update from there later.
Take Care Sarah and Mark
Journal Entry Angkor Wat Posted On: 8/6/2005