Angkor Wat is awesome

Yesterday we got up at 6am to see sunrise at Angkor Wat. Rode our bikes there and while morning isn't as hot as midday, it is much more humid. Our sunglasses were unable because of the thick mist constantly present on them. I've never been to the pyramids, but I think the Angkor complex could definitely be much more impressive.

Angkor means "capital"and wat means "temple." The name isn't very significant, but the wat is very impressive. The moat surrounding it is the largest in the world - something like 1.5km on each side and 1km wide. It is the largest religious building in the world. The intricate carvings and depictions of Buddhist and Hindu lore are pretty cool. My favorite? The Battle of Lanka where Rama along with his army of monkeys, battles 10-headed, 20-armed Ravana, seducer of Rama's wife. Ravana rides a monster-drawn chariot and has an army of giants. That bas relief is one of many, and is almost 500m long.

The Angkor complex is enormous and has hundreds of wats nearby. We planned to see some more, but by 9am the heat was getting oppressive. Rode back to the guesthouse, took showers, turned on the air conditioning and took naps. Went to lunch at the Butterfly Gardens - a do-gooder business that pays children for butterflies they capture so they can pay for school. At the same time, they train impoverished youths hospitality and cooking skills.

They wash all their vegetables in spring water so we got a Khmer salad - so delicious because we haven't eaten vegatables in a while, PLUS it had a fried hard boiled egg on top. Genius. We really loaded up on food there but the other thing that was super delicious there were cashews fried with minced onion, chili power and lime juice. I'm bringing that recipe home!

Went back to the AC to watch Cambodian MTV (every video has karaoke sing along words) and out again at sunset to see Bayon Wat which was also very impressive: 54 tours with 4 Buddha heads on each for a total of 216. The sunlight was a little low for pictures so we went out for pizza in town. Delicious! Went to bed early so we could get up at sunrise again.

Learned the whole history of the Cambodia and the Khmer people. I didn't really know anything about them before. Quick summary: the Khmer people ruled all of SE Asia from Vietnam to Thailand and Burma before the Mongol hordes drove those nations to attack Cambodia. They reached the height of their civilization in 13th century which was when many of the temples were built. They slowly lost power over the centuries from others attacking and taking land. Which leads us to French colonization, Cambodian independence, the fall of the pro-Western government when the US pulls out of Vietnam, the rise of the Khmer Rouge, years of civil war and Vietnam conquering Cambodia, then pulling out. And they been rebuilding as best they can ever since.

Also, nagas are the best. They are seven-headed serpents. If you're ever looking for a good gift for me.....