Still in Siem Reap

Tuesday 4th Dec

Yesterday we started the day with an hour or so drive to the temple of Boeng Mealea. The rice has been harvested and all along the road there were bags of rice waiting for transport to town. The temple is surrounded by jungle and so was pleasantly cool. The temple is largely chaotic heaps of perfectly squared large stone blocks some of which are embraced by the encroaching jungle. Pol Pot laid land mines here and the Germans only finishing clearing them in 2007 so it is relatively peaceful but for the Japanese who come apparently because a famous Japanese film was shot here.

We then drove on for another hour to the temple of Banteay Srei. This is a comparitively small temple but is built of a softer sandstone and is covered in glorious carvings.

Our last stop was at Les Artisans d'Angkor a government project to preserve the traditional skills that are rooted in the Khmer culture, such as stone carving, lacquering, gilding, silk painting and silk-making. It provides young craftsmen with an employment opportunity while giving them the possibility to work close to their homes. The shop had beautiful things at reasonable prices.
Today we hired a car and Ee the driver who had been with us previously drove us to the floating village of Chong Kneas where we took a boat ride through the village. It is on Tonle Sap Lake, a huge fresh water lake reputed to teem with fish. On the way back to Siem Reap we toured a silk farm run by Artisans d'Angkor. I had not realised that the mulberry trees would be kept to the size of raspberry canes, but it makes sense. The products are beautiful, but it is very labour intensive.
Back in Siem Reap we did not try the fish foot massage, although the fellow guaranteed there were no piranhas!

Our final excursion here in Siem Reap was to a Cambodian Dance Show.They were very professional and the costumes were gorgeous.

Only a little snake, but probably deadly

A library at Boeng MeaLea temple.

A deadly embrace by the jungle.

Another view showing someone scrambling over the ruins.

Time for a siesta.

Intricate carving above a door at Banteay Srei.

Monkey and Garuda guardians at Banteay Srei.

Although Banteay Srei is older than Angkor Wat it is more complete.

Silk Painting at Artisans d'Ankor.

Repousse on copper which will later be silver plated.

Stone carving.

Cambodian version of a Queenslander!

Mangroves around Tonle Sap Lake

Bit hard to see, but they were using bats like tennis racquets to gather the small fish out of the net..

At the crocodile Farm at Chong Kneas.

 

 A Cambodian wedding on the water

A Catholic Vietnamese church and school. 

Too watery a life for me!

 

Unwinding silk from the cocoons.

Complicated traditional Ikat silk weaving.

In Siem Reap the tuk tuks or Moto Remorque are very smart and great fun to ride around town.

Classical Cambodian Orchestra.

Classical Cambodian dancer following the style of the Apsaras at Angkor Wat but no longer topless.