Cambodia: Visiting Angkor Wat

Date: 13 May 2018

We arrived in Siem Reap yesterday and after a good night’s sleep, it was another early wake up today. We would be visiting Cambodia’s national icon — the world famous Angkor Wat temple complex. I wanted to visit Angkor Wat (“wat” is Khmer/Thai for ‘temple’) to catch the sunrise but my girlfriend was not very keen on waking up at 4am to try and get inside Angkor Wat as soon as the gates open at 5am. But when I got there later, in a way it wasn’t a major miss… and you’ll understand why later in the post.

If you do wish to catch the sunrise at Angkor Wat, here are some tips. Gates open at 5am but you do have the option to buy tickets the day prior. The Angkor Park ticket counter is a few kilometers outside the temple complex.

So first calculate the distance from your hotel to the Angor Park and see how long it will take you to get there.

You have three different ticket options:

1 Day ($37): This ticket is valid only on the day of purchase.
3 Days ($62): This ticket is valid for 10 days from the date of purchase. You have the option to choose which three days you wish to visit the Angkor temples.
7 Days ($72): This ticket is valid for one calendar month from the date of purchase. You have a whole month in which to visit the Angkor temples on the seven days of your choice.

Entry tickets sold after 5pm are valid for the following day. So you can purchase the 1 Day pass the day prior this way. The Angkor Park ticket counter is open from 5am to 5:30pm daily. Those are more or less the timings for Angkor Wat as well.

Trike to Angkor Wat — We booked a tricycle taxi via our hotel to pick us up, drive us between the temples and then drop us back. Cost us $15.

Angkor Park ticket counter Siem Reap — This large complex is the ticket counter for Angkor Wat. There are many, many temples and structures inside the Angkor Archaeological Park — which is why they sell 3 and 7-day passes. You just cannot see it all in one day.

Angkor Enterprise Siem Reap — Angkor Enterprise is the official name of this building. By the way, there is a dress code enforced inside Angkor Wat. No revealing clothing and visitors must wear knee-length clothing and shoulders must be covered

Ticket rules Angkor Wat temple — Ignore the closing time mentioned above, the ticket office closes at 5:30pm. Another sign board stated the same.

You have many counters to purchase tickets from (using cash and credit card) but expect it to be busy as you are not the only one who knows about the whole “catch the sunrise at Angkor Wat” experience. Once you have your tickets, you have to then get to Angkor Wat which is a 15-20 minute drive to the main entrance of the temple.

Angkor Wat ticket sample — The counters and ticketing machines will take your photo and print the same on your ticket

Sokha Siem Reap Resort Cambodia — If you wish to stay *very* close to the Angkor Enterprise, Sokha Siem Reap Resort is your best bet. It’s right opposite the Angkor Enterprise.

Angkor Wat ticket control — After purchasing our one day pass tickets, we drove a bit before briefly stopping by the ticket checking area

Angkor Wat lake Siem Reap — We then drove around the moat that surrounds Angkor Wat. [‘Moat’ is a body of water that usually surrounds a structure; done back in the day to make it hard for invading forces to charge into a castle or palace]

Up until now I was shooting using my phone camera.

One dollar sandwiches Siem Reap — One dollar sandwiches in the parking lot.

Floating bridge Angkor Wat — We had to now to cross the water to get to the entrance. It was nearing 8am and the skies towards Angkor Wat were turning cloudy but despite that, it was still quite hot and you could feel the sun hit your eyes.

Angkor wat floating bridge visitors — The bridge was made of hard plastic pontoon blocks. It felt sturdy enough… despite the hundreds walking on it at any given time

Angkor wat boundary — This is the real the entrance to the temple complex

Angkor Wat entrance view — If you’re thinking “wow, it’s crowded” at this time, a friend who did the sunrise visit told me it was very crowded even at 5am!

As for why I said waking up so early for a sunrise viewing wasn’t a big miss, this is why…

Angkor Wat dried lake — There’s usually a pond here

Angkor Wat pond dry season — Most photos I’ve seen of Angkor Wat, there was a pond with the reflection of the temple. This is all I got 🙁

So word of advice, it would be a better idea to visit Siem Reap during or after rainy season (May to November). Not that Angkor Wat isn’t impressive all year round but if you want that photo, visit when the ponds are full.

Monkey dipping water Angkor Wat — The monkeys were making the most of whatever little water was left

Buddhist monks under tree on phone — To the side were Buddhist monks seeking ‘enlightenment’ in the digital age

Angkor Wat structures Siem Reap — There are other structures in the Angkor Wat complex. This used to be a library.

Angkor Wat Cambodia — Angkor Wat was constructed in the 11th century and although it’s not used as a Hindu temple anymore (pretty much a tourist attraction now), Angkor Wat remains the largest religious monument in the world.

A brief history on how Hinduism reached Cambodia. The ‘Angkor Empire’ is traced back to a 9th century king named Jayavarman the 2nd (year 790 – 835). I could not find any historical links tracing his origins back to India but his precedents were from South East Asia that saw the Tamil empires (from south India) — Pallavas (3rd – 9th AD) and Cholas (9-13th AD) — conquer parts of South East Asia, especially Java (Indonesia) and surrounding lands (which is how Bali remains a Hindu-dominated island).

King Suryavarman II began the construction after ascending to the throne in 1113. Originally, Angkor Wat was built as a Hindu temple in honour of Lord Vishnu. But towards the end of the 12th century, King Indravarman III (his reign lasted 1295 – 1307) established Theravada Buddhism as the state religion (practiced to this day by most Cambodians) and Angkor Wat has since been used as a Buddhist temple. That said, even now, with all the restoration work going on, Hinduism makes up most of Angkor Wat’s heritage.

It’s these Hindu kings who spread, not just the religion, but also the mother of all Indian languages — Sanskrit — to this part of the world. Even Cambodia’s former name Kampuchea is itself is derived from the Sanskrit name Kambojadesa. After many battles between neighbouring warlords and later the Cham dynasty, the Angkor empire fell. Angkor Wat was abandoned for centuries. It was during the French colonial era in the early-20th century that conservation and restoration of the Angkor temples began. Damage caused by plant growth, fungi, ground movement, wars (Cambodia was caught in the crossfire during the Vietnam war) and looting were all causes for the deterioration. Conservation efforts were halted for around 20 years during the Khmer Rouge as well. Efforts resumed in 1992, when Angkor Wat became a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and teams from around the world (including India) helped with the restoration efforts. Restoration work continues to this day thanks to funding from foreign nations like India, China, Germany, Japan, United States and so on (all over various periods).

Angkor Wat tourists sitting — And now Angkor Wat is Cambodia’s national symbol and the biggest tourist attraction (and huge forex generator). Similar to what Taj Mahal is to India.

Inside Angkor Wat Cambodia — We went inside

Mahabharata carvings Angkor Wat — There are entire corridors with ornate stone carvings

Angkor Wat Mahabharat wall — This one depicts the epic Indian tale — Mahabharata. Other corridors have different stone carvings depicting Hindu mythology and other episodes like the Battle of Kurukshetra and the Battle of Lanka (from Ramayana)

Here’s a map layout of Angkor Wat courtesy Lonely Planet

Angkor wat well — A well. I wonder if this would be filled with water during rainy season

Buddhist prayer inside Angkor Wat — This section houses a Buddhist shrine

Angkor Wat main temple panorama — This is the main temple area

Angkor wat gopura architecture Khmer — As impressive as these towering temple halls look…

Steps closed Angkor Wat — … entry is not permitted (right now)

Temple tower Angkor Wat Siem Reap — So I just zoomed in

Central temple Angkor Wat tourists — From the main entrance to this point, Angkor Wat is three levels, with this level being the highest

Angkor Wat photographer — You’re fairly high up above ground by now

Scaffolding Angkor Wat Cambodia — Many structures are undergoing renovations

Headless statues Angkor Wat — In one of the corridors were monuments all without heads. Many of these monuments were vandalized by locals, stolen during wars, during the French colonial era and some Cambodians even accuse Vietnamese soldiers for the theft.

Many archeological items from Angkor temples were stolen over periods and artifacts have been sold as antiques or found their way into foreign museums. France returned some but many others remain in private collections around the world. As for why I watermarked the above photo a bit too much, it’s to prevent the Hindu nationalists from using my photo in their fake news campaigns on social media to claim Muslims damaged these monuments.

Central temple Angkor Wat — We walked down and sat for a while, taking respite in the shade

Mithun Angkor Wat Cambodia — That’s me (just for scale). Visiting Angkor Wat has now made me want to visit Yogyakarta in Indonesia, which too is home to many ancient Hindu temples with its own unique architecture.

Gale Angkor Wat wall panorama — That’s my girlfriend.

At 402 acres, Angkor Wat is the largest religious monument in the world. It’s not a conventional Hindu temple in terms of its design but none the less, it’s quite fascinating to me that such a large Hindu temple exists outside India and is the symbol of a now predominantly Buddhist nation.