After Angkor Wat and Bayon, we were headed to the third stop on our tour around the Angkor archeological park.
We were getting around in a tricycle taxi that we hired for $15
Along the way we would stop to take photos
As mentioned in previous posts, in between the major temples and structures of the Angkor park are other ruins
This is Ta Keo temple
Ta Keo is one of the tallest monuments of the Angkor empire. Built to resemble a mountain, it was commissioned by Jayavarman V in early 11th century but the work was never finished. No one really knows why construction stopped.
It’s also unique in that Ta Keo used sandstone for much of its construction
Ta Keo is a three tier structure. We climbed up to the second tier.
Just to show scale, that’s my girlfriend
I decided to climb up the highest tier. Mind you, these steps are huge and people were going up and down very carefully.
And if the previous photo looked misconceiving, this is how steep it actually was. My girlfriend decided to stay down.
She took photos of me making the climb
It took a while
But I made it
Ta Keo is 70 feet high
And if you wish to climb some more, this tower is the summit
Although Ta Keo was constructed to honour Lord Shiva, work was never completed and as it lay in ruins, locals placed Buddhist idols inside as much of Cambodia turned to Buddhism after the Angkor empire fell.
There was little else to do up there so I slowly climbed back down.
This bull is ‘Nandi’ — the gate-guardian deity of Kailasa, the abode of Lord Shiva
And that was it. We spent less than an hour here. Honestly, Ta Keo is worth it only if you are willing to make the climb.
