Siem Reap

I have always been drawn to KAMPUCHEA (Cambodia in Khmer) since I was a little girl partly due to my then stamp collection which had so many stamps of Kampuchea and what I later on learned about the country's plight thanks to the books my mother used to share with me. The 3-day trip to Kampuchea with Ms. Ces right after Christmas 2008 may be too short but we had fun! :) We visited the famous Angkor Wat, Ta Phrom Temple (where Angelina Jolie's Lara Croft was partly filmed), and other temple ruins. Many countries are contributing in the effort of restoring the temples to a resemblance of their former glory and two of these are India and the Netherlands. We also had a boat ride along the Tonle Sap where we saw many floating houses along the riverbanks. I also had the chance to do reflection photography thanks to the many moats that surround the ruins of the temples that we visited. From the under-nourished children selling trinkets in a sing song voice of "One dollar, one dollar!" to the friendly tuktuk driver telling you how he has to feed his family with his daily income to the interesting respite offered by Blue Pumpkin (a very good restaurant) where tourists abound and laze around after a long day out and to the mass burial grounds of those victimized by Pol Pot's regime, one can say that Siem Reap is a beautiful and interesting place.

Here are some of the photos I took with my Olympus FE-340. More photos can be found in my Flickr account http://www.flickr.com/photos/lifeofone/sets/72157618615213824/

and even more in my Facebook photos page

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=77630&id=743294883

The majestic Angkor Wat

broken slabs leading to Angkor Wat

bullet-ridden column (part of Angkor Wat)

highest level of Angkor Wat where the public can access

stairway to "heaven" ... the last level is where the king used to pray

only the king and his ministers can mount the stairway to heaven (Angkor Wat)

what used to be a library undergoing restoration

three generations of Cambodians taking a respite inside Angkor Wat

grand-dad and grandson selling souvenirs

young monks checking out what's for sale

Angkor Night Market sign welcoming everyone

inside the night market

cultural dancers at Tonle Sap Restaurant

a Cambodian tuk-tuk

yours truly in front of the East Gate of the Bayon Temple

temple ruins

part of Bayon Temple

a smiling Hindu Buddha

stone carvings of Royal dancers

a scene in the Ramayana carved on one wall of the Bayon Temple

tourists listening to guides inside the Bayon Temple

a faithful being given blessings by a monk

elephants standing guard on the steps leading to the Temple of the Leper King

Temple of the Leper King

the Leper King

Temple of the Leper King

an unfinished 12th century Hindu temple

a group of blind musicians making beautiful music

temple ruins

site of the filming of Lara Croft: Tomb Raider starring Angelina Jolie

humungous

head of an Apsara dancer (royal dancer) partially framed by a tree's trunk

First day @ blogger.com

Five months (and counting) of being in Thailand and I finally (got off my lazy butt) and created a blogger.com account. I very much look forward to sharing my experiences here in Thailand - my first overseas assignment (hmmm, okay - teaching assignment).

Today's the official start of the Christmas break and I am very excited to execute the plans of traveling I made beforehand and to the spur of the moment "inspired" activities :)

This is a very well-deserved break after half-a-year of being surprised, shocked, discouraged, AND saddened with issues at work.

Life goes on and we get to start anew with every rising of the sun.