Getting a Cambodian visa couldn't have been easier. We arrived at Siem Reap, filled out a form, handed over $30 and a passport photo and a few minutes later our passports were handed back with our visas stuck in. Tasha had forgotten to bring a passport photo so just had to pay an extra $2 instead!
We exited the tiny airport and found a taxi driver who took us to a cash point and then onto our hotel. He was so lovely we asked him to come back at 5am and take us to the Temples.
A note on cash for anyone coming to Cambodia. Everywhere wants dollars so bring American dollars with you (the cash machines charge you $5 every time you make a withdrawal on top on your bank fees) When you spend dollars your change will be given to you in dollars and then anything under a dollar you will receive Cambodian Riel.
Even though it was 10.30pm when we arrived at the hotel we had all seen the night market and were excited to go for food. We had some great Khmer food and cocktails.
At 4.45am my alarm went off, at 5am we were in the lobby waiting for Tasha. At 5.10 we realised she must have over slept so Alison started banging on her door. At 5.15 we were all in the mini-van and heading to the Temples at Angkor.
The ticket desk is great, you hand over your $20 for a single day pass and look at the camera and then they print the ticket with your face on it, which is a pretty awesome souvenir. We jumped back in our van and headed to Angkor Wat to watch sunrise.
After showing our tickets we started walking down the path towards the temple when we realised Nathan wasn't with us. I turned to go back to look for him, after 5 minutes he appeared saying 'Go through without me I've dropped my ticket'. Us girls headed towards the temple gates while Nathan went to find our mini-bus driver. He later told us he walked into a café full of drivers and shouted 'Sinom!' And apparently he was sitting just in front of where Nathan was standing and turned around as said 'hello!' Luckily Nathan had dropped the ticket in the mini-van and he quickly caught up with us girls before sunrise.
Ok so sunrise at Angkor Wat...we all sat their waiting and we actually thought it had happened and that the sun was behind all the clouds! We were still enjoying all the beautiful colours though.
Then we stood up and go inside Angkor Wat and as we did we saw the huge orange ball in the sky!
Everyone started snapping away with their cameras. It was pretty awesome! It was also great to be up sightseeing at such an early hour as it meant we would be able to walk around before the sun became unbearable.
Angkor Wat is architecturally breathtaking. It is a massive three-tiered pyramid crowned by five lotus-like towers rising 65 meters from ground level. As all guide books will tell you, 'Angkor Wat is the centerpiece of any visit to the temples of Angkor'.
We walked around and inside Angkor Wat which was fascinating. The ruins of Angkor are located amid forests and farmland which gives a fantastic view when looking out of the temple.
The temples of the Angkor area number over one thousand, ranging in scale from nondescript piles of brick rubble scattered through rice fields to the magnificent Angkor Wat, said to be the world's largest single religious monument.
The area of the ancient city of Angkor was not just used for worship it was where people lived and worked but all houses and buildings that were not religious were built of wood as only the gods were worthy of stone.
The temples that can be seen at Angkor today have roots in Hinduism and Buddhism.
After Angkor Wat we headed to Angkor Thom where we stopped at the South Gate which was beautiful.
Our first stop once inside the wall was Bayon.
The giant stone faces of Bayon have become one of the most recognisable images connected to classic Khmer art and architecture.
There are 37 standing towers, most but not all sporting four carved faces oriented toward the cardinal points.
We walked around and admired the wonderful carvings on the walls telling the story of everyday Khmer life.
After this we headed over to Baphuon Temple and Nathan climbed up to the top while us girls sat outside.
The sun was extremely hot now as it was around 11am and we had been in the temple grounds for 5 hours! We were discussing which temples to see next when Lauren came out with a great line!
'I thought it was just Angkor Wat, I did not sign up for buy 1 get 8 free!'
This made me laugh a lot as I too had not realised how many temples were at Angkor.
Next we headed over to Phimeanakas, an impressive laterite and sandstone pyramid. The lack of surviving carvings means it isn't rated as a must see, but I thought it was beautiful and it is the tallest scalable temple in Angkor Thom. Lauren, Nathan and Tasha climbed the western staircase at the back.
Located inside the ancient Royal Palace compound, Phimeanakas served as the king’s temple. Legend has it that the golden tower crowned the temple and was inhabited by a serpent, which would transform into a woman. The kings of Angkor were required to make love with the serpent every night, otherwise disaster could fall on him or the kingdom.
We stood on the Terrace of the Elephants and the Terrace of the Leper King and looked out onto a field where a concert stage had been set up ready for the New Year celebrations! There were about 3000 Cambodians standing in front of the stage dancing to traditional music all following the same routine, it was amazing to watch.
Our last major stop was Ta Prohm known as the jungle temple as this sprawling monastic complex is only partially cleared of jungle overgrowth. Fig and silk-cotton trees grow from the towers and corridors offering a ‘jungle atmosphere’.
Ta Prohm was originally constructed as a Buddhist monastery.
Ta Prohm is used as a location in the movie tomb raider.
We stopped off at a few more smaller temples but then decided to head back to Siem Reap.
After a getting up at 5am and walking around many temples and temple grounds we were all excited to eat. I ordered my first Amok Fish, the Cambodian National dish and it did not disappoint.
I have been asked by many people how many days is best for the temples. I believe there is no correct answer. If you only have time for one day like us you will love it and get a feel for the place and see the main attractions. On reflection the ideal situation may be to do a day like we did, then have a day of no temples and then go back the day after in the afternoon and see some different temples and stay for sunset. What ever suits your budget and time will be different for each group and I am sure is different at different times of the year depending on climate.