ancient temples

APAD 066: Missing piecesof Cambodia’s national treasures

Posted by The Insider on May 14, 2011 in A Photo a Day, Addicted to Meme, All things Khmer, ancient temples, Angkor Wat, Cambodia, Cambodia life, Photo Hunt, sights | 1 comment

This is one of the lesser-known temples inside the Angkor Wat complex. I forgot the name of this particular temple, but as you can see, it is still intact save for  a few missing pieces.

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>Sepia Scenes 002: Ancient Gallery Walls

Posted by The Insider on Mar 12, 2009 in A Photo a Day, All things Khmer, ancient temples, Angkor Wat, Sepia Scenes, sights, travel | 13 comments

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Inside the Angkor Wat Temple’s gallery wall. As you can see, the hallway extends as far as the eye (or the lens) can see. The walls are carved with scenes from the Khmer version of the epic Ramayana. The carvings are in perfect detail and condition, as if it were carved only recently. Amazing. Truly a world wonder.

>Sunday Scenery 003: Phnom Oudong

Posted by The Insider on Feb 8, 2009 in A Photo a Day, ancient temples, rural, sights, Sunday Scenery | 4 comments

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Years ago, we went on a day trip to Phnom Oudong, the ancient royal capital of the Kingdom of Cambodia . It is more than 40kilometers north of Phnom Penh, or a mere one-hour and half taxi ride. It was a pleasant day trip, the countryside scenery was very relaxing compared to the hustle and bustle of the capital. As we reach the town of Oudong, we left the highway and turned to a small road that leads up to the hill called Phnom Oudong, passing through a fantastic scenery of quaint villages, lush plantations and friendly faces. Minutes later, we were greeted by this:

How is this for a different kind of view?

Oudong was the capital of Cambodia from the early 17th century and several monarchs, including King Ang Duong and his son Norodom (the forefathers of the current King Norodom Sihamoni, respectively), were crowned there. In 1866 King Ang Duong was convinced by the French to move the capital to the more strategical location that is Phnom Penh.

>A bridge to Angkor Wat

Posted by The Insider on Feb 7, 2009 in A Photo a Day, ancient temples, Angkor Wat, Cambodia, Wordless Wednesday | 3 comments

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Angkor Wat Temple Complex
Siem Reap, Cambodia

>Wordless Wednesday #57: Light and shadow

Posted by The Insider on Oct 29, 2008 in ancient temples, Cambodia, sights, sunsets, Wordless Wednesday | 0 comments

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Detail of a wall section in Angkor Wat.
Siem Reap, Cambodia

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>Photo Hunt #26: Support

Posted by The Insider on Jul 12, 2008 in ancient temples, Cambodia, culture, Khmerism, Photo Hunt, sights, travel | 0 comments

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Coming back again for the PH after such a long time of being absent. My entry for this week is a photo of one of the towers of a lesser known temple Prey Rup found at the Angkor Wat complex. Shown in the photo is a re-assembled tower, a temple mountain design symbolically representing Mount Meru (characteristic of a Khmer classical architecture), the legendary home of Hindu gods.

Being one of the World Heritage Sites, the Cambodian government took measures to protect the temples. There have been several conservation projects supported by Japan, Germany, France and other countries that were implemented and some are still ongoing. As you can see in the picture, huge blocks of sandstone are precariously held together by what looked like a string. I wonder though, with all the support generated for the conservation project, could they get another string/rope strong enough to support the sandstone blocks from falling down?