Wonders in Cambodia

I thought that the reason why my mother asked me to go Angkor Wat with her because her name had the same meaning as Apsara (female divinity) in Cambodian language. So that was the first time I and Mom traveled alone together, jus two of us 24 hours a day. Luckily, I had been in Cambodia before, so I could have be her guide in this trip.

On the way to the hotel, my mom said that Siem Reap was romantic. Maybe it was because of the city she saw through a taxi’s window was a quiet place in the morning, someone riding bicycle slowly, and the river in the central of the city.

The rain which is just stopped made the day chilly. We walked to Tah Prohm temple. I was so surprised that we didn’t see other travelers. It was very quiet that my mom told that she had a goosebump. I was not sure whether she had a goosebump because of a cold weather or because of the faith of Cambodian that you could have felt from this temple. A boy in front of the temple pointed us a famous spot from a movie, Tomb Rider. This movie revealed a secret of Sapong tree and Tah Prohm temple to the world. Sapong tree and the temple bind tightly and that’s why it was so difficult to renovate this temple. Seperating the tree from the temple could have made Tah Prohm temple collapsed.

There was a old man sweeping leafs at Tah Prohm temple every day. Everyone can’t help shooting a photo of this man. He used to be in a cover of Lonely Planet once and then he became one of people who were photographed the most in the world.

Angkor Wat - Cambodia

We went to Angkor Wat in the afternoon. We couldn’t have explored all 1,800 rock poles. We stopped at the altar. A woman with fingerless hand gave joss sticks to both of us for praying. My mom looked amazingly at how that woman can work properly even she has no fingers. My mom and I didn’t go into suddenly. We found that the sunlight in the afternoon lighting on those walls was stunning. Especially those Apsara, they looked alive. There were Apsara all around the temple and they were all different. They dressed in different costumes, their hairdos were not the same, and their actings were unique from each other. My mom enjoyed walking and watching at those beautiful Apsara. She even acted like one for fun. We ended that day with sun set at Angkor Wat, one of the world seven wonders, one of the most beautiful sunset I’d ever seen in my life. So had my mother. She told me so.