Art Shots and Other Miscellaneous Photographs From Our Travels

Here are some additional photographs that Lynn and I took during the sabbatical.

Rush Hour, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Back Ledge of Cab, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Worshippers, Cao Dai Temple, Tay Nihn, Vietnam

Smiling Buddha, Prasat Bayon Temple, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Man in Temple Window, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Columns, Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Sky Light, Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Longboat, Tonle Sap, Cambodia

Dragon, Wat Tha Ton, Tha Ton, Thailand

Unknown Plant, Golden Triangle, Thailand

Graveside Angel, Key West, Florida

Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain

Freestanding Columns, National Art Museum of Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain

The Cliffs of Montserrat, Spain

Girls Dancing in a Tunnel, Budapest, Hungary

Street Poster, Russe, Bulgaria

Man Smoking in Window, Budapest, Hungary

Ancient Street Art, Vucovar, Croatia

Statue, Peles Castle, Sinaia, Romania

Dormer Window, Sighisoara, Romania

Antlers, Brasov, Romania

Women Talking, Sighisoara, Romania

Brightly Painted Houses, Sighisoara, Romania

Gravestone, Sighisoara, Romania

Sweets for Sale, Spice Market, Istanbul, Turkey

Ancient Glass Bottles, Ephesus Museum, Selcuk, Turkey

Slender Minaret Madrassa, Konya, Turkey

Rock Formation, Cappadocia, Turkey

More Photos of the Temples Near Siem Reap

Click the thumbnails to enlarge the following photographs.

Angkor Wat

Temple Towers

Temple Stairs

Delaney and Scott at Temple

Khmer Empire Temple

Temple Door

Tree Taking Over Temple

Apsara Dancers

Buddha Head at Bayon Temple

Buddha Heads at Bayon Temple

Ancient Temple

Monkey Soldiers

Corridor at Angkor Wat

Delaney and Scott at Angkor Wat

Scott and Delaney at Ta Prohm

Scott in a Small Temple Door

Delaney and Buddha Rubbing Noses

Heads on Bridge to Bayon Tample

The Eighth Wonder of The World

Angkor, May 13

At its zenith 900 years ago, Angkor was the largest city in the world.  The main temple, Angkor Wat, is enormous.

Angkor Wat

Its exterior walls extend 3,652 meters.  Each of the four interior walls is covered with over 1,000 square meters of intricate bas-relief friezes that depict the country’s history and religion.

The Interior Walls at Angkor Wat

These stone carvings never repeat themselves.  It would take years to study and interpret all of them.  I think our guide, Pech Mony, has done so.  He was a natural storyteller and teacher both about ancient times as well as modern Cambodia.

Although at its peak, the Khmer Empire wasn’t as vast (or warlike) as the territories of Genghis Khan, Alexander the Great, or Constantine, it was nearly as significant in its day.  As with those other great empires, this one also declined.  The temples were abandoned and the population scattered.  Centuries later, the temples were rediscovered and many have since been restored.

Although Angkor Wat is the most famous of the temples, the region is littered with hundreds of others.  While none are as large, many are just as stunning for other reasons.  Ta Prohm is overrun by enormous trees.  Bayon has hundreds of Buddha heads as its prominent decorative feature.

Words don’t do it justice, so I won’t try.  Here are some pictures of these amazing temples.

Bayon Temple with Buddha Faces

Trees have overtaken Ta Prohm

Happy Feet #1

May 12

Balcony, Room 10, Pavillon d’Orient Boutique Hotel, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Welcome to Kampuchia

Siem Reap, May 11

Cambodia’s e-visa process was fast, simple, and inexpensive ($20).  We applied online.  After 2 days, we got an email welcoming us to the Kingdom of Cambodia (or Kampuchia as the locals call it).

Russia, by way of contrast, made us fill out an onerous and intrusive 10-page questionnaire.  In addition to questions about my education, employment history, and the names of every organization I have ever belonged to “or cooperated with,” I had to identify my parents.  (Don’t worry, Dad, they didn’t ask for your employment history.  Lynn advised against any attempt at humor, so I resisted writing “Supreme Uncle Dick” in the box for your first name.)

The cost was $150 and when the visa arrived two weeks later, its approval was not accompanied by any sort of cheery greeting, not even a “Welcome to Mother Russia, you imperial dog.”

Despite the official anti-American rhetoric in the government-run war museums in Vietnam, the people were warm and very friendly to Americans.  Our visit was brief but our impressions of the people were entirely positive.

The Cambodians we’ve met so far raise hospitality to an art form.  Our hotel in Siem Reap emailed us a couple days ago to ask if we’d like a ride from the airport.  The driver waved and smiled broadly when he saw me spot my name on the hotel sign he was holding as we came out of the customs area.  He was the first of many to greet us with a bow of the head, hands in prayer formation under his chin.  Before starting his car, he spent a minute asking how our flight was, where we were from, and whether this was our first trip to Cambodia.  He seemed so pleased to see us.  I’m just not used to this level of service from the Jet Motel at SeaTac.  I would have cheerfully told him the name of our cat and the list of every organization I have ever cooperated with.

We hadn’t gotten very far before his cell phone rang.  It was the hotel calling to ask if he’d found us and were on our way.  I thought my Mom was the only one who made such calls.

The Kingdom made us feel like royalty, although Delaney would qualify on her own merits.  It turns out that light skin is considered a sign of privilege and status.  Lord knows my two little princesses are about as pale as they come.  Although the heat was wilting in Saigon, we saw many women covered nearly head to toe, including gloves. The Muslim population is small enough in Vietnam to be a rounding error, so the effort to hide all bare flesh wasn’t due to any religious edict.  The problem wasn’t a male gaze, but the sun’s rays.  (Unfortunate Rap Attempt #1)  As in the days of Queen Elizabeth I of England (the earlier one who went to war, not the current one who wears cool hats), only lower-class women and peasants who work in the fields show any color in their cheeks or on their un-gloved hands.  Looking well-fed was a further sign you were a person of privilege, but inasmuch as this is not a private blog, I’ll simply say that Delaney’s opaque skin is all she needs to qualify for royalty.

[Thanks, Dad, I’ll cancel the guillotine. — Princess Delaney]