Week 21: In Transit

Hello from yet another plane!

This week has been another wild one. I visited Bangkok and saw the new Spider-Man movie (yes, that is what I did with my day in Bangkok). Then, I went to Siem Reap, Cambodia.

I’ve never been to a country like Cambodia. It has a recent history of conflict and it lacks a lot of basic infrastructure that I’m used to. The drive from the airport was on mostly unpaved roads, past tiny houses (not the trendy minimalist kind). My hotel, which was on a dirt road, was pretty upscale. I got to enjoy air conditioning, a huge bed, and a good shower.

I also got a private tour of the temples. My tour guide, Bunny, told me all of the expected history about how the temples were built and the monarchs who financed them. I also learned about the soldiers who hid and fought in the temples during the Vietnam War. He pointed out the places they’d carved their names into the wall, presumably so people would know they’d been there should they not return.

Angor Archaeological Park is a World Heritage Site. There are over 250 temples in the complex, as well as palace ruins. The main attraction is Angkor Wat, which is the largest place of worship in the world. I went to see the sun rise over the temple and then climbed a terrifyingly steep wooden staircase to the top. It is the tallest building in the city, so I could see everything from up there.

Bunny also taught me about Hinduism and Buddhism. Many of the temples predate Buddhism and are dedicated to various Hindu gods. Some of them were designed for both Hindu and Buddhist worship, or were divided to accommodate differing practices. The walls were covered in carvings of gods and sacred stories, as well as stories of Khmer life at the times the temples were built. I did not know much about Buddhism before my trip to Southeast Asia, and there are definitely huge gaps in my knowledge, but I feel like I’ve got a much better understanding of one of the world’s major religions.

I’m on my way to Israel now (and I’ll be there by the time this gets posted). This part of the trip will be a sort of break for me – time to relax and visit with friends and family in a familiar place. I’ll tell you about it next week.

Thanks again for reading this blog. It means a lot to me that there are people following my trip, either here or on Instagram. Speaking of, here are a few pictures from the last week:

We took a bike ride around the historical park. #worldheritagesite #sukhothai #itsboilingoutside #bicycle #thailand #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jul 9, 2017 at 10:58pm PDT

I don't know if I've ever mentioned how much I love public transit in foreign cities. #navigating #notlostyet #bangkok #thailand #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jul 12, 2017 at 12:28am PDT

Today I saw some temples (and a palace!) Scroll to see more photos #siemreap #cambodia #archaeologicalsite #worldheritagesite #travel

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jul 14, 2017 at 8:35am PDT

Angkor Wat is the largest place of worship in the world. I got to see it at dawn (and climb it and visit some other temples) #cambodia #archaeologicalsite #worldheritagesite #travel #emilygoesabroad

A post shared by Emily (@emilyhannahk) on Jul 15, 2017 at 6:27am PDT

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Update: I've arrived at my destination. See you soon!