Banteay Srei

Banteay Srei is the exquisite and quite compact pink sandstone temple that sits about 30 kilometres away from the main temple of Angkor Wat. It was constructed as a religious retreat by a Hindu priest called Yajnavaraha, spiritual advisor to the King. It is a beautiful thing, its intricate carvings quite well preserved, and its interior sacred space still palpable in a strange way, surrounded by carved stone monkey protectors, garudas and demons.

It takes the best part of an hour to get to Banteay Srei by tuk tuk from Angkor Wat, but it is well worth the trip. Some tour providers will tell you that it is not possible to visit the two sites in  the same day, but I have done so many times, and if you are time poor it is perfectly possible to see the highlights of the Angkor area in one day.

These days Banteay Srei is in a very well-kept tourist area, and there is coffee available there, as well as a whole complex of tourist shops. Bargain hard, and good luck, because the sellers are quite ferocious.
There are also a couple of quite good restaurants on the site, and it is well worth eating there, as they supply some quite good Khmer food - I recommend the Khmer noodles with a mild green curry, served with a bunch of exquisite fresh herbs foraged in local forests.

I'm not sure there is a particularly goood time to go to Banteay Srei. I have been at all times, and there has always been a dense crowd of tourists. It can actually become quite claustraphobic inside the temple complex because of the heat, the sun, and the heavy press of tourists. And God help you if you arrive at the same time as a busload of travellers from mainland China.




But you can deal with tourist crowds in a polite but assertive way. Just be prepared to push and shove, in a gentle and polite fashion, and don't get all angry if someone is standing in your way. They're on holiday too and have just as much right to take in the sights. And if someone shouts at you because you got in the way of their photo, just ignore them - they're being a dickhead.

Monday Blogcrawl

My Cambodia book now stands at a ridiculous number of words, but is still entirely unpolished and nowhere near finished. My publisher is going to hate me. Here is some Cambodia-related info from the web this past week:

2 million passengers have now visited Siem Reap airport

• Horrible fire at the Siem Reap night market kills eight. May they rest in peace.
• Beng Mealea Temple, one of the lesser-known temples at Angkor.
• A Buffalo at Siem Reap. In fact, Cambodians normally keep cows, and buffalo are reasonably uncommon.
• Will there ever be justice for the victims of the Khmer Rouge?
• There's still very little mental health care available in Cambodia.
• Quite a few people are beginning to question the point of bringing the increasingly elderly members of the Khmer Rouge to court.
• Cambodian Government decides on $3.1 billion in spending.
• A garment training institute to be built in Cambodia. And as job opportunities improve for Cambodians, the low-paying garment industry finds a labour shortage.
• Sam Rainsy's removal from the voter list means that next year's elections in Cambodia will probably not be fair.
• The most gorgeous hyperlapse movie of Phnom Penh.

Monday Blogcrawl

I am anxiously awaiting the forthcoming release of the anthology Phnom Penh Noir, which features a chilling story from my dear friend Suong Mak. It will be in stores at the end of November, so keep an eye out for it. Until then, here are some interesting Cambodia-related items from the www:

A Filipino writes about visiting Siem Reap

• Some great video footage of a holiday in Cambodia
• The Independent reports on exactly how Cambodia mourns the death of Father King Norodom Sihanouk. And a report on the memorial services in Siem Reap from the Phnom Penh Post
• There's a private island off the coast of Cambodia, and Penny Watson in the Sydney Morning Herald enjoys the sound of its waves
• Some disturbing questions about the veracity of claims of one of Cambodia's more famous "victims" - from the Cambodia Daily
• A Japanese researcher says he knows how Angkor was built
• The Phoenix brings us a nice story about a Cambodian dance troupe in the US
• A fabulous Khmer music video with a chunky shirtless dude. And some Khmer dance campery
• The Station Winebar in Siem Reap sounds kind of fun, and Travelfish brings us the lowdown
• I wasn't aware of this new-ish book from Francois Bizot. A review from the Richmond Times-Dispatch.