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Feeding Monkeys of Angkor Thom

After I was done exploring the Chapel of the Hospital, I was already so worn out by the scorching Cambodian sun, I didn’t have any strength left for any more temples. The day was drawing to a close anyway and I spent much of it battling the heat and the relentless touts so it was time to call it quits and start making my way back to Siem Reap. That heat definitely gets you. There is absolutely nowhere to escape the boiling hot temperatures within Angkor Archaeological Park so sooner or later, you’re bound to humbly yield to this mighty element hours of unceasing exposure to which will floor you. Luckily for me, Chapel of the Hospital was the last temple ruin on the Petit Circle through Angkor Archaeological Park I have not been to yet so I could consider this part of my Angkorian adventure successfully concluded. I only had one more stop to make – to get one more coconut at Angkor Wat just before they close the park for the day and night falls on the area. To get to Angkor Wat, I had to first ride through Angkor Thom the southern end of which gets busy with monkeys looking for handouts from people heading home this time of the day.

Photo: Angkor Thom Monkeys Feeding on Food from Humans
Photo: Angkor Thom Monkeys Feeding on Food from Humans

I was only steps away from Angkor Thom as the Chapel of the Hospital is very near the Victory Gate so I rode right through and then left at the Terrace of the Elephants, and straight down to pass by Bayon and further along the road leading to the South Gate. It was on this stretch of the road – between Bayon and the South Gate where hundreds of monkeys seem to descend from the jungle to look cute as they prance alongside the road to entice the visitors to Angkor to pause on their way back to Siem Reap and have a picture of themselves taken with them while at the same time feeding them. Needless to say, this dependency of monkeys on food from humans is bad for the wildlife and could have detrimental consequences but in Cambodia nobody cares as long as in the end there is some profit for them in it. And if engaging foreigners in feeding monkeys gets them all excited to spend money on overpriced seeds to give the anxious animals, they won’t let that opportunity to pass them by. Wildlife and all tree huggers can go eff themselves. Cambodians want tourists’ money. They care less if it results in gradual dependency of wild monkeys on humans and loss of their ability to fend for themselves.

Photo: Visitors to Angkor Thom Feeding Wild Monkeys
Photo: Visitors to Angkor Thom Feeding Wild Monkeys

There was a pretty sizable group of people engaged in monkey feeding along the road out of Angkor Thom. I got attracted by the crowd and paused to see what was so engaging about this tree-lined road to have everyone stop and hang around. I pulled over and pulled out my camera to take a few pictures to document what’s going on, but that didn’t go without attention from the monkeys who seem to switch their focus on a newcomer almost immediately, unless a person whom they are around is currently feeding them. As I had observed – they (the monkeys) are rather ungrateful creatures when it comes to that. People would spend money to feed them and for as long as their supply of monkey munchies lasts, the monkeys are all over them but as soon as they’re out, monkeys ungracefully move on to somebody else forgetting all about that original donor.

There were monkeys of all shapes and sizes along that road – from young and agile to old and grumpy. And they are uncontrollably attracted to shiny things and… well, basically all things that they can carry. Insatiably curious and investigative, these monkeys will steal anything that can be stolen. Put your bag on the ground to free your hands so you can feed a monkey that starts to cutely climb up your leg and next thing you know, other monkeys are already in the bag and if they grabbed something, consider it gone. They will climb up a nearest tree and you will see your possessions disappear before you’re able to do anything about it. I already had my scary encounter which nearly cost me a camera equipment before getting to Angkor Wat so I knew that one needs to watch their stuff really closely and have it safely mounted against themselves or put into something that’s tricky to open and unmovable. But as I stood there and had a few monkeys probe my wallet and key chain and my bag I had over my shoulders, I saw one lady lose her sunglasses after a monkey snatched it off the top of her head and disappeared into the crown of the tree above.

Photo: Monkey at Angkor Thom Creeping In to Check Out What He Could Steal
Photo: Monkey at Angkor Thom Creeping In to Check Out What He Could Steal

Once my presence away from the main group attracted attention of way too many monkeys, I perceived it was time to move on. I mounted my steel horse and rode off to have my last coconut of the day at Angkor Wat and then head back to my room in Prom Roth Guesthouse. I was looking forward to meeting with Ha again in the evening.

Chapel of the Hospital, Angkor

Aside from being the greatest temple builder of all Angkorian era Khmer kings, Jayavarman VII was also noteworthy for his focus on hospitals. 102 of them were built during his reign (4 were within Angkor Thom) but it was his efforts to make them run smoothly that set him apart from the other kings who also built hospitals. Chapel of the Hospital which still stands between the Victory Gate and Ta Keo temple is all that is left of what used to be an ancient health care establishment.

Photo: Chapel of the Hospital, Angkor, Cambodia
Photo: Chapel of the Hospital, Angkor, Cambodia

As with all other Angkorian era structures, only the houses of gods were built of stone which allowed them to survive for centuries. Houses of people, including royal palaces and Arogyasala (houses of the sick, aka hospitals) were built of wood and bamboo and have long since perished. As a result, Chapel of the Hospital stands there tall, but all alone, surrounded by collapsed stone while the jungle grows lushly around it.

Photo: Crumbling Tower of the Chapel of the Hospital
Photo: Crumbling Tower of the Chapel of the Hospital

While Chapel of the Hospital is in a ruinous state, it is right on the Angkor’s little circuit which makes access to it simple, yet because it’s so small and insignificant, it’s not visited by many. When I made my brief stop, I saw many tour buses whizz down the road at full speed giving the passengers onboard little chance to even catch a glimpse of what that thing on the side of the road was about.

Spean Thma

Spean Thma is the Bridge of Stone located just west of Ta Keo temple. Not many Angkor era bridges survived to this day, Spean Thma is one of the few that did. Albeit it’s just an odd array of rock nowadays.

Photo: Spean Thma - Ruins of a Bridge Built by Ancient Khmer Civilzation
Photo: Spean Thma - Ruins of a Bridge Built by Ancient Khmer Civilzation

Spean Thma was constructed to bridge the Siem Reap River and is believed to have been reconstructed sometimes in the 15th century by utilizing carved stone from old temples.

Photo: Remains of Spean Thma, Angkor, Cambodia
Photo: Remains of Spean Thma, Angkor, Cambodia

When you first see Spean Thma and realize that it was actually a bridge, the first thing that gets to your mind is – and where the hell is the river? Fact of a matter is, Spean Thma did cross the Siem Reap river when it was constructed, but through obstructions and construction of water channels, the river’s course has changed, but the bridge remained where it was built.

Ta Keo Temple

In 968 A.D., when King Jayavarman V was mere 10 year old, he succeeded to his father, Rajendravarman and took up the throne to the Khmer Empire. By the time he was 17, he moved his residence to the east end of East Baray while the lake’s west bank was to become the seat of new Khmer capital. The works on new capital’s state temple – Ta Keo began in 975 A.D. Even though known as Ta Keo at present day, temple’s original name was Hemasringagiri, meaning “The Mountain with Golden Peaks” in reference to the sacred peak of Mount Meru from Indian mythology.

Photo: Ta Keo Temple, Angkor, Cambodia
Photo: Ta Keo Temple, Angkor, Cambodia

King Jayavarman V died in 1001 A.D. and Ta Keo was left unfinished even though artisans had only started carving its walls. While it is likely that king’s premature death was one of the main reasons the works on the temple barely continued after his death (some work was done during the reign of Jayaviravarman who succeeded Jayavarman V), according to the account by Suryavarman I’s high priest Yogisvarapandita who got the temple many years later, Ta Keo was struck by a lightning while still under constructions which was understood as bad omen and all additional works on the structure were abandoned.

Photo: Stone Wall of Ta Keo Temple
Photo: Stone Wall of Ta Keo Temple

Given its height of 21.5 meters above the ground, Ta Keo is the highest temple at Angkor. The five tier pyramid temple was originally surrounded by moat but this has completely vanished with time. Temple’s upper level houses five sanctuary towers and is accessible by super steep stair on each side of the temple.

Photo: Steep Stairs Leading to a Ta Keo Tower
Photo: Steep Stairs Leading to a Ta Keo Tower

For me, Ta Keo was one of the least interesting temples on the little circuit. Since work on it was abandoned shortly after the artists started decorating it, there isn’t much as to the bas reliefs and/or carvings to see. I snapped a few pictures of Ta Keo, wiped off the sweat and moved on to ride further afield under the scorching Cambodian sun.

Photo: View of Ta Kep Court from the Upper Level
Photo: View of Ta Kep Court from the Upper Level

Theft Problem in Cambodia

This was my second day at Angkor Archaeological Park, but I have already noticed several people with disposable cameras. I could not help but wonder what in the mighty heavens they were thinking – flying all the way to Cambodia to see Angkor temples and bringing only a measly disposable camera with them? It made no sense. But then while I was at Ta Prohm, I was approached by a couple of girls who asked me if I would take a picture of them in front of that picturesque spot with blind door where massive tree roots grow over the structure and a brief conversation with them made it all clear. They handed me a disposable camera so I got an opportunity to strike a conversation and ask why they would come all the way to Angkor without bringing some kind of decent device to capture their memories on.

Photo: Spot at Ta Prohm Offering Greatest Photo Opportunities
Photo: Spot at Ta Prohm Where Danish Girls Asked Me to Take a Picture of Them with a Disposable Camera

Given that at this time I have already been in Cambodia for a little over a week, I should really have known without asking. I already had a thief attempt to steal my bicycle but I had my guardian angel on duty that night so he only got away with stolen keys from the bicycle chain lock. I had to carry the bike on my shoulder to the shop to have the lock cut and get a new one, but at least I still had the bike. Theft problem is very prominent in Cambodia (as are other forms of crime) so the real reason why I saw so many people with disposable cameras at Angkor should have really been clear to me straight of the bat but for some reason I needed a heads up from those girls as a slap on the forehead. The conversation went something like this:

Me: Where are you guys from?
Girls: Denmark.
Me: Beautiful country, continuously ranking as #1 country with the highest standard of living in the world. But why would you come all the way to Angkor, from Denmark and bring nothing but a disposable camera with you?
Girls: We had nice cameras, but they were stolen along with our money and passports in Phnom Penh.

Oops! How could I have possibly not figured that out without asking? While Cambodia is not the only country in the world with theft problem, the number of Cambodian thieves on the loose looking for a foreigner who’s had a long day and is too tired to stay fully alert is staggering. After the experience with the Danish girls, each time I saw a person or a group of people with a disposable camera at Angkor, I didn’t go to ask why, I went straight to have the suspicion of theft confirmed.

Photo: Strong Cambodian Sun Causing Harsh Contrasts at Ta Prohm
Photo: Danish Girls Took This Picture of Me After I Took One of Them with Their Disposable Camera

Since I spent virtually every day of the rest of my stay in Cambodia at the Banteay Kdei temple and the Sras Srang moat, I had a chance to meet and speak with hundreds of Angkor visiting foreigners every day. The numbers of those who were victims of theft were alarming. You could see the sadness and horror in their eyes. You could see they only came to Angkor because they already had the ticket, but they could not wait to get the hell out of Cambodia before something more serious happens.

The stories of how it all went down varied, but the outcome was the same. Devastated individuals, couples and families who will definitely never consider coming to Cambodia again and I don’t blame them. Out of hundreds of people who had their cameras and other effects stolen, there was only one couple who didn’t think they were victims of theft. They told me they’d forgotten their camera on the table of the restaurant where they had eaten that day.

The couple realized they were missing the camera shortly after leaving the restaurant. Being new to Cambodia, they didn’t suspect any foul play and simply thought they must have left it on the table. They returned to the restaurant hastily, but the camera was not there. I asked them if they glanced over the table the way people do before leaving the restaurant and they both said they did but thought that the camera just didn’t stand out among the plates and silverware scattered across so they missed the sight of it and left without picking it up.

What really happened to them is hard to know for sure at this point. The only person who would know for sure is the one who took it. While dining, the couple was approached and bothered by several pestering touts who approached them in an attempt to sell them postcards, bracelets and other stuff Cambodian touts sell. Whether somebody saw a camera on the table and stole it while they were still there, or whether it was taken by someone after they’d left leaving the camera on the table is truly irrelevant, though. Honesty and will to help another are not traits commonly found among Cambodians. Greed and malice, on the other hand are omnipresent.

Ta Prohm Temple, Angkor, Cambodia

Ta Prohm is the temple that originally got me interested in Angkor. If it weren’t for Ta Prohm, I wouldn’t have probably landed in Cambodia right at the beginning of my round the world journey. When I saw photos of strong interconnection between ancient stones and wild growing jungle, I was sold. The fact that Angelina Jolie starred Tomb Rider was filmed at Ta Prohm had little influence over my decision to visit the temple ruins as I haven’t even seen the movie (I have always considered Angelina Jolie to be the ugliest and the most talent lacking actress in Hollywood).

Photo: Famous Blind Door Spot at Ta Prohm, Angkor
Photo: Famous Blind Door Spot at Ta Prohm, Angkor

As is the case of Bayon, Banteay Kdei and other major Angkorian era temples, Ta Prohm was also built during the reign of the builder king Jayavarman VII. However, unlike with most other Angkor area temples, Ta Prohm has not been cleaned off of intertwined jungle and this fact alone has become one of its mightiest selling points that attracts lots of visitors. Monstrous silk trees growing out of the ruins became part of the structures to the point that one cannot be without another.

According to the inscription on the foundation stele, Ta Prohm was consecrated in 1186 AD. Originally named Rajavihara (Royal Temple), Ta Prohm was one of the first temples with which the god king Jayavarman VII embarked on its immense mission of temple building. The sanskrit inscription also provides colorful details about how impressive Ta Prohm must have been during its time. From it the archaeologists learned that the temple housed the following:

  • 500kg of Golden Dishes
  • 35 Diamonds
  • 4,540 Precious Stones
  • 40,620 Pearls
  • 867 Veils from China
  • 523 Parasols
  • 512 Silk Beds

Whether these numbers truly reflected the content of the temple grounds or were vastly exaggerated to make king Jayavarman VII larger than life is left for speculations. As for the population in and around Ta Prohm, the inscription tells us that the temple was home to the following:

  • 18 High Priests
  • 615 Apsara Dancers
  • 2,740 Officials
  • 2,202 Assistants
  • 79,365 Total Maintenance Staff
Photo: This Platform was Built so People Can Take Photographs Before the Scenic Tree Wall
Photo: This Platform was Built so People Can Take Photographs Before the Scenic Tree Wall

Prajnaparamita (the perfection of wisdom) was the principal deity of Ta Prohm and Jayavarman VII had her carved in the likeness of his mother. The statue of Prajnaparamita was housed in the central sanctuary while 260 lesser divinities that surrounded her were housed in additional sanctuaries of the temple complex.

I visited Ta Prohm in September 2009 and while at that time the temple was said to have been in the same state as when it was taken over by the Ecole Francaise d’Extreme Orient at the beginning of the 20th century, the presence of manmade structure supports and off-limit areas due to on-going restoration suggested that Ta Prohm is under ongoing maintenance efforts and may end up looking entirely different a year from when I paid the visit.

Photo: This Area of Ta Prohm was Off Limits for Restoration
Photo: This Area of Ta Prohm was Off Limits for Restoration

Unlike Angkor Wat or Bayon, Ta Prohm is not a temple mountain, meaning it doesn’t contain a multiple level pyramid but rather has all of its galleries at the ground level. Like most Buddhist temples, Ta Prohm was built to face the east with the temple proper set closer to the west wall. Each of the walls of the rectangular outer enclosure contains a gopura (entrance gate), but south and north gopuras were purposefully left overgrown with jungle so access can only be made via the east or the west gopura (where touts concentrate in large numbers).

Central sanctuary is surrounded by five enclosing walls of various state of collapse, but each containing impressive looking trees growing on top of them. The ruinous state of enclosing walls as well as the presence of randomly placed buildings (libraries and halls) many of which were added at a later date make navigating through the temple a bit confusing. Hills of piled up stones that once formed Ta Prohm can be seen scattered throughout the temple grounds standing witness to the ruinous state of what must have been an epic structure back in the day.

Ta Prohm Bas Reliefs

The reign of great builder Jayavarman VII was followed by the reign of his successor, the great destroyer Jayavarman VIII who made it his mission to destroy Buddhist relics created during the reign of his famous predecessor. Ta Prohm was not spared of this destructive onslaught so many of the carvings and bas reliefs were either removed or defaced. Still, some original carvings of Apsara dancers and bas reliefs of scenes from Buddhist mythology did survive and can still be found on temple walls. I personally was more interested in the jungle growing on top of the temple structure than the bas reliefs so I didn’t spend much time admiring what’s still left after the reign of Jayavarman VIII.

Photo: Apsara Carvings Among Bas Reliefs of Ta Prohm Temple
Photo: Apsara Carvings Among Bas Reliefs of Ta Prohm Temple

Ta Prohm Trees

That’s exactly why I was there. That’s actually exactly why I went to Cambodia in the first place. The sight of monstrous trees growing out of the centuries old ruins intertwined together to the point that you cannot remove one without destroying the other. Large Silk-Cotton Trees and Thitpoks dominate the overgrowth with smaller Strangler Figs and Golden Apple Trees coupling together for a perfect full picture. Endless roots of the trees engulf the stones in an impenetrable maze that on one hand broke the structures out of form, to keep it tightly together on another.

Photo: Ta Prohm Stone Structure Engulfed by a Tree
Photo: Ta Prohm Stone Structure Engulfed by a Tree

Ta Prohm was without doubt the highlight of my stay in Cambodia. The most impressive of all the ancient Angkor temples (in my eyes), Ta Prohm delivered the awe just the way I expected. This was the one place I really wanted to visit ever since I first saw the pictures of those trees growing over the walls and other structures built almost a millennium ago and completely abandoned a few centuries later. It’s only saddening that such impressive piece of ancient history is under control of such ungrateful country as Cambodia.

More photos of the temple are on the Ta Prohm Photo Gallery page.

Ta Prohm Photo Gallery

Ta Prohm Temple is an eye candy for a photographer. To King Jayavarman VII, Ta Prohm was a centerpiece of his masterplan to restore Khmer empire to a never before seen splendour after it was reclaimed from Cham invaders; to me, Ta Prohm was a centerpiece of my photography adventures at Angkor Archaeological Park. Even though Ta Prohm was my favourite Angkorian era temple, I have only visited it once and all I could capture in rather tricky lighting conditions I had available during my visit is in this photo gallery.

Just as any other day in Cambodia, it was extremely hot and humid on the day I got to Ta Prohm so excessive sweating and subsequent heat exhaustion were inevitable. I was looking forward to taking pictures of Ta Prohm but much of the time spent at the temple was spent hiding in a shade of large trees in an effort to escape the frying power of the intense Cambodian sun. There is no such thing as catching a cooling breeze anywhere at Angkor so all you are left with is inescapable heat. High on natural energy from uplifting coconut water I got from the girls at the Banteay Kdei temple, but unceasingly dripping sweat out of every single pore on my skin, I crisscrossed the temple grounds back and forth to not miss a single opportunity for a perfect picture.

It was early afternoon when I got to Ta Prohm so the sun was right above our heads not causing any backlight no matter which way I turned to take a picture (unlike when I first got to Angkor Wat), however because the sun was super intense and because there’s a pretty elaborate maze of tree branches above Ta Prohm, many cool spots of the temple were subjected to severe contrasts caused by parts being in the sun, while other parts were in the shade. It was rather difficult trying to balance it out so neither highlights are too bright nor shadows too dark but I tried my best.

The Ta Prohm photo gallery below:

Sras Srang

Sras Srang is a man made, rectangular shaped water reservoir located just across the road from the Banteay Kdei temple. Many water reservoirs were integrated into the designs of ancient cities of Angkor but nowadays, most are dried out. Sras Srang is one of the few still holding water which lead to speculations that it may have been a natural lake prior to its transformation.

Photo: Sras Srang Water Reservoir at Angkor, Cambodia
Photo: Sras Srang Water Reservoir at Angkor, Cambodia

Built during the reign of Rajendravarman II, Sras Srang was designed by the Buddhist scholar Kavindrarimathana whose name is the only name of an Angkorian era architect that survived and is known to us today. In Khmer language, Sras Srang translates into “royal bathing pool” which, given the size of Sras Srang was quite the pool. Being 350 meters wide and 700 meters long, it takes 30 minutes of brisk walk to just go around it.

It is quite possible that the original access route to Sras Srang was via Prasat Bat Chum, which would explain its inscription which requests the elephant owner to prevent their animals from trampling the dikes and polluting the water. Later date construction of Banteay Kdei has moved the access point to the lake’s west bank.

Photo: Sras Srang Before Dawn
Photo: Sras Srang Before Dawn

There is a small, artificial island right in the middle of Sras Srang. It is believed that it once housed a small temple, but that has since been washed away. The western side of Sras Srang, the one immediately accessible from the road one which you will ride to access the lake contains a decorated, laterite landing stage for boats. This was added during the reign of king Jayavarman VII two centuries later. King Jayavarman VII is also believed to have ordered the sandstone facing of the dykes which also resulted in shortening of the original (larger) lake into its current size.

Photo: Sras Srang Boat Platform with Stone Lions and Naga Balustrades
Photo: Sras Srang Boat Platform with Stone Lions and Naga Balustrades

Landing stage on the western dyke is decorated with naga balustrades and guardian lions flanking both sides of the stairs. These decoration are rather damaged with parts of them missing making for a lack of impressiveness upon an initial visit to the reservoir. As a result, most visitors don’t spend more than a few minutes at the lake.

Photo: Boat Platform Steps of Sras Srang Flanked by Stone Lions
Photo: Boat Platform Steps of Sras Srang Flanked by Stone Lions

It is quite likely that Sras Srang was originally flooded all the way to the edge but nowadays the water barely reaches half way. Still, considering that many other Angkorian era barays (water reservoirs) are dry now, Sras Srang is doing pretty well.

I spent much of my time in Cambodia involved with the village on the south bank of the lake and found the abuse of it alarming. Villagers have been using Sras Srang the same way other bodies of water in Cambodia are used – as a general dump site into which they piss and shit. It is also where people bathe using non bio-degradable soaps and wash their clothes in using non bio-degradable washing powders. Thanks to its great size, Sras Srang still looks like a large lake, rather than a large septic tank, but how long before the scales are tipped?

Photo: Villagers Bathing in Sras Srang at Dusk
Photo: Villagers Bathing in Sras Srang at Dusk

Environment doesn’t seem to be on the radar of anyone in Cambodia. It’s usually only through funding provided by some foreign organizations if any part of the natural treasures gets non destructive treatment. For months I had tried to explain the villagers that it should be their foremost interest to protect Sras Srang as it’s their lake, the lake by which they live but it all seemed to have fallen on deaf ears.

Photo: Sras Srang View from the Village - Not Many Tourists Get to See it From This Perspective
Photo: Sras Srang View from the Village - Not Many Tourists Get to See it From This Perspective

I was told that their predecessors used to bath and wash their clothes in the lake for centuries yet the lake is still there, so why should they start getting concerned about it and change their behaviour now. What they don’t realize, though is that their predecessors probably used some organic compounds (coconut extract or who knows what?) as washing fluid, not any of those cheap, chemically produced non bio-degradable powders the villagers use today. No matter how hard I tried, it has not stopped anyone from abusing their own lake or taking any kind of measure to prevent an unavoidable bad ending to it.

Photo: View of Sras Srang from the West Bank with Sky Reflection on the Surface
Photo: View of Sras Srang from the West Bank with Sky Reflection on the Surface

Sras Srang is still there today and it’s still flooded. Thanks to its size, the lake offers quite a buffer zone so it may be able to take a lot more abuse before it’s irreversible destruction is complete. It’s just sad that none of the villagers showed any form of interest in protecting their own front yard. Perhaps when the lake quits on them they will realize what they had done but by that time it will already be too late.

Buying Postcards from a Little Girl Tout

While I was chatting it away at Banteay Kdei temple as part of my break from the sun, something happened that made me break my #1 rule of not supporting the culture of handouts. Saly, Sarein and Kai kept sharing stories of the village life with me when loudish, argument like screaming came out of the temple gate and one little girl walked out of there in tears.

I’ve had many children approach me with fake tears during the course of my stay in Cambodia, but this one was different. This girl was not faking it to trick anyone into giving her money, this girl was sincerely hurting. Everyone, including Saly, Sarein and Kai as well as everyone else who was around completely ignored the child as if it was nobody else’s, but her own business to get over it.

I was appalled and wanted to at least know the reason why she was crying so I could attempt to make her feel better. Everybody was telling me that it was nothing and that she’d be over it right away but I wanted her to tell me what it was that made her cry so much. Through endless sobbing, she eventually let me know that one of the other child slaves managed to make a foreigner buy postcards from her, a foreigner whom, as she said, she was the first to talk to.

Child slaves who are summoned by their parents to bother tourists at Angkor Temples are instructed to say certain things that are proven to maximize their chances of selling. Because foreigners are accosted on every step of their way at Angkor, they impulsively reject every attempt at being sold something as they would have had a million and one chances to buy the same stuff from hundreds of previous touts they were jumped by along the way so far, if they had any intention to own any of the junk.

Photo: Little Girl Tout Trying to Sell Bracelets and Postcards to a Foreigner at Banteay Kdei, Angkor
Photo: Little Girl Tout Trying to Sell Bracelets and Postcards to a Foreigner at Banteay Kdei, Angkor

Common responses to impulsive rejection include the “Where Are You From?” question the purpose of which is to get the foreigner engaged in a conversation so they eventually feel connection with the tout and agree to buying something because of that. If that fails and there is no stopping the foreigner from exiting the territory in which the touts is allowed to operate, the touts will utilize the last resort phrase by saying something like: “I’ll wait for you on your way back, OK? When you come back you buy from me!”

This is obviously what the heartbroken girl told the tourist as he was walking inside the temple where she was not allowed to harass anyone, but then when he was walking outside and already had his set of postcards purchased from some other tout, she felt betrayed by whoever the successful tout was and that made her cry and get in an argument with that other girl.

It felt as though the sale of that pack of postcards was a “must happen” for her that day. Perhaps she was threatened by her parents who control her that if she doesn’t sell anything today, she would not get anything to eat or worse. Why otherwise would a 7 year old girl cry like that over an unsuccessful sale? Whatever the reason, it didn’t matter to me at the time. I was right there and at that very moment there was one devastated little girl who was this close to making one sale but someone else ended up with the score.

Sadly, Cambodians draw great pleasure from other people’s suffering. Nothing makes them happier than seeing someone else get in a tight spot. Everyone around, especially the other little girl touts were laughing their asses off and so were the rest of the locals who were nearby. I found this behaviour absolutely atrocious and because there is no stopping of Cambodians who have themselves a good time because they see someone else suffer, I told the girl to follow me so I could withdraw her from this abuse and mockery.

I walked with her across the road where shops are lined up and told her that I would buy that pack of postcards from her. I had no need for any of her postcards – as a matter of fact, I could not possibly consider buying anything as when you are on the road for a long time, wasting money on useless junk is not a smart option but most of all – there is only so much room you have in your backpack and even if you stick with mere necessities, hauling it around on your back over and over will make you understand that you’re not gonna add to it unless it’s really important.

There was absolutely nothing any of the relentless touts could possibly say to make me buy anything from them. Yet in this very moment, all of my personal reasons and beliefs dwindled aside and gave way to making the difference in a life of one single person. The pack of 10 postcards she was trying to sell was of absolutely no use to me. But the one dollar she would make would mean everything to her.

Unfortunately, I didn’t have any one dollar bills on me so I took a five dollar bill to Saly and asked her if she could break it for me so I can buy the postcards from that little girl. And Saly did exactly what I should have expected – she took my money and came back with two one dollar bills and a Bayon t-shirt she said was worth $3 and I had just bought it. Well damn!

The premise of not buying anything you don’t need when you’re on the road is a big one. If I were to buy a t-shirt from every place I visit, I’d quickly need another backpack. This was simply not an option. I had just enough t-shirts to get by and the only way I’d buy a new one would be if I needed to replace one I had worn out. I wash my clothes by hand and wear them in all imaginable situations, including crazy adventures so when a piece of garment wears out, then I’ll buy a new one – to replace it, but not until there is such need.

Saly made a decision for me about this t-shirt, though. I ended up with a t-shirt I didn’t even like and a set of 10 postcards I had nobody to send to (I live in a digital age. Old school snail mail is not for me. Instead of postcards, I send my family and friends digital pictures I took via email). But that’s what I get for making friends with touts.

I wasn’t mad though. I ended up with more junk to haul around, but I thought it turned out being a wonderful day so in the end, it was all worth it. I didn’t want the t-shirt so I donated it right away and the postcards – yeah, I actually did haul them around until my return back to Canada in December.

I had to face a lot of rage from other child touts after the purchase of those postcards, though. Each of them wanted me to buy from them and I gave each of them a firm “No” so when they found out I had eventually bought the postcards despite previous claims that I couldn’t buy any, it gave them the reason to blame me. Honour is not a virtue that’s commonly found in Cambodia. Touts are used to lying – they’ve been lying every day of their lives since they could talk. Expecting any form of honour from a person whose life is based on lies would be foolish. As a result, any villager I didn’t buy from would treat me as an unwanted intruder during my 2 months long stay in the village.

Stick Insect Pictures

While I was taking a break and chatting away with girls at Banteay Kdei temple, someone pointed out a stick insect that was sitting there idly on the side of the garbage bin and started taking pictures of it. I didn’t even see it it was so well camouflaged. Since I haven’t seen one before with my own eyes, I also didn’t realize they were this big.

Photo: Do Birds Feed on Stick Insects or Who Is Their Adversary (Aside from Humans)?
Photo: Do Birds Feed on Stick Insects or Who Is Their Adversary (Aside from Humans)?

This stick insect was just sitting there, minding his own business and didn’t get disturbed not even after we’ve taken notice of him and caused commotion trying to take picture of it. Just as it was with Praying Mantis, I didn’t have good lens to take a decent picture of it, but since stick insects are not particularly known for being vicious predators, I was not as apprehensive trying to get closer to it.

Photo: Very Stationary, Taking Pictures of Stick Insects is Easy
Photo: Very Stationary, Taking Pictures of Stick Insects is Easy

Its overall size also made it easier to compose the picture. It was yet another first for me in one day. The sun was killing me, the touts were driving me insane, but the wildlife made up for it. Stick insects for the win.

Below is a small photo gallery of stick insect pictures: