Victory Gate – Traveling Mark

Angkor Thom North Gate

Out of 5 gates that afford access to the royal Khmer city of Angkor Thom, only two are heavily trafficked. Being on the Petit Circuit through Angkor Archaeological Park, both South Gate (the busiest one, because it’s also part of the Grand Circuit) and Victory Gate have people passing through them often. Since Angkor Thom North Gate is on the Grand Circuit and off the itinerary vast majority of visitors to Angkor restrict themselves to, it is a much quieter gate than the other two.

Angkor Thom’s square shaped exterior wall has one entrance gate on cardinal point, except from the east wall, which has two – East Gate and Victory Gate. East Gate, even though it’s in the middle of the wall and in line with Bayon, sees very little in terms of traffic because everybody who passes through Angkor Thom simply takes the paved road which was laid to pass through Victory Gate. Yet there still is a gate traffic through which is even scarcer. West Gate is almost totally abandoned and hardly gets any visitors through. Only the most determined explorers who also decide to visit West Mebon (huge water reservoir west of Angkor Thom) take this detour which requires whole day (unless you have motorized transportation) and has very little else to offer.

Needless to say, South and Victory Gates, being the busiest of five have seen more restoration work than the other three gates. North Gate did get restored a bit, but it was one of the gates that was pretty well preserved to begin with. When looting became a profitable past time activity for average Cambodians, many stone giants (Devas on the left and Asuras on the right) adorning the sides of the causeways spanning the dried up moats in front of each gate were vandalized and their severed heads sold to collectors from abroad. Many of the North Gate giants didn’t escape this fate either, leaving this part of the North Gate desperately devastated, but the gate itself remains in pretty good shape.

Nothing otherwise makes the North Gate of Angkor Thom special in any way. It is quieter than South Gate, so if you seek less disturbance from the Cambodian touts of doom, you can find it here. However since all Angkor Thom gates were built to be identical, your best bet for pictures is to stick with the South Gate due to well restored Naga bearing Apsaras and Asuras on either side of the causeway. South Gate also gets many elephants through it which also makes for rather interesting, albeit sad pictures. Like all other gates as well as the towers of Bayon, the North Gate is crowned with the faces of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara bearing the likeness of king Jayavarman VII who had them build.

Photo: Raw of Asuras Before the North Gate of Angkor Thom

I didn’t spend much time at the North Gate, just passed through it, making only a minute long stop to snap a couple of pictures. By entering Angkor Thom through the North Gate, I returned to the area I had previously explored, so North Gate concluded my adventure on the grand circuit of Angkor. I did a lot that day. It was incredibly hot and I even managed to foil an attempt to have my bicycle stolen. I was ready to start riding back towards Siem Reap where my cozy bed at the Prom Roth Guest House and Ha were waiting for me. I only had one more stop to take – back at Angkor Wat to say “Hi” to the girls and have one more coconut for the energy to ride back after a long and tiring day.

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

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

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

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.

Chau Say Tevoda Temple

Right across the road from Thommanon is a small temple known as Chau Say Thevoda. Similar in construction and floor plan to Thommanon, Chau Say Thevoda appears to be a neglected sister of her well preserved sibling to the north but fact of a matter is, Thommanon was built much earlier than Chau Say Thevoda.

Photo: Chau Say Thevoda Temple is in Desolate State Compared to Thommanon

When Thommanon and Chau Say Thevoda were initially discovered, it was believed that they were built to be a pair. Their location on each side of the road just outside of the Victory Gate made it seem as though they were planned to line the Victory Way, but neither is true. Victory Gate as well as much of Angkor Thom were built much later.

Photo: Guess What This Cambodian Woman at Chau Say Thevoda Wanted - That's Right... Money!

Compared to Thommanon, Chau Say Thevoda is in desolate state but restoration works are in progress so the temple is slowly regaining its original shape. As is the case with most other temples, Chau Say Thevoda faces east with east gopura (entrance gate) being the biggest and most elaborate. Even though Chau Say Thevoda is basically identical to Thommanon, it’s slightly smaller and has gopuras on each of the walls (Thommanon only has east and west gopuras, south and north walls have holes as though gateways were intended, but were never finalized). Unlike Thommanon, Chau Say Thevoda has two (not one) libraries – one in the south-east and one in the north-east corner.

Photo: Chau Say Thevoda - Notice Collapsed Lotus Tower Which Originally Resembled Angkor Wat Towers

The most obvious difference between Thommanon and Chau Say Thevoda is the “stone bridge” – a causeway on pillars which may have once served as the means of access to the temple from the Siem Reap River. This causeway stretches on for quite a bit and if it weren’t for money hungry Cambodians who were flocking around to harass the crap out of me until I have eventually given in and gave them all my money, I would have probably climbed on it to see how far it leads.

Photo: Stone Bridge on Stilts Dominates the Chau Say Thevoda Temple

Mentally and physically exhausted, I have made Chau Say Thevoda my last temple on the small circuit and rode back through Angkor Thom to buy one more coconut from my new friends at Angkor Wat. Every thread on every bit of garment I was wearing was sogged in sweat. My skin was on fire from exposure to an insanely intense Cambodian sun and I simply had no more strength left to resist the relentless touts and other scam artists who prey on exhausted tourists as they become easy targets. I wanted to finish the small circuit in one day, but this was much tougher a task than it seemed. I was physically fit and in good shape to cover the distance on a bicycle but the sun of Cambodia is a force that’s not to be taken lightly. Riding though Angkor is easy – roads are flat with virtually no hills to scale, but the heat is more than devastating.

Thommanon Temple

Thommanon is a small, but nicely preserved temple from early 12th century. Built during the reign of king Suryavarman II (founder of Angkor Wat), Thommanon is just outside of Victory Gate on the north side of the Victory causeway but it stood there long before both Victory Gate and the causeway through it were built.

Thommanon is a rather small, but very elegant temple covered with admirable, fine carvings. Much of the outer enclosure is gone, but the temple was clearly built to face the east, even though as I was coming from the south it seemed as if the main entrance was facing this way. Lacking outer wall also gave an impression that individual parts of the temple were standalone, isolated buildings. They are not.

Photo: Library of Thommanon on the Left and East Gopura on Far Right

Central sanctuary of Thommanon has a lotus shaped tower similar to that of Angkor Wat (built by the same king – Suryavarman II). Short corridor connects the central tower with mandapa, an antechamber. West and east gopuras (entrance gates) are still standing, but north and south do not exist. It is possible that even though they were intended, they were never built. The gap in the base of the wall suggests that the empty space was left to put the gopura there, but the plan was probably never carried out. The moat that once surrounded Thommanon is now dry and virtually non existent.

Photo: Thommanon Tower Resembles Angkor Wat Central Sactuary

Thommanon has a rather high base with main floor being 2.5 meters above ground. Main entrance is obviously on the east, however each cardinal point has a staircase with porch and fake entrance of its own. Even though risky, it is possible to get inside through any of those fake entrance but expect lazy locals who don’t go to work and just kill time sitting around on the stairs and porches staring at you and making fun if you attempt to get in through anywhere but the main entrance.

Photo: Fine Apsara Carvings on Thommanon Central Sanctuary - Notice Outer Apsaras with Different Skirts Than Inner Ones

Even though by the time I got to visit Angkor Wat I had already been in Cambodia for over a week, it was at Thommanon where I made a rookie mistake of thinking that there is such a thing as friendly local in Cambodia who is simply nice to you because they want you to have nice memory of their country. Unfortunately, such people don’t exist in Cambodia or are an extremely rare breed trampled and pushed aside by thousands of greedy scam artists.

Photo: Carving of God Vishnu Garudavahana Standing on Garuda Seen on Inner Door Lintel of the Thommamnon Madapa

Frustrated real good by having been harassed by extremely aggressive touts whole day, I kept ignoring every local who came to talk to me. I knew that they all want money and nothing but money. They are too lazy to go to work and abusing tourists doesn’t require manual work so why would they even bother working? Yet in spite of all that, when a local guy approached me and told me about a nice carving on the opposite side I may have missed, I still ignored, but listened with one ear opened.

He retained this very friendly tone of voice and talked to me as if he would like to be friends. I continued suspecting something fishy so I followed my own path and ignored him for the most part but he stuck by me telling me more about the Thommanon temple and asking questions about where I was from and when I came to Cambodia so eventually it seemed as though he was a nice guy who was just excited to meet a foreigner to get a chance to exercise some of his English.

Photo: Eastern Gopura (Entrance Gate) of the Thommanon Temple

What a foolish thing of me to think it was the case. Even though I vastly ignored everything he told me about the temple and only responded politely to questions, as I was leaving the temple he insisted that I pay him for his guiding services. I told him I didn’t have any money on me so if he said up front that this is what he wanted, I could have saved him from hassle but he used sneaky tactics to stick with me and since I didn’t tell him off right away, to him it meant I needed to pay him money.

Needless to say, confrontation was imminent as Cambodians are extremely pugnacious but luckily I had my bicycle with me so I mounted it and quickly rode off. Another temple called Chau Say Thevoda is just on the opposite side of the road from Thommanon and it looked as though this was the reign of a completely different set of touts so he didn’t follow. Apparently, even Cambodians have rules. It’s shocking, but rules among themselves dictate which zone you don’t stick your nose into because that’s where other touts operate and they don’t stick their nose into your zone.

I was physically and mentally exhausted. The heat from the non compromising sun was taking its tall. I needed another coconut and I really needed a break from the touts who knew very well how exhausting the sun was and how easy it could be used against weary tourists. I went through the stalls by Thommanon when tout who demanding money got off sight to find one that will not try to overcharge me for a coconut and took 30 minutes break from the sun sipping on this refreshing beverage.

I was only meters away from Chau Say Thevoda and it looked like just a small ruin, but I couldn’t do it anymore. I have severely underestimated the aggressive nature of Cambodian touts and devastating heat of Cambodian sun. I wanted to finish the small circuit, but I had no physical nor mental energy left. Physical energy was sucked out by the merciless sun, mental by the merciless scam artists and touts that followed me along on every step not giving me a minute of peace.

Victory Gate of Angkor Thom

Aside from West, North, East and South Gate allowing access to Angkor Thom, the royal city had one more gate built on its eastern wall – Victory Gate. The Victory Gate is in line with the Royal Palace area and was clearly erected to allow for direct access to the Royal Square.

Similar to the South Gate, Victory Gate is crowned with the face tower and flanked by Airavata – the three headed elephants plucking lotus flowers with their trunks. Due to extensive theft of Angkorian artefacts by local people of Cambodia, many figures lining the causeway across the moat leading towards the Victory Gate were stolen or damaged during theft attempts. Most lack heads with only parts of their bodies holding naga balustrade as if in a tug-of-war remain.

Photo: Victory Gate of Angkor Thom with Vandalized Balustrade on Either Side

Wat Tang Tok

Wat Tang Tok is a small monastery within Angkor Thom, not far from Victory Gate, just north of Vihear Prampil Loveng. During an Angkorian era, Wat Tang Tok housed a laterite shrine with sandstone carvings, but nowadays only a pile of rocks remains of the original structure. Modern pagoda with live-in monks was built next to the ruin and even though it contains naga serpents and lion guardians, it looks way to modern to be of much interest.

Resident monks as well as all other people of Cambodia refer to the monastery as Wat Tang Tok however Apsara Authority which is paid to overlook Angkor Archaeological Park has allegedly decided to rename it into Preah Ang Sang Tuk. The reason for this move as well as whether it sticks are unknown.

Photo: Nagas and Lions Decorating the Entrance to Wat Tang Tok

Angkor Thom

Angkor Thom means “Great City” in Khmer language. Covering the area of 9 kilometres squared, the royal city of Angkor Thom was the last capital of the Angkorian Empire. Completely surrounded by wall and moat that’s almost 3 kilometres long on each side, there are five entrance gates to the royal city – one at each cardinal point and the Victory Gate which connected the east side with the Royal Palace. Each of the Angkor Thom gates is crowned with four giant faces, similar to those found on Bayon temple.

Angkor Thom as we know today was constructed over the site of earlier temples and was occupied by city people for five centuries. It was brought to its final glory by King Jayavarman VII though construction of Angkor Thom continued to certain degree after his death.

The remodelling to Angkor Thom to its current state started after King Jayavarman VII drove away Chams who sacked the city. The King remodelled what was left of Angkor Thom into an ensemble that represents the Mount Meru with Bayon in its centre and the moat around it representing the sea of milk that encircles the sacred mountain range. It’s a microcosm of the universe.

Archaeologists speculate that during its boom, Angkor Thom had a water system running through the city. River O Khlot may have been branched and have some of its flow diverted to supply the royal city with life supporting water.

King Jayavarman VII also built temples at each corner of Angkor Thom. These temples, known as Prasat Chrung (Shrine of the Angle) contain an architectural element called “stele” which is an upright slab with inscriptions. The south-eastern Prasat Chrung is the only one with a stele containing complete inscription in Sanskrit on all four sides of the slab. Prasat Chrung temples were dedicated to the Bodhisattva Lokesvara, same as Bayon which served as city’s state temple.

Photo: Bayon, State Temple of Angkor Thom

Parts of today’s Angkor Thom, the last capital of Angkorian Empire overlap the area of what used to be Yasodharapura – the first capital of Angkorian Empire (9th century). Temples of Baphuon and Phimeanakas which still exist within today’s Angkor Thom were built in previous centuries and were incorporated into the new layout of Angkor Thom by Jayavarman VII.

Following the tradition, the royal palace was built north of the state temple (in this case it was Bayon). There is nothing left of the royal palace but the courtyard and terraces, as dwellings of people, including royalty were built of wood. Stone dwellings were reserved exclusively for the gods.