Angkor Temples Galleries

Ta Som (Late 12th Century) : Ta Som is a smaller temple that is part of the Grand circuit tour. The temple is in a bit of disrepair state but some parts of it have been restored. When I was there, there was hardly any visitors to the temple and it was pretty quiet. Probably due to its size and its distance to Angkor Wat, it is not one of the major destination to most visitors.

Ta Som (Late 12th Century)

Ta Som is a smaller temple that is part of the Grand circuit tour. The ...

Updated: Dec 02, 2007 8:35am PST

Ta Prohm - The Brahma Ancestor (Late 12th Century) : Ta Prohm is one of the few temples in Angkor area where we can see nature taking its course through the temples. The gnarled roots of the trees can be seen running through the temples. These trees become a sort of 'life support' for the temple because the roots literally support the temple structure and when the tree dies, then the temple will eventually crumble. It is quite a favorite spot for visitors due to the famous Lara Croft tree from the Tomb Raider movie. The temple is currently undergoing extensive preservation work, so some parts of this large temple are closed to visitors. This temple was a monastery during its days. It's quite large and complex with a set of concentric galleries and corner tower and gopura-s. Along with its partially collapsed state and the trees surrounding it, going around the temple is not very straightforward, but also one of the most scenic of all temples in the Angkor area.

Ta Prohm - The Brahma Ancestor (Late 12th Century)

Ta Prohm is one of the few temples in Angkor area where we can see nat ...

Updated: Dec 02, 2007 7:11am PST

Rolous Group Temples : This is a group of 3 temples outside of Siem Reap on state highway 6 near the town of Rolous. These temples are some of the earliest temples built in the Angkor area during late 9th century.

Rolous Group Temples

This is a group of 3 temples outside of Siem Reap on state highway 6 n ...

Updated: Dec 02, 2007 6:12am PST

Preah Khan - The Sacred Sword (Late 12th century) : Preah Khan is quite a large temple complex surrounded by a large moat. Besides being a temple, it also served as a Buddhist university and also as a large city. I visited this temple on the morning of my second day in Angkor area, after visiting Bayon. There was almost nobody at the temple apart from a couple of temple security person and about 5 other visitors. Around the temple it's mostly tropical forest. At that time, it was really quiet and the only sound that I heard was the sound of the insects and animals of the forest. Needless to say, it was quite a profound experience! It was rather eerie to walk alone inside an 8-centuries-old building where the only sound was the sounds of nature, but it was one of the best experiences I had during my trip!

Preah Khan - The Sacred Sword (Late 12th century)

Preah Khan is quite a large temple complex surrounded by a large moat. ...

Updated: Dec 02, 2007 5:34am PST

Other Small Tour Circuit Temples : Small Circuit tour is the circle from Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom to Chau Say Tevoda, Thommanon, Ta Prohm, Banteay Kdei and Sra Srang and return to Angkor Wat via Prasat Kravan. This album shows the smaller temples along this route like Chau Say Tevoda, Thommanon.

Other Small Tour Circuit Temples

Small Circuit tour is the circle from Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom to Chau ...

Updated: Dec 02, 2007 4:56am PST

Other Grand Tour Circuit Temples : Grand tour circuit is an extension of the Small tour. Exiting Angkor Thom through the north gate to Preah Khan, Neak Pean, East Mebon, Pre Rup and return to Angkor Wat. Shown in this album is a few of the smaller temples along this loop.

Other Grand Tour Circuit Temples

Grand tour circuit is an extension of the Small tour. Exiting Angkor T ...

Updated: Nov 28, 2007 9:36pm PST

Bayon (12th Century) : Bayon is a complex of towers with four faces on each tower. This is a very complex temple with 37 remaining faces temples (it was thought that there were 49 to 54 towers in its original form) creating a stone mountain of ascending peaks. This temple is one of my favorite temples among the temples that I visited. I came to this temple twice in two days, the first day was in late morning and the temple was filled with tourists. The next day, I came there first thing in the morning around 6 o'clock. With so few people around, it was quite a profound experience. From the TrekEarth site, I read about a monk who usually sits in this temple and has been the subject of many photos. Unfortunately, the Cambodian authorities decided that having her in the temple is somehow unpopular and have moved her from the temple.

Bayon (12th Century)

Bayon is a complex of towers with four faces on each tower. This is a ...

Updated: Nov 27, 2007 10:17pm PST

Banteay Srei - Citadel of the Women (Late 10th Century) : The remarkable small temple of Banteay Srei is located about 1 hour away from Siem Reap, almost at the foot of Kulen mountain. It is one of the very few temples in Angkor area that was not built by a king. It is renowned for the very intricate carvings and the exceptional decorations of the surfaces. Due to this, it is often referred to as the 'Jewel of the Khmer art'. By motorcycle, it took almost 1 hour from Siem Reap, but it was worth the journey to encounter such a temple!

Banteay Srei - Citadel of the Women (Late 10th Century)

The remarkable small temple of Banteay Srei is located about 1 hour aw ...

Updated: Nov 27, 2007 9:26pm PST

East Mebon (Mid 10th Century) : This temple was part of the East Baray, a water reservoir that is now dry. It's quite a tall structure, but since it was build surrounded by water, there is no moat complex around it. Event though East Baray is now dry, its outline is still visible when viewed from satellite images.

East Mebon (Mid 10th Century)

This temple was part of the East Baray, a water reservoir that is now ...

Updated: Nov 27, 2007 4:56am PST

Banteay Kdei - The citadel of chambers (Late 12th Century) : Maurice Glaize in his book 'A Guide to Angkor Monuments' dubbed this temple 'the Spirit of Confusion'. Part of the small circuit tour, it is located across the water reservoir of Srah Srang. Quite an interesting looking complex, even if not as large as other temples in the area.

Banteay Kdei - The citadel of chambers (Late 12th Century)

Maurice Glaize in his book 'A Guide to Angkor Monuments' dubbed this t ...

Updated: Nov 27, 2007 4:43am PST

Angkor Thom - The Great City (12th Century and Later) : Quite a large area with numerous temples inside its walls. It used to be quite a large city in its time, but now it mostly consists of forests outside of the temples. The city walls are surrounded by a mot, although not as large as the moat surrounding Angkor Wat. Some of the moat still exist, although some parts are either dried up or used as rice fields. The photos here are from the smaller temples in the complex. The 'major' temples like the magnificent Bayon (one of my favorite temples in the area) are put in separate albums.

Angkor Thom - The Great City (12th Century and Later)

Quite a large area with numerous temples inside its walls. It used to ...

Updated: Nov 26, 2007 9:13pm PST

Angkor Wat - The Temple City (Early 12th Century) : My first day around Angkor temples. I started the day kind of late, but I started at the biggest temple of them all, Angkor Wat! All these measurements about the moat and the temple itself really doesn't do it justice. It has to be seen and experienced to realize how big the complex actually is! Truly an awesome sight to behold and a monument of human ingenuity.

Angkor Wat - The Temple City (Early 12th Century)

My first day around Angkor temples. I started the day kind of late, bu ...

Updated: Nov 20, 2007 9:46am PST