Check out our highlight reels on Instagram @seapcornell for Olivia and Stephanie’s takeover, highlighting a day on the program!
A busy day from morning till night here in Siem Reap! To kick off our day, we had Khmer omelets – your usual eggs but with a twist of greens, soy sauce, and rice. 10/10 would recommend. 
As we headed out to Angkor, it was a pleasant surprise to see the streets lined with crowds and decorations – and for good measure, as today was Victorious Day! Cambodia celebrates January 7 as liberation from the Khmer Rouge regime 44 years ago. The Khmer Times explains more
In that spirit, we headed to our first stop, Phnom Bakheng. An impressive architectural feat atop a mountain, it is a reminder of the pride Cambodia has in its ancient Angkorian roots. Phnom Bakheng is currently under repair for the reconstruction of the East half of the central temple, as seen below. The temple has 5 tiers and 5 main towers. Each side has 33 towers visible, to represent the 33 gods on Mount Meru. In total, there are 109 towers – the center represents the center of the universe, and 108 if you remember is a holy number! It is also how many total figures (54+54) were depicted in the Churning of the Milk at the bridge at the entrance of Angkor Thom. Scholar Paul Wheatley calls these symbols altogether at Phnom Bakheng an “astronomical calendar in stone.” 
Even without its spiritual significance, it is awe-inducing to witness such proof of life from the 9th century. Many carvings are still intact, and the top of the hill grants you a view of Angkor Wat and other temples in the distance. 
I can’t even begin to imagine how huge of a project this was – and how large Angkor was – back in the day. On the way down, our trail is dotted with other views. This here is Baksei Chamkrong with 1300+ inscriptions.
Our next stop was Krol Romeas, which our guide Ea Darith graciously added for us after seeing our interest in elephants! Named Krol Romeas, or actually “corral of rhinos,” it is a large enclosure that likely housed 20+ rhinos and elephants (though both have been long gone now). We learned that elephants were captured by using existing domesticated herds to chase wild herds, and then as the babies could not run off they were captured using buffalo skin ropes and trained. Such strategy enabled elephants to become the “mark of a general.” 
Our next stop was one of my favorites – Neak Pean! An oasis in the forest, it is a Buddhist temple surrounded by perfectly rectangular moats of water. Given inscriptions of people coming and getting healed, it is predicted to have provided healing services of some sort – which definitely makes sense! It is accessible by a long bridge through the water lilies, and shows an impressive interpretation of the nature of life. In the middle is a flying horse, which came to save the people getting eaten by demons on the island. Water flows through the mouth of the elephant in one corner, and the other elements are similarly represented by animals – wind is depicted by horse, fire by lion, and earth by a cow. None of my photos do it justice so I am including one sourced here. 
Our next stop was Ta Prohm. Made famous by Angelina Jolie in Tomb Raider, the temple is marked by its distinctive intertwining with surrounding trees. But before trees were its permanent residents, it welcomed 200+ monks, 600+ dancers for apsara ceremonies, and travelers in 120+ rest houses. 
All in all over 3,000 villages supported it! The Cham and Myanmar peoples also worked at this temple, for a total of 80,000 people involved in the service of the temple. It likely taught Mahayana Buddhism, though with later changes in religion the Buddha images were wiped out.
Bringing It back to the classroom, Ea Darith gave us an insightful lecture on the role of water in the Angkor civilization. We’ve seen it throughout the day with the reservoirs that accompany every major temple, and we learned that the control of water was core to the life of the kingdom because of the people’s reliance on water-intensive rice farming. As early as the 6th century, the Funan kingdom had a hydraulic system at Angkor Borei. The first reservoir in Angkor was Indratadaka, which could store 7 million m2 of water. When kings ascended to the throne, they first had to dig a reservoir, then build a temple for their ancestors, and then build one for themselves. Water was perceived to be holy water as it flowed through the linga to get to Angkor, and always would be directed from the NE corner to the SW corner (like at Neak Pean!). A few big symbolic ideas around water – the Ganga, goddess of water sits on a crocodile / makara hybrid and is a symbol of fertility, and Amrita is the immortal water so desired through the Churning of the Milk. 
After dinner on our own, we went to the Phare Cambodian circus! I wasn’t really sure what to expect, but it was such a fun experience. Super engaging with great energy from the performers – and the entire show was just 12 people! The theme was “Same Same but Different” as seen below, which poked fun at the differences between Cambodians and foreign visitors. My favorite was the juxtaposition of “Siem Reap in the Rain” with a traditional twist on acrobatics and fishing, followed by “Singing in the Rain” with an aerial performance (the one on the banner with the girl in the red dress). 
Phare is not just a circus though, and is a social enterprise juts like Spoons. Rural youth get free education and arts training through the profits of the show, supporting thousands of students and hundreds of performing artists. Such is the beauty of the arts.
