In the past 25 years, I have logged more than a half-million air miles visiting dozens of exciting, beautiful and compelling destinations in the Pacific Rim, but one of the most amazing trips I have ever enjoyed was the round-the-world month-long family travel experience I shared with my wife and 6-year-old daughter Zen earlier this year. We were joined for part of our travels by our good friend Jay Xu, the Pritzker Chairman of the Department of Asian and Ancient Art at the Art Institute of Chicago, and his lovely wife Jennifer and their engagingly artistic daughter Toni. The Xu family traveled with us to Vietnam, Cambodia and Burma, my family and I continued onto India and Dubai.
There are so many wonderful highlights from this trip, but one of the most memorable is of our stay in Cambodia, and our visit to Angkor Wat.
Angkor Wat is a temple that is considered one of the world's archaeological and architectural treasures. Angkor Wat was built for King Suryavarman II, who ruled the Khmer Empire in the early 12th century. It is simply, amazing.
Here are some highlights from our time in Angkor Wat:
--- Surrounded by man-made lakes with lush overgrown foliage, I feel the Angkor complex is perhaps the most compelling archaeological and architectural treasure in all of Asia. Do not be deterred by the ever-increasing, overflowing crowds - this place is awe-inspiring!
--- Built between the 7th and 11th centuries, the various temples in the Angkor complex are devoted to Hindu and Buddhist deities, with artistic, meticulously detailed carvings that are amazingly well preserved. Many of the temple carvings depict religious stories reflecting Hindu and Buddhist cosmology, as well as engaging scenes from daily Khmer life. Because of our friend Jay’s in-depth knowledge of Khmer history and culture, his fascination with the temples can only be described as euphoric. My daughter, Zen, gave him the nickname of “Temple Turtle” as he could not be separated from the temples!
--- Our locally contracted guides take solemn pride in explaining their Khmer culture to our clients – their earnest and sincere manner is a reflection of the Cambodians’ simple sense of decency and warmth. These people touch you in a way you may never forget.
--- Angkor Wat is the most majestic and well-known of the hundreds of well-preserved temples that remain from the Khmer Empire. Our other favorite and very interesting sites include Banteay Srei and Angkor Tom (Bayon Temple).
--- In order to view the temples in the best possible light with the least number of tourists, we recommend an early departure, about 6:30am from our favorite hotel in Siem Reap, The Raffles Grand Hotel d’Angkor. (The Personality Suites cannot be beat!)
I would love to tell you more about mystical Angkor Wat and all there is to experience in Cambodia and Thailand. Call us to discuss arranging a luxury, personalized journey for you and your family - meantime, take a look at our itinerary, paste this link into your browser: http://kiplingandclark.com/pagesNew/KC_Thailand_Family_Tour_Itin2.pdf
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