Welcome to Cambodia

The temples of Angkor take some warming up to. The mass of stone, scattered in the jungle of western Cambodia, is impressive...and imposing, making this little American feel, well, little.

I left my hotel this morning at 6 with the hope of catching Angkor for sunrise. No such luck. My tuc-tuc driver was still sleeping and needing some time pull himself together. The Angkor Wat compound is a short drive outside of the charming, but growing, Siem Reap. By 6:20 I was walking across the massive stone walkway that leads visitors into Cambodia's most famous destination. More than 1.5 million tourists come to Angkor each year to gawk, awe, touch, and pick at the Khmer people's most enduring landmark. Fortunately for me September is the quiet(er) season.

To my great surprise, I felt underwhelmed as I approached the 12th century masterpiece, the world's largest religious structure. Perhaps you just don't fully understand it's historical/architectural significance, I reassured my self. Start taking pictures and you'll get into it. The Lonely Planet (which 95% of travelers use) tells us to remember the "tingle in our spines" as we approach A.W. for the first time. I felt no such tingle. C'mon tingle! Where are you?

This temple, while huge, is not like the European cathedrals in that it doesn't envelop its worshipers into a great nave, imposing its magnitude onto any and all. Instead, it gradually draws you in, coaxing you to explore around each corner and up every step (of which there are many). The visiting experience is surprising serene, considering its size and the location's intense heat and humidity. A.W. is rough: full of square corners, rough stone (hardened over time), and open expanses with reflecting pools that push visitors to the center walkway. The temple is broken into three floors, the top two featuring its iconic towers. Visitors can walk around the perimeter to view the impressive, albeit deteriorating, bas-relief of the ancient warring armies of Khmer. The towers were closed today due to renovations so I was limited to the perimeter.

As I wandered the complex I started to understand why I was not dumb-struck upon arrival, like the many guide books said I would be. Nothing I have seen - the sky scrapers of NYC, the mountains of Maine and New Hampshire, the Bad Lands of South Dakota - can compare to the silent, raw, power of Angkor. After hundreds of years isolation, Angkor gives the impression that it could care less whether or not you applaud its beauty. The atmosphere here is other-worldly -- exactly what its designers intended -- and is difficult to connect with. "Tingles," I think, are saved for tangible beauty while Angkor is just magnificent.

Further on down the road is Angkor Thom ("Great City") a compound containing many, smaller but no less impressive, temples. Most visitors begin A.T. at the Temple of Bayon, one of Angkor's most famous temples. It's known by its many (216 in all) coolly, smiling faces. Unlike A.W., Bayon needs to be enjoyed up close, as it doesn't look like much more than a jumble of grey Legos. Inside, intricate details and reliefs cover every surface. For the amateur photographer like myself, it's stands as a misleading gauge of his skills: every photo, no matter the angle, is nearly guaranteed to develop into something beautiful.

I met Nicole here, a recent Georgetown law grad and one of the first Americans I've encountered. She needed help with her camera, I wanted company, and continued to explore together.

A couple temples down the path was Preah Palilay. Significantly smaller than Bayon and lacking in their detail, P.P. is impressive for (a) the fact that it's still standing (the mass of stone looks more a Jenga tower for the gods than a temple) and (b) its modesty. The Khmer kings likes to build things build but P.P is not. Instead, it's a calm, mossy retreat from is neighbors.

After a few more temples Nicole and I both felt templed-out decided to part way, returning to our hotels. I purchased a 3-day pass and have arranged for my driver to pick me up tomorrow in time for the sunrise. Until then, I've been enjoying the relative quiet of Siem Reap.

I've been unsuccessful uploading pictures to my MobileMe account, but I've been able to send some to Facebook....