Boeung Mealea - the lost temple

Boeung Mealea is one of Angkor’s lost temples, a mirror image of the mighty Angkor Wat, but totally and utterly consumed by the jungle.

The temple lies about 70Km from Siem Reap.  I went there by tuk tuk with my wonderful driver friend and loved the views of Cambodian rural life on the way.

We left very early and I'm so glad we did.  The experience of exploring this vast, mysterious jungle temple with almost no one around was an unforgettable experience.  There were some very dark tunnels along the way and I was very lucky I had my i-phone torch to show the way.  It was a real Indiana Jones type experience although I'm sure he poo poo the i-phone torch !!

Temples we visited on the way home

My wonderful tuk tuk driver

He doesn't speak much English but we beamed at each other constantly.  Such a lovely, lovely guy.

Temple monkeys

Angkor Wat has some beautiful resident monkeys including the cutest baby.  These monkeys, as one would expect of monkeys in a Buddhist temple, are full of love for each other.  They spend their days giving each other beautiful massages.  When it comes to humans however, they are rather unscrupulous, always looking to steal a morsel from bags.  Their favourite item of theft is plastic water bottles which they then drink with gusto.

Oooooh, what heaven to have a monkey massage.  This, by the way, was done as part of post coital bliss.  Mr and Mrs Monkey had just given us a very explicit view of some monkey business !!

Temples of the Grand Circuit

I spent a fun morning visiting some of the temples on what is known as the grand circuit.  Some lovely ones, especially the last two with some fun climbs to enjoy views from the top.

Preah Khan Temple

Neak Pean Temple

East Mebon Temple

Pre Rup Temple