Vantage Point, Cambodia
Recently I found myself talking with a few different friends about travel to Asia and specifically Cambodia. My original intent in traveling to this wonderful country was to visit the temple complex at Angkor Wat just outside of Siem Reap and to photograph this ancient holy place. I found much more to both Siem Reap and the country as a whole which I wanted to share with you.
Upon landing in Cambodia at Siem Reap International Airport I quickly made my way through the customs line and paid my $20 for Visa on arrival, compared to some countries I’ve traveled to this process and cost was fast and painless. I was shocked that the hotel that I had booked before arriving via Expedia had sent a late model Mercedes to collect me, I was even more surprised at what $40/night was buying me…luxury comes at a great value in this part of the world for sure! Having said that I must also add that Siem Reap remains today as the cheapest haircut I have ever had, $1.00!
Speaking of money, I was shocked that I went to the ATM on the day of my arrival and was stunned to see fresh, new American hundred dollar bills being delivered to me. I had not researched the currency situation and found that dollars are commonly used here!
I came for the photography and got a whole lot more than I bargained for! To photograph Angkor Wat properly I believe you have to experience the sunrise over the temple complex, this had me waking at 4 am and taking the tuk tuk I arranged at my hotel the night before to the Lotus Pond in front of the temple. I was one of the first people there in what quickly became hundreds. This lent me the benefit of setting up my gear at my place of choice, had I been 30 minutes later I would have been overrun by the throng of tourists. The sunrise was one of the most incredible sights I have yet to witness in my life, the colors evolved before my eyes as the black night transitioned to day. I immediately understood the draw to the non-photographers that came to witness the event! If you have come to this magical place do not pass up this opportunity!
Having a degree in history I thoroughly enjoyed my 3 days wandering the many temples at Angkor Wat. I checked out the dinosaur that was carved into the doorway entrance at the temple of Ta Prohm, the source of great conspiracy theories. Ask a guide where the dinosaur is and make your own opinion! If you’ve not heard of it until now Google it before your trip! There is so much to see and experience that anyone taking a scholarly approach will be overwhelmed on their first visit even if you have a pretty good background on the place. Photographing the temples, I easily could have spent weeks being creative and working, you are certain to stand in awe and be drawn to both the grand landscape and the small details of the space, just don’t miss the sunrise!
My next stop in Cambodia was Phnom Penh, which I reached by bus on a very uncomfortable ride down miles and miles of dirt road connecting the 2 cities. Compared to Siem Reap this town was much bigger and had more to do. The three things I found most gratifying here were also some of the saddest experiences in my life; the first night I was in town I found a small theatre showing The Killing Fields, if you are traveling here please see this movie to get an understanding of the very recent history of this country and what anyone in their 40’s and older have experienced in their lives. It is hard to watch but if you can stomach it the movie will get you ready to visit both one of the killing fields in Phnom Penh and the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. To give you an idea of the gravity this experience will have on a person, I witnessed people still walking around collecting human bones and depositing them in one of the boxes placed around the fields. These bones surface all these years later after heavy rains unearth them, under Pol Pot’s regime between 1975-1979 over one million people died out of a total population of 7-8 million…all this from a guy that took his moniker from “Political Potential”. I do not recommend this experience to be sadistic but the more people that experience the terror a regime can inflict on a people the more understanding we gain as citizens of this Planet Earth, something we all have in common.
All of our travel experiences change us in some way, and as photographers we grow and develop each time we click the shutter. Cambodia, for all its wonder, beauty, tasty food, wild monkeys, temples, and smiling people changed me and how I view the world. I hope you will find this too.