| Day 1 |
Phnom Penh
Arrival in Phnom Penh
Transfer
Overnight in Phnom Penh. |
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| Day 2 |
Phnom Penh
Sightseeing in Phnom Penh
Cambodia's capital sits at the confluence of the Mekong, Bassac and
Tonle Sap rivers. Considered the loveliest of the French-built cities
of Indochina, it was founded as a small monastery in 1372 by a rich
Khmer woman called Penh, after she found four Buddha statues in a tree
trunk on the banks of the Mekong. She set up the monastery on a nearby
hill or "phnom" in Cambodian.
ROYAL PALACE AND SILVER PAGODA: the royal palace stands on the site of
the former citadel, Bantey Kev (built in 1813). Visitors are not
allowed to some portions of the grounds, as the palace is the official
residence of King Norodom Sihamoni. The silver pagoda is often called
the Pagoda of the Emerald Buddha or Wat Preah Kaeo after the statue
housed there. The wooden temple was originally built by King Norodom
in 1892 and inside, its floor is comprised of more than 5000 silver
blocks which together weigh nearly 6 tons.
NATIONAL MUSEUM: designed by a French archeologist and painter, George Groslier, in Khmer style in 1920 to exhibit works previously scattered
throughout the country. It contains a collection of Khmer art
including the beautiful 6th century bronze statue of Vishnu.
CENTRAL MARKET or RUSSIAN MARKET: Visit one of Phnom Penh's two great
markets. The Central Market is located in a distinctive domed Art Deco
building, and is filled with jewelry, fabrics and all types of
souvenirs. The Russian Market is a sprawling labyrinth of stalls
selling everything from CDs and DVDs to silks, crafts, jewelry and
more. Both are fascinating places to browse.
Visit Tuol Sleng Museum
TUOL SLENG MUSEUM (Museum of Genocide): formerly the Tuol Svay Prey
High School, in 1975 it became the Khmer Rouge’s main torture and
interrogation centre. It was known as Security Prison 21 – or just
S-21.
Excursion to Killing Fields
THE KILLING FIELDS OF CHOEUNG EK: people tortured in the S-21 prison
(a former school taken over in 1975 by the Khmer Rouge and turned into
a torture chamber) were brought here to be executed. Many mass graves
were found in this area.
Overnight in Phnom Penh. |
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| Day 3 |
Phnom Penh - Siem Reap
Transfer
Flight from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap
Transfer
Sightseeing Angkor
Visit Angkor Thom
ANGKOR THOM: a fortified Royal City (10 square kilometers) built by
King Jayavarman VII, who ruled from 1181 to 1201. The city has five
monumental gates and is encircled by a moat 100 meters wide. In the
center of the walled city are the city’s most important monuments
including Bayon, Baphuon, the Terrace of Elephants, the Terrace of the
Leper King and Phimeanakas with Royal Enclosure.
BAYON: Jayavarman VII's temple mountain that stands at the center of
Angkor Thom. It is one of the most popular of Angkor's monuments and a
place of narrow corridors, steep flights of stairs and an amazing
collection of towers decorated with over 200 smiling faces.
BAPHUON: the pyramid shape represents the mythical Mount Meru and
marks the center of the city that was here before Angkor Thom.
PHIMEANAKAS: near the center of what was once the royal palace within
Angkor Thom. Phimeanakas means ‘Celestial Palace’, though today there
is not much left to indicate its former splendour.
FORMER ROYAL PALACE: nothing remains today except two pools that were
used by royalty for washing.
TERRACE OF ELEPHANTS: this terrace was used for viewing public
ceremonies and was a base for the King’s grand audience hall. The
famous lines of elephants are at either end of the retaining walls.
TERRACE OF THE LEPER KING: North of the Terrace of Elephants is a
platform named ‘Terrace of the Leper King’. On the platform is a nude
statue – one of Angkor’s mysteries.
Visit temple for sunset
Watch the sun set over the Cambodian countryside from the upper
terraces of an ancient Angkorian temple.
Overnight in Siem Reap. |
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| Day 4 |
Siem Reap
Sightseeing Angkor
Visit Angkor Wat
ANGKOR WAT: a temple dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu by King
Suryavarman II, who reigned between 1131 and 1150. It was constructed
over a period of 30 years and is world famous for its beauty and
splendor. Angkor Wat features the longest continuous bas-relief in the
world, which runs along the outer gallery walls and narrates stories
from Hindu mythology. In 1992 the UNESCO declared the monument and the
whole city of Angkor a World Heritage Site.
Visit Preah Khan
PREAH KHAN: a temple built by King Jayavarman VII with towered
enclosures and shoulder-hugging corridors in a jungle setting. Preah
Khan covers a very large area but the temple itself is enclosed within
a rectangular wall of around 700 by 800 meters.
Visit Banteay Srei Temple
BANTEAY SREI: built in the late 10th century, it is a Hindu temple
dedicated to Shiva. The temple is square with entrances on the east
and west. Of main interest are the three central towers which are
decorated with male and female divinities and beautiful filigree
relief work.
Overnight in Siem Reap. |
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| Day 5 |
Siem Reap
Sightseeing Angkor
Visit Prasat Kravan
PRASAT KRAVAN: the five brick towers were built for Hindu worship in
921 and are notable for the bas-reliefs cut into the bricks on the
interior walls.
Visit Banteay Kdei Temple
BANTEAY KDEI: a massive Buddhist temple dating from the second half of
the 12th century. It is surrounded by four concentric walls, the outer
walls measuring 500 by 700 meters.
Visit Sras Srang
SRAS SRANG: a basin opposite of Banteay Kdei measuring 800 by 400
metres with a tiny island in the middle where only the stone base
remains of what was once a wooden temple.
Visit Ta Prohm
TA PROHM: one of the most popular attractions of Angkor as much of the
jungle has not been cleared and it looks very much as most of the
Angkor monuments would have appeared when European explorers first
stumbled across them.
Visit Ta Keo
TA KEO: built by Jayavarman V who ruled from 968 to 1001), it was the
first Angkorian monument built entirely of sandstone and was dedicated
to Shiva. The summit of the central tower is 50 meters high and is
surrounded by four lower towers.
Visit Thommanon
THOMMANON: temple which mirrors Chau Say Tevoda (just to the north),
as it was built around the same time and has a similar plan. It is
also dedicated to Shiva and Vishnu.
Visit Chau Say Tevoda
CHAU SAY TEVODA: built during the second quarter of the 12th century
opposite of Thommanon, it was dedicated to Shiva and Vishnu.
Boat trip on the Tonle Sap Lake
Journey up the Tonle Sap River, which links the Tonle Sap Lake to the
Mekong River, and onto the Tonle Sap Lake.
TONLE SAP (Great Lake): this lake takes up much of the center of
Cambodia and changes in size depending on the season. During the dry
season in February it shrinks to a tenth of its original size and is
then one of the richest fishing grounds in the world. The boat trip
explores the lake’s fishing villages.
PHNOM KROM: a hill south of Siem Reap with spectacular views over the
lake and a temple dating from the 10th century. The three towers on it
are dedicated to Vishnu, Shiva and Brahma.
CHONG KNEAS: a floating village on the lake where both Khmer and
Vietnamese live.
Overnight in Siem Reap. |
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| Day 6 |
Siem Reap
Transfer |
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