Bayon: ... but you've paid USD40 for the 3-day tix

GOSH, the ticket to the temples is really expensive! This whole place is so laid back, with manpower abundant, it is hard to imagine what it takes to justify this amount of $$ they are raking in!

After that Angkor Wat that was both hot and not-so-exciting, we decided to move on to the Bayon area. And of course, you always must go say hi to these faces when you are at the Bayon...

Loads of looting over the centuries, new carvings replaced on top that seemed to be looted again.

Though hot and sweaty, but I am actually glad the sky look blue thus providing a splendid backdrop for some pics I took.

If you ask me if it is better to come in dry or wet season, I would definitely say dry albeit the possibility of snorting in more dusk while traveling around. You can easily guess why the dry season, since that roads are with potholes, some not tarred, and even worse is that there are hardly street lights around making it hard to travel especially at night. At least when dry, you can cross away the possibility of floods at area you want to visit.

Anyway, back to the Bayon area. Small, and highly complex architecture with reasonable amount of carvings. Secluded staircases everywhere but all walk ways are narrow with low clearing.

So, as usual as well, you must do the photography trick of standing at a certain angle to look as if you are kissing the statue (some say it resemble King Jayavarman IIV, some say lord buddha). No photography tricks from us, but we make the teddy bear sacrifice itself for artistic value. Kih kih kih...

Not bad ain't it??

Then went backward a little before the gate to Bayon, came to bottom of Phnom Bakheng, Was thinking of going up with an elephant so that we could act like loaded tourist, but with a USD$15 per trip, we ended up taking the soiled pathway upslope about 30min. Everyone seemed too eager to climb the temple there to get to the highest point so that they can get the best sunset shot.

Alas what most didn't realize was that far ahead storm was already coming, and there won't be sunset. Mark and I both guessed that much earlier on, so there we are, wobbly climbing the narrow stairs again.

True enough, that night it rained like cat and dogs. We even got to bargain with the tuk-tuk driver to get us back from the Old Market as they always charge more on rainy late nights.