9 cities, 5 countries, 15 days, I feel I have just been on a season of the amazing race!

It’s been a fabulous whirlwind that has stimulated all my senses: sight, sound, smell, feeling and soul. And there is more to come. Yippee as they say.

We reluctantly left Angkor and Cambodia yesterday afternoon and arrived in Bangkok for a 4 night stay in this huge bustling city of super fast highways and teeming streets that manages a population of over 17 million. Certainly a big change from the past 20 days. And a great preparation for the hordes of Bombay.

Our last day at Angkor was a drunken fill of more temples. I have not become close to satiated in 4 days. Each temple reveals its wonders in broken stone, intricate bas reliefs and timeless statues that have gazed out over the centuries. And the relentless jungle continues its reclamation march as we puny humans try to fight back.

We visited Ta Promh, a complex taken over almost entirely by giant fig, banyan and kapok trees that twine through it, on top of it and within it splitting the stones with their giant snake like roots. An amazing sight!Though there is much debate about removing the trees the reality is that the temple would not stand without the trees that have become symbiotic with the stones. This temple was built as a homage to King Jayavarman VII’s mother and must have been stunning in its full glory. It was pretty stunning today.

Our visit ended with a visit to the temple built in homage to the Kings father Preah Khan or the ‘sacred sword’ and it paled in comparison. Apparently our king was a Mama’s boy.

I leave Cambodia with a vision of the beautiful Apsara dancers and their Cham counterparts.

Adios till next time!!