Day 17 - 04:30, yes 04:30 alarm call for a 05:00 tuk tuk. We had already organised breakfast the night before and it was duly ready for us at just before 5am. Off we set in the pitch black for Angkor Wat and on the way came one of Alice's greatest quotes, "What if we are alone in the park?" Rolling up to the car park, funnily enough we weren't the only ones looking to watch the sunrise today, there were hundreds of people. We entered the outer wall and looked for a good spot to watch the spectacle(quite hard in the dark). We decided to stay away from the masses who were congregated by the lake and opted for one of the libraries next to the long causeway to the right. We settled down on one of the side walls, snapped away a few night shots and then had our breakfast. Bit of a bonus, the eggs were still hot.

Anyway, as time went on it seemed that the temple was just magically appearing in front of us and what a sight it is. A mammoth piece of engineering and that is just the central part of the temple, the causeway, libraries and outer wall are goliaths themselves. We wandered down to the lake to take the obligatory reflection shot and then headed for the temple. We had read that a lot of groups come for sunrise then head back to town for breakfast before coming back out. A good call to look around the temple now as there were not many people at all. Again, the place is indescribable with highlights being the bas reliefs and the view from the top of the central tower which we scaled before we left. The sheer scale mixed with the finest carvings ever seen make this place an absolute marvel and puts modern engineering in the shade. Talking of shade, it was a difficult decision as in the temple it was like an oven but outside, despite it being only 08:00, it was roasting hot. After a couple of hours looking round we decided that was enough as the mass groups would be arriving soon. As we walked down the causeway away from the temple, there was a stampede of tourists coming toward us so good timing to leave. We do admit to playing a little game of 'see how many photos we can get in' which to be honest we did all day. The Chinese and Japanese seem to take photos of absolutely anything and everything and after a while following and waiting for them to take their shots, it gets a tad frustrating to say the least! Always with a silly little pose to match!

Found 'Sam' and headed off to another of the top rated temples, Bayon. It is part of Angkor Thom which is made up of numerous temples within its walls. Bayon is a temple with numerous towers with each one housing a smiling face in the brickwork. This must have taken some brilliant craftsmanship and skill to achieve as everyone is pretty much identical. Next was the Elephant Terrace, a long high terrace with some amazing carvings on it. Off to the side of this was Baphuon which had been heavily renovated since its discovery. Walking along the causeway it certainly looked a steep and high climb to the top and considering it was again roasting hot under a cloudless sky we didn't know whether to do it. Getting to the bottom of the steps and looking up was quite a sight and one that had to be conquered. Leaving Alice at the bottom, I started the assent trying not to look down. Halfway up there is a level to walk around before attempting the second, steeper set of steps. Once at the top and after a look around I signalled to Alice, a distant speck, to meet me around the far side. Descending down the other side down even steeper steps that were actually vertical, I saw Alice coming around the corner but to get to her I had to go through a no entrance so I signalled to meet me back around the other side again. Venturing back around at the middle level she was nowhere to be seen. 10 minutes of searching past and I had made it to ground level and I heard a shout from above, there she was up a level. Reunited we ventured off back onto the Elephant Terrace where there are some amazing carvings at the end in a sunken walkway called Terrace of the Leper King.

Meeting up with Sam again and our stomachs rumbling we struggled on as we had decided we wouldn't pay the prices for food near the temples. We went to two nearby temples, Chau Say Tevoda and Thommanon which are either side of the road and many people believe we're built to be identical. No chance, they are very different and built in different times as the structures are different and the craftsmanship is from different era's.

Not sure I've mentioned yet but at every temple there men, women and children trying to sell you scarves, water, books, puppets, paintings an lots of other things. Nearly every three steps you take you are being asked to buy something. They have all got the same patter, "sir, you want ice cold water, you buy a scarf for your wife........". Thinking about it, Alice's birthday is very soon, a $2 scarf it is!!

Next it was Ta Keo, a massive structure with again really really steep stone steps up. People were sitting at the bottom but we couldn't understand why until we looked up! Watched a lad have a go and he looked very uneasy so there was only one thing for it, grab the camera off Alice and up I go. Obligatory celebratory wipe of sweat from the brow, take a few snaps and ack down again. Standing at the top was daunting to say the least, so steep you could hardly see the next step so followed a kid down so he could have broken the fall!

Ta Prohm was next on the list and this is where Tomb Raider was filmed with the trees and roots intertwined with the temple. Quite a sight but lots of people here again and as at a lot of these temples, space is of a premium in some areas. Banteay Kdei and Sra Srang were the last visits of the day. Temple fatigue had definitely set in now as it was about 13:30 and we hadn't had lunch. Luckily Sra Srang is just a viewing platform overlooking the Kings swimming pool, which was a massive lake.

Making our way back to the hotel, we pretty much flopped onto the bed. We had to rally ourselves to have some lunch which we did at the hotel. We hung around at the hotel waiting or our massage at 17:00 checking the internet to check flights etc. Lucky we did as Alice noticed that our flight from Siem Reap to Sihanoukville had been brought forward without notifying us.

Our massages came around and we were ushered up to the room. Not quite sure what to expect, two women placed bowls next to our feet and washed them, lucky we'd had showers! We were them given pyjama type robes to put on and the massage commenced. Halfway through, both women went out of the room. Alice's masseuse returned and put her in a strange position so only one thing for it, photo! Noticing Alice with her eyes closed, I opened the cupboard to grab my phone, took the shot but unfortunately it was far too dark, damn! Finished our massages after what felt like 10 rounds with Tyson on our backs and headed out for some dinner, no not still in the pyjamas.

We found a nice street BBQ place here you could watch them cook your food. Lovely bit of local fish and meat skewers with a hot hot hot chilli sauce, lucky we had a couple on Angkor beers which were very very well deserved. We just had to go to Blue Pumpkin for some cake to celebrate the days achievement. Wandering on the way home trying to avoid pub street, we stumbled across a really nice gallery which housed some amazing pictures of the temples. Pricey but really good so we said we'd sleep on it before maybe purchasing tomorrow. Headed home after a mammoth day safe in the knowledge that we'd have an easier day tomorrow. We are visiting Beng Mealea which is 1hr 45mins away by tuk tuk so no walking for a while tomorrow morning.