First off this morning we had a change of plans and decided to visit a floating village on Tonle Sap and give ourselves a break from temples. Getting to the stage yesterday where I was getting "templed" out and not really appreciating the unique beauty that each has to offer. A visit to this huge inland sea is a must see. Although enormous in area, most of the lake is very shallow. It is just a short drive from Siem Reap to the shores of Tonle Sap, where we rented a boat to take us on a tour of one of the villages. Tonle Sap is home to numerous floating villages made up of charming houseboats, shops, and even floating schools. The best part was when we got off at the local shop and realised that all our purchases would mean the money remained in the village…another shopping expedition ensued although unexpected this time!!!

SE Asia's Great Lake
The Tonle Sap is the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia, covering 27,000 hectares in dry season (November to May) and 150,000 hectares during the rainy season (June to October). The Tonle Sap River reverses according to the season and the Tonle Sap acts as an overflow reservoir for the huge Mekong River. It is a beautiful and tranquil place to explore by boat and visitors to the area shouldn’t miss the opportunity to do so. The Tonle Sap is more than just a pretty face though. It is vital to Cambodia’s already tenuous survival. It produces 100,000 tons of fish every year – an incredible 80% of the population’s protein intake. Unfortunately, huge dam projects in China along with others in Laos and Thailand are affecting the flow of water and threatening the ecosystem of this magnificent body of water.

Back on shore we headed to the Sala Bai Restaurant for a very special lunch. This is a hotel and restaurant school that's been running for 10 years through donations and sponsorship. It provides young disadvantaged Cambodians free training in the hospitality industry enabling them to achieve economic independence and improve the living conditions for them and their families. 100% of students have gained employment within 3 months of graduating. Just having 1 lunch at the restaurant provides 1 training day for a student.....and its no hardship as the food and service was wonderful.

We also had the privilege of stopping at a local village and seeing first hand how a family lives. The family we met had 9 children living in a tiny house and invited us in to meet them all and to see their home. So simple but everyone was happy, smiling and content. Left here wondering why on earth we break our backs getting a flash home that costs years to pay off......

Ta Prohm. This temple had been left more or less as it was found, with an overgrowth of jungle and portions tumbled down, but restoration work funded by the government of India began in 2006. It gives you some idea of what the first westerners found when they began exploring the area in the late 19th century. This is a huge temple, one of the largest single complexes in the Angkor group. It's all on one level though, so there are (almost) no high stairways to climb, but there are a lot of thresholds to cross, so you do get a lot of exercise exploring this place. Ta Prohm was one of the first temples built by the great builder king Jayavarman VII. The construction date is set around 1186. The temple is dedicated to the king's mother, while the later Preah Khan was dedicated to his father. The plan is very similar to Preah Khan, with a huge labyrinthine inner sanctuary, a large courtyard just inside the eastern gateway, and even a two story building north of the courtyard similar to the one at Preah Khan, although without the distinctive round columns found in the example at the later site. Like most of the other temples built by Jayavarman VII, Ta Prohm was originally a Buddhist monastery, but later kings removed the Buddhist elements and altered the relief work to make it into a Hindu temple. In its day, Ta Prohm was an extremely wealthy temple. It 'owned' more than 3,000 villages and took nearly 80,000 people to maintain the temple, including 18 high priests, 2,740 official, 2,000 assistants and 615 dancers. The temple's possessions included around 500 kilograms of gold dishes, dozens of diamonds, and thousands of pearls and precious stones.

This temple site will be familiar to anyone who has seen the movie “Tomb Raider” as much of the filming was done here.

Preah Khan. Like Ta Prohm, this temple is still mostly in the embrace of the jungle with many collapsed sections, but it is in the process of being stabilized, although the decision has been made not to fully restore it. Preah Khan was built around 1191 by the great King Jayavarman VII. Like many temples built by Jayavarman VII, Preah Khan was originally built as a Buddhist monastery, but Buddhist images were removed or altered and Hindu elements were added in the centuries after the King's death. Preah Khan was dedicated to Jayavarman's father. The name means 'sacred sword', a possible reference to a weapon supposedly handed down to successive Khmer rulers from Jayavarman II.

Back to the hotel in time to set out down the street for a massage before joining the group for dinner. Tonight we are dining at the Temple Club in infamous Pub Street where we will also see a performance of Cambodian dances each with their own story. Should be an interesting night....