We decided today that Bayon deserved another visit, and then to go up to Phnom Kulen. This meant we had to organise a guide, because the track is not very well signposted. To see some of the older carvings we would have to follow a little track through the forest, and this is an area that still has a lot of landmines around... So on the safe side we got a guide for the day.

At 5:30am we left for Bayon. It was perfect! Having the tickets already we could drive around a different entrance and, compared to the heaving crowd at Angkor Wat, Bayon was deserted! The temple is full of bats, and as the sun comes up you can see birds flitting around as well. The way the temple is designed means that you can really feel like the only people in the temple.

From here we drove up the mountain. The road is quite good, but there is a barrier and you have to pay $20 each as foreigners to go up here... it's not a national park fee, this money goes to a 'private concern'...hmmm... We wanted to go see the Elephant Pond, a set of carved statues that are from 802AD. So we had to get a moto each to the spot. What a great ride. It was a beautiful 12km track and good fun, but cost us another $20. Worth it though, to see something that most people don't bother with...

On the mountain, there is also a reclining Buddha carved on top of a boulder, the 1000 lingas (carved into the riverbed) and waterfalls. We did go to these, but there were buses of tourists here. You can swim under the waterfall, but the water was cold so Fintan wouldn't go in and I had an ear infection.

That turned out to be the best thing NOT to do. Later when we met Erik in town he told us that river is full of very nasty parasites and one of his students, ignoring his advice, went swimming there and then his throat closed up and he had to be medi-vacked out of the country!

On the way back to Siem Reap, we stopped at East Mabon and saw some carved elephants that were much more elaborate, but also more recent than the one we'd seen in the forest. We also went to Ta Phrom, the Tomb Raider temple, famous for being surrounded by jungle, overgrown and the best place to imagine what it was like to discover the Angkor complex... Well, that's what its billed as. Unfortuntely, or fortunately, the Indian government is investing to conserve the temple. the reality of this is that the trees will be cut down, and the temple is covered in scaffolding. Not what we had hoped to see... but after 2 days of temples, we were done. So back to town for an ice cream and ready for leaving Cambodia for Thailand.

Moving ever closer to our destination, it's quite strange to think how close we are now!