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T H E S O U L O F C A M B O D I A
The centuries-old trees have
become part of the temple
attractions; make your way
through the remains of Ta Prohm
PHOTO
JOREM CATILO (BOTTOM)
Ta Prohm
seconds. You won’t be alone, but you
won’t be jockeying for space either.
Beyond the stillness, what adds
to the dreamy and almost eerie
atmosphere of many of the Angkor
ruins is how the jungle has grown
around them. Ta Prohm is the
most popular “jungle temple”, with
centuries-old trees gripping onto its
walls and corridors.
Lonely Planet
describes it as “looking more or less
the way most Angkor monuments did
when European explorers first stumbled
upon them” almost two centuries ago.
But we discovered that any Indiana
Jones or Lara Croft fantasies had to
be checked at the gate, as there’s
major restoration work in progress.
There were scaffoldings, and many
areas were enclosed and inaccessible
because of it.
Ta Prohm is also not the only temple
undergoing restoration. Our tuk-tuk
driver took us to other smaller temple
ruins where the centuries have not
been too kind. After the fifth or sixth
temple I caught myself thinking, “Okay,
bunch of old rocks, next.” Cramming
several monuments into a day can
induce temple fatigue.