When Facebook friends learned that I was going to visit Siem Reap during my Asia vacation last July, at least three of them told me to visit Angkor Wat at sunrise. They said it was one of the most memorable leg of their tour. So on my second day in Siem Reap, I hired the tuk-tuk who picked me up from the airport to bring me to Angkor again, having visited it during my first day. The driver picked me up at 4 o’clock in the morning from my hotel and drove me through a picturesque route to Angkor Wat. Since he told me before hand to get a three-day pass to the Angkor Archeological Park, we by-passed the long line for tickets at the official ticket center. There were already many tuk tuks and cars on the road going to Angkor at this early time in the morning. But my driver was experienced – he knew exactly where to go and where to park and the easiest way for me to walk to the entrance of Angkor without being lost among the throng of people trekking to the ancient ruins.
I arrived at Angkor still before daylight and positioned myself on the left reflecting pool, a tip that I got from the previous day’s tour with Urban Adventures (this is the same small group walking tour company that I used in Mexico City, I enjoyed my tours with them before, that when I learned that they were operating in Siem Reap, I immediately signed up for two of their tours). There were already many people at the pool but I still managed to commander an unobstructed view.
There was some amusement early on – there were geese cavorting in the pool which added local color.
We waited with bated breathe for the sunrise to occur for what seemed to be a long time – and then all of a sudden – the color of the sky changed … and in a few minutes it was over.
It was indeed spectacular, the sunrise behind Angkor. There wasn’t much color but I can’t complain.
Here’s a gallery …
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