Life List #25: The Buddhist Temple of Ta Prohm: Angkor Wat, Cambodia

To be honest I found Angkor Wat and Ta Prohm because of this image

Which, ironically, was mislabeled and is actually in Thailand. It is another Virtual Life List Item.

But when I began to research Angkor Wat and the Buddhist Temple (...and saw they had a face-in-the-tree of their own

at Ta-Prohm...well it also became a Life List (virtual) Destination.

So here we are.

Come along!

Ta Prohm is the modern name for this Buddhist Temple...built in the 12th Century.  1186 AD. It was abandoned after the fall of the Khmer Empire in the 15th Century.

The temple remains in nearly the same condition it was found in 1863 with the jungle encroaching and trees growing out of the ruins making it a popular spot for pilgrimages, tourists and photographers.

It is now one of the World Heritage Sites.

Bas-relief show the Departure of Siddhartha from his father's palace and depicts many other scenes from his life.

And of course the grinning Face-in-the-Tree

Which makes me want to braid a small Buddha figurine into growing ficus now and bonsai it this way.

I may.

The amazing trees which have taken over the ruins are called Strangler Ficus.

Now adding add to the general mystic and photogenity of the Temple.

3-D Tour (if you have the glasses)

https://youtu.be/3TNQDtU2JTw

National Geographic Angkor Wat

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/world-heritage/angkor/

Walking Tour of Ta Prohm (BEST)

https://youtu.be/4OYQq0q2q_I

More information on Ta Prohm  (Also very good)

https://youtu.be/CUfTM-BC-ek

 More anon...