Friday, 3 May 2013

SIEM Reap: BANTEAY Srei


Banteay Srei is a pink temple, because it was built with red sandstone. It’s known as a gem or a jewel also because the intricate (delicate) carvings are like they are carved into wood.

Mum went to Banteay Srei in 1997. It had been closed until two weeks before she went there because the Khmer Rouge was still in control of the area. Banteay Srei is about 20 km away from the major temples.

It is one of the earliest Khmer civilisation temples. It was built in the 9th century and there are a lot of Hindu gods, like Shiva and Vishnu, carved into the sandstone.

The temple is smaller than Ta Prom, Angkor Thom and Angkor Wat (the other temples I visited). Mum said she always loved Banteay Srei but she hadn’t been there for 16 years and now the mass tourism has taken over. Mum and I talked about the positives and negatives of tourism. Some of it is good for Cambodia’s economy but some of it is awful.

See how beautiful it is?














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