Angkor : Banteay Srei

monkey guardians protecting the temple

Banteay Srei, 40 min east of Angkor by car, is a very beautiful temple of warm reddish sandstone and delicate carvings still in very good condition. It is the prettiest of all temples and was dedicated to Shiva when it was built in the 10th century. 

Shiva dancing with Parvati on his arm

Nowadays it is also named "citadel of the women", possibly because of its many beautiful apsara reliefs and the pink-orange colour of the warm sandstone in the morning sun. 

Angkor : Preah Khan

Another "temple in the jungle" is Preah Khan. It is much less visited than the "tomb raider" temple Ta Prohm but equally picturesque with overgrown tumbled piles of carved stone. The visit is very pleasant and photographically rewarding without having to dodge erratically moving groups of colourful umbrella-toting tourists. 

Like Ta Prohm, this temple was built by Jayavarman VII, who dedicated it to his father. Ta Prohm, built five years before in 1186, was built to honor his mother. 

 in the hall of dancers

an unusual structure with round columns in two storeys 

a fully restored out-building, possibly a former library

Walking out to the east gate you will find the Preah Khan Baray, a large swamp-like reservoir with trees and shrubs and varying water levels, best in the wet winter season. 

Dance the Blues away ...

After this weekend, it has become abundantly clear that the supposedly New World, the other liberal western democracy that we used to look up to, is turning to rapidly dismantle itself,  with a true fascist coming into office who is definitely - and even to the most well-meaning, careful, hopeful and reticent observer - not a defender of the Constitution, of the freedom of press, of democracy. Let's hope that the self-interest and survival instincts of the Republicans will be able to turn this dangerous development around and contain its effects for the next two years until mind-term elections, and before it becomes too contagious for the susceptible rest of the world. 

But enough of bad world news and mad new-elects. For this weekend, we were glad that we had planned a visit to an old-fashioned European high-light, a Vienna ball !