World Travel 2013-2014, Carvings of Banteay Srei

Our final day in Siem Reap was spent getting out to Banteay Srei to see why this particular temple is mentioned as one of the key temples to visit in the Angkor Wat Archaeological Park. Banteay Srei is a 10th Century temple dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva, and is built primarily out of red sandstone which is more easily carved into intricate details in comparison to the stone used in Angkor Wat. While the temple is a good 25km (probably close to an hour by tuk tuk) away from the other temples, the incredible carvings are well worth the visit.

At first I wondered if we were making the right decision purchasing another one day pass, and spending a reasonable amount of money (hey, it’s reasonable when you’re on a backpacker budget) heading out to just one temple, but I have to say I was incredibly relieved that we did (and we did stop by another temple on the way back, so it wasn’t technically just one). The temple itself is incredibly beautiful, and the tourist buildings near to it have been set up very well and include a exhibition on the history and excavation of the temple which is fascinating to read.

Out of all of our days in Cambodia so far, these photos were the hardest to select and it’s why its taken me a while (nearly 5 days) to finally reduce them to a more suitable number for the blog, edit and upload them. Hopefully you enjoy these photos, and if you ever get the chance to visit definitely take it as the photos really don’t do the temple justice for just how beautiful it is.