Every Monday I’ll be sharing an experience with you. A travel experience from somewhere completely random inspired by a photo I’ve taken from that place.
You may have already gathered that I like to take photos. Not long ago it was a dream of mine to travel the world, alone. I did just that. Well sort of…I haven’t covered all four corners of the globe but I figure four continents and a handful of countries counts for something. I’m still planning to get to places I haven’t been but this time it definitely won’t be alone. In any case country by country, I think of it as a continuing and developing dream that I can live whenever I make the opportunity again in the future.
Welcome to Meandering Mondays and here’s the first instalment…[and by the way if you want the colour versions you’ll need to travel here as I’ll be sticking with the monochrome theme for Ask a Toddler.]
Angkor Wat
The morning I took this photo was probably one of the most amazing adventures I will ever experience. The alarm was set to 4:00am to get ready in time for my moped driver’s arrival. We were to travel to the famous temples of Angkor Wat…about half hour away from the guesthouse I was staying in. We arrived in darkness.
As we entered the temples it began to dawn on me that I was about to explore the largest religious monument anywhere in the world. Ruins of a Khmer dynasty dating back to the 12th century. Our objective was not to take in the sights and sounds just yet but to get to the top to witness the sunrise. It was still dark and nothing to really see as such although the experience in darkness was like an explorer discovering the ruins of a lost city for the first time.
As I approached the ascent to the highest point of one the temples I noticed through a small window a monk sitting peacefully waiting, as we all were, to see the sun rise over the horizon. In the background a hot air balloon grounded by rope had reached its outer limit. Climbing steep steps, manoeuvring through tight passage ways and doors all the while taking in the spectacular surroundings…the serenity was breathtaking.
And so the monk’s partial silhouette, the hot air ballon tied to the ground, the columns of Angkor Wat, the effort to get to where I was at that moment, the Khmer people who made this happen for me…I share this with you today, nothing but a moment in time and space.