Erik'sTravel

The purpose of this post is to document three areas of the Angkor complex I visited in addition to Angkor Wat. *Bayon Temple is interesting in that it was built later than Angkor Wat, around 1200. By this time the transition from Hindu to Buddhism had begun.  This temple definitely has aspects of both religions present as Khmer kings during the 13th Century continually modified this temple based on the religious preferences of the moment. Most famous here are the multitude of "Smiling Buddha" reliefs, which are an iconic symbol of Cambodia which one can see depicted in various paintings and artwork, as well as being prominently featured in tourist brochures and marketing. *The Elephant Terrace, very near Bayon Temple, was the foundation of the pavilions where the royalty conducted formal celebrations and festivals. Elephants, as you can see, form the major motif of this terrace. *Finally, the last couple pictures show The Leper King Terrace.  Its story and exact date of origi...

Angkor Wat is the largest and most magnificent of all the Khmer temples built on this extraordinary site during the reign or Suryavaraman II during the first half of the 12th Century.  The entire Angkor Wat temple structure and grounds covers a rectangle 1.5 km by 1.3 km--according to some sources, it is the largest religious building ever built.  It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and you will find Angkor Wat listed on almost every unofficial list of "10 Greatest Man Made Wonders of the World." It is such a prominent part of Cambodian history and culture that it graces the nation's flag. The temple was originally constructed as a Hindu temple, but as Buddhism replaced Hindu as the Khmer religion, Angkor Wat was subtly transformed over time to reflect this new religious devotion.  I have always wanted to visit Angkor Wat and it was the main reason I chose to visit Cambodia (along with the fact that you can enter the country easily, despite the COVID era). Of course, the G...

When you arrive at this destination you first notice the austere Buddhist temple that towers over the site, its relative plainness isn't indicative of what might be inside.  But as you walk closer you realize that this is no ordinary temple when you glimpse the tower of skulls stacked to the ceiling inside, thousands in all.   That's when it sets in that you really have arrived at the Choeung Ek Genocide Center. The temple commemorates the lives of the approximately 20,000 Cambodians who were executed and buried on this site--part of the Killing Fields of the Khmer Rouge government's genocidal program from 1975-1979 that killed well over 1 million people during that time.  The Yale University Cambodian Genocide Project, for example, estimates that 1.7 million were murdered by the Khmer Rouge government during the period, a number that represented a staggering 21% of the nation's population at the time.   The Choeung Ek Center is probably the most famous and well-docu...

Whenever I visit a country that's new to me, I always try to go to its national museum as soon as I can because: a. visiting the national museum is the equivalent of reading a book about that country's history, another about its religion, a third about its archeology, and another about its art, artifacts, and culture--all in the space of a two-hour visit.  It's an incredible "speed-education" of where you are. b. you learn about what a nation finds most valuable, significant, precious, and dear (officially).  and you learn too from what is excluded.  c. it's a great point of comparison to your own nation and/or to the nation where you currently find yourself living. The Cambodian National Museum didn't disappoint and I certainly learned quite a bit. Definitely the strong emphasis was on its stone and bronze work, particularly that related to Buddhism.  Unlike Indonesia, which houses more than 300 distinct ethnic groups and features a great diversity of ite...

Museums in Jakarta are finally open, after many have been closed during the pandemic. One of the museums I've been eager to visit is the National Art Gallery. It's an excellent museum with a fine permanent collection.  Please understand it's nothing on a massive scale like the Louvre or other European national galleries--remember that Indonesia is a place where colonial interests extracted cultural resources over time.   Additionally, one should also consider that the National Gallery houses formal works of "the academy" and really doesn't include "folk art," which is the category of art under which the majority of Indonesia's treasures are usually classified.  "Academic Art" (or perhaps the better term is "formal art") that is displayed in this museum really didn't get started in Indonesia until the 19th Century.  On the other hand, artifacts like puppets, which are an incredibly important and beautiful element of Indones...

While I loved partaking in high tea in the Hotel Majapahit Lobby, reading Indonesian poetry, and eating curried crab sandwiches, I like to occasionally try something on the slightly more adventurous side.  That's why I signed up for the midnight departure to watch the sunrise on Mt. Penanjakan as it illuminated the Mt. Bromo volcano group. I left the Majapahit at the stroke of midnight for the three-hour trip to the tourist village near Mt. Bromo to get picked up by a Toyota Land Cruiser for the arduous trek up the mountains to see the sunrise. We arrived at the village just before three and pulled to the side of the road, but no one showed up to meet us.  We were at a place that had no phone signal, so my driver was reduced to simply staring into the dark, looking to the stars in vain for the lost Land Cruiser Driver.  Luckily, three teenagers selling warm weather gear happened by and said they knew where they could get us a driver. We ended up driving to someone's house...

I make a concerted effort to visit sacred spaces like mosques, temples, churches, and synagogues during my travels.  I think there are a few reasons. 1. Humans take special care to construct their sacred spaces.  While many buildings are constructed without extensive thought, humans usually exert their strongest creative effort into designing their sacred spaces, with the result often being an extraordinary visual experience. 2. I find it a great learning experience to observe how humans use sacred spaces to honor their conception of the transcendent. Watching humans use architecture and space, as well as ritual, to install meaning in their lives provides valuable insight into what makes us human and what distinguishes various cultures and religions from each other. 3. I also feel an affinity for sacred spaces because they often serve as a rare sanctuary from the intrusions of modern life and the profane.  This function of sacred places can give them a spiritual value bey...