Unusual Temples in Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh doesn't hold much of interest for me. The same is true for whole of Cambodia. I have been there six times only because it's close to Bangkok, easy to get to by land or by air, boys are nice, and two of the visits were on the way to/from Vietnam.
I thought I had covered everything of interest in Phnom Penh (Central Market, Tuol Sleng prison, Royal Palace, Wat Phnom, architectural walk; gay saunas, massages, bars) in previous visits. But on a recent trip, I found two interesting temples:
Golden Temple and Boat Temple (for lack of Cambodian language I call them this way, the Golden Temple is on google maps as Mongkol Serei Kien Khleang Pagoda វត្តមង្គលសិរីគៀនឃ្លាំង and the Boat Temple as Wat Sampov Treileak Temple វត្តសំពៅត្រៃល័ក្ស)
They are located on the peninsula between Tonle Sap river and Mekong river and can be reached by Grab for a few USD from central Phnom Penh. Brown Bus (line 6 ?) passes Golden Temple, but as brown line starts at Old Stadium Roundabout which is out of town as well, this was of no use to me.
update 19aug2020: https://www.movetocambodia.com/phnom-penh/phnom-penh-public-buses/
Golden Temple
Gets its name from being mostly painted in gold. Outer walls are covered in a bas-relief depicting life of Buddha.
Inside:
Old ubosot (?) has interesting architecture as well:
Inside:
View from main road:
Boat Temple
View across Tonle Sap River to central Phnom Penh:
Copyright 2020 ChristianPFC
Cambodia, land of Angkor temples is not holding much of interest for you? really ?
ReplyDeleteAngkor Wat is worth a visit, but once is enough. And you have to live with the tourist hordes and with the knowledge that little of the entry money is invested in infrastructure and bettering the live of locals, most if it is that someone can buy his third wife a second car.
ReplyDeleteI know people who like Cambodia, both as a tourist or for living there. But for me, one week at a time, once per year is more than enough.
I rather agree with this article:
https://www.khmer440.com/k/2013/07/7-reasons-why-you-really-shouldnt-move-to-cambodia/
Add that public transport is poor, and walking is not pleasant either. And I didn't have any good local food.
This is a little unfair.
ReplyDeletePhnom Penh has better food and coffee shops than places like Yangon. Unfortunately, the boys want more money for less service.
The sauna can get quite interesting.
I've been to Cambodia 5 times and hope to visit again.
Z