Ta Prohm, ancient temple in Siem Reap Cambodia

                                                      Ta Prohm, Cambodia

The last temple we visited on day 3 after Baphuon Temple and the Terrace of Elephants Angkor, Cambodia, was Ta Prohm. 

Ta Prohm is one of the most visited and well-known temples in Angkorwat. One of the main reasons being is this temple is where a few scenes from the Angelina Jolie starrer popular film, Tomb Raider was filmed. And the other one of course is the eerie and unique atmosphere. 

Built around late 12^th and early 13^th century, and back then known as Rajavihara (Monastery of the King), this temple was founded by King Jayavarman VII and was a Buddhist temple.

The one thing that contributes to the atmosphere at Ta Prohm is that it remains in pretty much the same condition as it was found. The jungles and trees have literally claimed the temple. It has quite an atmosphere, and that is what  makes it is extraordinary experience. This temple is definitely worth a visit. Not to be missed.

These are such beautiful carvings. Every time I see beautiful carvings such as this, I wonder how beautiful the temple would have looked in its original form! 

And such talented craftsmen and such beautiful architecture!

 

Soma, my cousin, my best friend, philosopher and guide

Soma (Reshma di to me) who has been my strongest supporter at all times, my go-to person, in good and bad times, is no more.

She was and will always remain my best friend, guide and anchor. There has been no one like her, nor will there be.

This blog is full of her picture contributions. Most of my travel happened because of her enthusiasm and her urging me to be an explorer. Even though she was much older than me, her enthusiasm for life was much more than anyone I know. For me, she was 60 something going on 16😊

Soma at Gurudongmar Lake in Sikkim (Dec 2021), At 17000 ft, she was trying hard to make a normal face. She was out of the vehicle for precisely 40 seconds! 

I will fall short of words if I were to attempt to describe who she was, this wonderful and empathetic human being. Passionate, down to earth, intelligent, knowledgeable, curious, witty, humorous, spontaneous, do-gooder, kind hearted, one of the best listeners ever, intense, warm, uplifter, always appreciative and I could carry on and on…. She touched every life that came in contact with her. She has given purpose to so many people, just like me. Her vast knowledge about everything was simply amazing, whether it be travel, films, music, food, books, history… anything under the Sun, she was the person I would have hours of intense discussions and conversations with. Before making any decision, I would always run it by her and get her guidance. One of the best cooks I know, she used to spoil me by cooking all my favourites. She has enriched my life in so many ways that it is not easy to express it in words.

Birds, of course, were one of her most favourite topics. She has been an avid birder (in spite of rheumatoid arthritis, and a not-so-supportive physical condition); In fact, she happens to be one of the few Indians to have seen the maximum number of birds that can be seen in India.

I regret not spending more time with her and being near her during the time of her death.

Rest in peace dearest Soma (Reshma di). I am sure you must be busy by now with a whole lot in the other world. They must have needed someone like you desperately out there...after all they don't make that many like you anymore!

I am sharing some of the bird pictures that she clicked on her last birdwatching trip, which was in Sikkim in December 2021.

                      Male Grandalas- she had seen them before but on the ground on snow.

                  The first time I saw this picture, I thought these were beautiful blue flowers!

                                     

                                  

Male and female White-browed Bush Robin (she had not seen the male before, this was the first time)

Yellow-rumped Honeyguide : Making a nice meal out of the hive. This was the first time she saw them in action.

Tibetan Siskin- this was a lifer for her

Below are some links that have Soma Jha's bird pictures and trip reports:

• https://www.wandervogeladventures.com/zuluk/
• https://www.conservationindia.org/gallery/the-rare-black-breasted-parrotbill-spotted-in-manas
• https://indianbirds.in/pdfs/IB.9.2.Jha_WhitethroatedWheatear.pdf
• https://indianbirds.in/pdfs/IB_11_1_SnapshotSightings.pdf

Baphuon Temple and the Terrace of Elephants Angkor, Cambodia

                                 Baphuon temple Angkor, Cambodia

                                                             

After the fascinating and beautiful Bayon temple, our next and last stop on day three was Baphuon  temple and the terrace of elephants.

Built in the mid-11th century, Buphuon is quite a unique temple. Dedicated to the Hindu God Shiva, with three levels, and walls full of carvings, this temple must have been incredibly beautiful. Even with quite a few portions of the temple gone now, it is still so impressive! 

The temple was a bit unstable from the beginning owing to the fact that it was built on a land which was full of sand. Portions of the temple started collapsing eventually since it could not support such a massive structure. There have been a series of renovation work on this temple in order for the temple to be in the state it is now.

If you have the time, this temple must be included in your itinerary. One caution though, the stairs leading up to the three levels are quite steep, and it does take quite a bit of time to do the entire temple.Given the humid weather, it is best done early in the morning. You will get some great views of the surroundings from this temple.

We also saw the terrace of elephants which is adjacent to Baphuon temple and the Royal Palace area. This magnificent terrace is approx. 300 meter long and the walls of the terrace are carved with elephants and Garudas. 

Sharing some pictures of the Baphuon temple and the terrace of elephants below. 

Have a wonderful Sunday:)

Terrace of Elephants, Below are some pictures of the terrace of elephants which is adjacent to Baphuon temple.

Here are my other posts on Angkor Wat, :

Sunset views from Phnom Bakheng temple, one of Angkor's oldest temples

The magnificent Preah Khan temple

East Mebon temple in Angkor Cambodia

Banteay Kdei in Siem Reap is a must visit

The beautiful Ta Som temple Siem Reap

Neak Pean picturesque Island temple

The fascinating and beautiful Bayon temple

Sundarbans Reserve Forest: Day 2 at the largest continuous mangrove forest in the world

 

                                                 Sundarbans Reserve Forest

Continued from my last post Sundarbans Reserve Forest: the largest continuous mangrove forest in the world

Day 2: We checked out of our hotel at 8 in the morning and got into our launch for our 2^nd and last day at Sundarbans (yes, a very short trip:) Breakfast was prepared and served in the launch. Hot luchis (fried refined flour bread), aloo sabji (potato curry with gravy), and tea was the menu, and exactly what we needed to start the day with :)

Our first stop was Sajnekhali and this is the place where a permit is obtained to get into the reserve forest area. Sajnekhali has watch towers which provides  a good view of the mangrove forest a. We saw monkeys and river terrapins during our stop here. With the permit done, our launch ride continued through the waterways and it was evident that we were in the reserve forest area now. Our next halt was Dobanki where we walked through an enclosure and got an amazing view of the beautiful mangrove forest. From Dobanki, our launch took us even more into the interiors of the reserve forest, and into some of the narrowest channels and waterways in Peerkhali. Much to the delight of my nephew, this was his first visit to Sundarbans and his first experience of sighting a crocodile outside of a zoo, we finally saw a crocodile, deer, and pug marks! Yes, pug marks ( this time I was not that lucky:( could not sight a tiger and had to be content with pug marks this time)

Bird activity was remarkably low because of the high tide; we could not see any birds, other than a few sandpipers and egrets. Rest of the trip was generally a leisurely ride. We were happy to just be, and enjoy the natural and peaceful surroundings over another fresh and tasty lunch:)

Our trip ended with another brilliant sunset. There is nothing like a sunset amidst mangroves and water bodies, and of course a hot cup of tea. Life is good:)

Overall, it was a short and enjoyable trip with the family amidst natural surroundings.

A few recommendations from my experience of Sundarbans:

1. It is best to do Sundarbans by reserving a launch if you are a big group of 10-15. The experience is much better this way. You can customise everything and get the best out of your Sundarbans trip.

2. The best time to visit Sundarbans is from Jan-March. It is really nice then.

3. One caution though, if you have elderly people travelling with you, please let the travel agency know in advance so that they can provide necessary support to help the elderly in and out of the launch. It is a bit uncomfortable for people who have knee or joint problems to navigate their way into and out of the launch.

Here are some pictures from our Day 2.

                                                                                         These are know as tiger palms since these provide a great camouflage for tigers because of the colour

    Crocodile basking under the Sun, and ready to grab anything! Thankfully the deer was far away:)

      The picture above and on the right of River Terrapin is courtesy Soma Jha.

.
    Well, yes, these are pug marks...not so clear but that is all we could get!

    An old building near the resort we stayed in                      This old, non-functional church caught our                                                                                                                             eyes