Trading "past" in Siem Reap

(Baongehan) - When the medieval Khmer empire was at its peak, there existed a prosperous capital in Siem Reap with the desire to rule for a long time. After many changes in the times, the capital of this kingdom moved and then settled in Phnom Penh. However, with its great architectural works and unique tourism methods, the ancient capital of Siem Reap is still considered an irreplaceable tourist capital in Cambodia today...

Tourists "conquer" the highest tower of the 3rd floor of Angkor Wat.

Marks of oblivion and ruin...

In terms of historical, cultural and natural works, Siem Reap stands out with the “Angcor” complex and the natural landscape of Tonle Sap. If Tonle Sap is a place to experience the beauty of nature and the fascinating and somewhat wild life of those who choose rivers and lakes as their place to live and work, then the Angkor complex is where visitors come to admire the great wonders created by humans in the past, feeling as if they are lost in a place isolated from modern life to go back in time to the history of mankind.

Although Siem Reap attracts millions of tourists every year, the preservation of the environment and natural landscape, the preservation and maintenance of original artifacts at the relics are very good.

Tour guide Teng SoKim told us that the construction took 37 years in the 12th century, but the time for sculpting, carving and completion lasted for about 200 years. Initially, this construction was built to worship the Hindu god Vishnu. The long completion process took place at the same time as the Khmer dynasty changed from Hinduism to Buddhism as the state religion, Angkor Wat became a place to worship Buddha. Therefore, the architectural and sculptural works of art of Angkor Wat both bear the image and mark of Hinduism with the legends from the Indian epics Mahabharata and Ramayana, and have statues and reliefs vividly depicting the path to enlightenment of Buddha Shakyamuni and the formation and development of Buddhism.

On many walls, the original drawings, lines, and outlines of the Apsara dancers are still preserved to prepare for the next steps of carving and carving. Surely, when the medieval artists carved the initial sketches into the stone slabs, they did not expect that their work would remain unfinished for many centuries. Along with that, this capital of pagodas and towers also left traces of invasion and destruction by invading forces, heresies, and injustice.

At Angkor Thom (the great capital), right from the road leading to the Bayon tower, there are rows of statues with severed heads during the Pol Pot and Ieng Sary occupation as a base to fight against the Cambodian army and Vietnamese volunteers. Next to the remaining 37 human-faced towers on all four sides (out of the original total of 54 towers) and countless beautiful works, there are statues with severed heads, broken limbs, and bullet holes on the stone reliefs. Even the desecrated remains are kept intact to denounce the brutality of the war between the Khmer and Champa people in the medieval period, condemning the crimes and brutality of the brutal genocidal forces of the Khmer Rouge.

At the Ta Brohm temple complex – built by King Jayavarman VII in the late 12th and early 13th centuries to honor his royal family, the giant pine and banyan trees have large roots that flow and hug the ancient towers, creating unique and strange shapes. The fact that the traces of the forgotten period are preserved, surrounded by trees and trees, evoking a desolate and ruined look, is a unique feature that has great appeal.

With this unique way of doing tourism, Cambodians have preserved the original relics and artifacts, creating a strong feeling for tourists when they can see the architectural works dating back 7 or 8 centuries. Therefore, every year, millions of people from all continents come to the Angkor complex. In the early days of October, although it is the rainy season in Cambodia, every day there are about 2,000 foreign visitors buying tickets to visit the Angkor complex. The price of each ticket for foreign tourists to visit the "Angcor" complex is 20 USD per day, if visiting for a whole week, it is only charged for 3 days...

Respect the need for entertainment

Siem Reap is a province located in the northwest of Cambodia. Although it is quite far from the current capital Phnom Penh - about 320 km, the "tourist capital" Siem Reap is still a dynamic service tourism center.

First of all, in Siem Reap, there is a clear separation between the relic complexes and the commercial service areas. Therefore, while the pagoda relic areas maintain their solemnity, majesty, and aim for contemplation and deep feeling, the entertainment, shopping and consumption areas are extremely bustling and vibrant. Restaurants and hotels are decorated and designed in the style of the pagoda country with curved roofs and the symbol of the Naga snake god. Most of the dining places have small stages for free folk songs, folk music and folk dance performances, the organization and performance are all compact and impressive. The dishes are not lacking in the embellishment of traditional Cambodian dishes such as fish sauce made from small fish (bo hoc), papaya salad mixed with fish sauce, grilled pork, lemongrass braised fish, grilled bananas, fried bananas, coconut sticky rice cakes wrapped in palm leaves...

A space that impresses many tourists in Siem Reap is the night market and night street. While during the day, tourists can go to large and small supermarkets, in the evening they are attracted by souvenirs and consumer goods in the night market with a unique form of tourism product business. The main products are still handicraft products - Cambodia's strength, in which textile products stand out. Sets of clothes printed with symbols of pagodas, Apsxara dancers, scarves, clothes bearing the cultural imprint of Cambodian ethnic costumes, traditional materials, affordable prices, are chosen by many tourists for shopping. Art products made from gold, white silver, silver, copper, wood such as Buddha statues, Bayon tower models, Angkor Wat models, Apsxara dancer statues, four-sided smiling Buddha statues, mascots in legends, stories, jewelry... also create credibility due to the clarity of origin.

Pub Street is a notable nightlife highlight in Siem Reap. The Pub Streets here are also known as the Western Quarter. Interspersed with bars selling Western beer and wine, vibrant sounds and lights, are shops selling local food and drinks, ethnic music groups playing impromptu music... This is a "special" place that allows for the direction of serving a free and comfortable lifestyle so that tourists can have moments of "relaxing" and relieving stress in a modern style. This way of doing things is a "point" for Cambodia's "willingness to spend" in respecting the need for entertainment and Western-style liberal activities. And of course, when the "gods" are interested in spending a lot of money, the nightly hustle and bustle has brought in a not-so-small source of income.

A brief look at these features shows that Siem Reap has inherited a unique system of world-class heritage wonders, and the people here have promptly risen up to receive and create professional, modern and unique tourism methods to make those heritages contribute greatly to Cambodia's "smokeless industry".

Ngo Kien