Getting "wat" in Cambodia

I was quite determined to get to Cambodia in time for Khmer new year in mid April. Although Thailand is the best place to experience Buddhist new year, know as Songkran, where the streets become a huge city wide water fight especially in Chiang Mai, my route was taking me to Cambodia via Vietnam and the idea of a local festival deeply intrigued me.

Sadly, Cambodia has a more subdued version of the festival with most people heading to their home villages for the national holiday making services more intermittent. Phnom Penh was actually quieter than usual with a more limited menu and fewer services available, rather than more raucous - though the city's temples were seeing plenty of action with worship and song ringing through the city streets.

However, given the week long celebrations, our detour to the colonial city of Battambang proved more lively. We headed out to the local temples encountering hordes of children and teenagers armed with buckets and balloons of water aimed at each other and passers by. It was a delight to watch the revelry and get soaked by a well aimed balloon as we scootered past in a tuk tuk - a welcome relief from the blistering 38'C heat.

By the time we arrived in Siem Reap most of the week long celebrations seemed to be finished. We'd missed the ceremonies and processions in the ancient temples of Angkor Wat, but nothing could detract from their awe inspiring nature.

Wandering the ruins and the restoration, I wondered whether people would take longer or be quicker in their visits as a result of digital cameras - there is the opportunity for almost endless pictures without the limitations of carrying film; but there's also the possibility of a click and go mentality without needing to form and hold the memories for the shots you might miss. I took nearly 100 pictures in the temples myself, but I did try to put my camera down and see it through my eyes as well as the lens. The beautiful pink, red and blue hues of sunset over pyramid ruins, and the soft golden light of dusk highlighting carved stone and bas reliefs had a beautiful awe inspiring quality. With a little imagination, you could picture the peace found for locals, monks and kings alike, even with us numerous tourists clambering over the ruins like ants.