Women and Children

Jennifer and Humphrey stayed in town while Marije and I took the long ride to Banteay Srei, which means Citadel of Women. There is much speculation over the origins of this name, but the prominent theory is that it was called that in modern times because of the delicacy of the temple, which it was believed only a woman could have created.


While the structure is very similar to its other Angkor-era brethren...


... you can see that the scale is much smaller.

Much of the fascination with this temple (as well as the claims of its delicacy) comes from the intricate carvings that swathe every inch of this complex.
The detail of the carvings, as well as the level of difficulty (note the three dimensional figures and the fact that the rock is carved out from behind them to make them leap off the rock face) have led people to say that only the small, dexterous hands of a woman could have crafted such intricacies. (Hence the modern name of the temple.)
Is that another gratuitous doorway shot? Yes, I'm afraid it is.

OK, back to the amazing details of these carvings on this beautiful red sandstone. Well worth the 50 minute drive. Then Marije and I shifted gears for a little while, because we were near a well-respected land mine museum and wanted to pay a visit. The museum was set up by Aki Ra, a thirty-something man who spent his youth in various armies, first being raised by the Khmer Rouge, who killed his parents, then joining the Vietnamese Army and later, the Cambodian Army.

Aki Ra spent much of this time, nearly two decades, laying countless land mines and devising booby traps, so he is very well versed on how to detect and disable mines and other UXO (Unexploded Ordinance). He has been clearing mines on his own, using just a stick and a knife, since 1994, and it's believed that he has cleared more than 50,000 mines. But it is estimated that as many as 5 million mines still remain in the fields of Cambodia.

He is committed to clearing land mines to make his country safer and to undo the harmful actions of his childhood under the Pol Pot regime. He has also set up facilities to house and educate about twenty children who were either land mine victims or who come from dangerous or disadvantaged living situations.

In addition to writings and photos depicting the history of the Khmer Rouge regime, Cambodia's liberation, current land mine policies worldwide, the impacts of landmines on the lives of civilians, and the techniques required to disarm the mines, the museum is also filled with hundreds of defused mines. The majority of these mines are Chinese or Russian; (the ones pictured below are Russian.) After all of the media attention regarding landmines and Cambodia, I was surprised to learn that only about 1% of the mines in Cambodia were US made. (The US contributes every year to the UN for landmine clearance, but maintains a policy that includes the need for landmines along the Korean DMZ as a measure to protect the South Koreans and American soldiers deployed to the area.)

I thought that this was an interesting historical picture. It is a soldier defending the Bayon (the temple with all of the faces carved in it) from a potential Khmer Rouge attack.

After seeing so many pictures of children missing body parts, the weight of reflecting on the situation had driven us to a somber silence. Marije and I agreed that we needed to see another site before heading home or we would be miserable all night.

Our driver took us to an unmarked temple, which we believe is either Bantaey Samre or Bantaey Kdie. Whatever the name, it was an interesting site. It would probably have had water filling the inner structure, rising up to just below the walkway. This walkway encircled the inner sanctuary, creating a cloistered feeling. Marije, observantly noted that this was likely a monastery.