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Fitful sleep – both of us kept waking throughout the night to check the clock, thinking we’d slept through the alarm. Up at 4am. Showered and cameras armed, ready to go at 4.40am. Meet our guide for the week, Devid, who is unbelievably chatty at this ungodly hour. Whisked off to the tourist office to purchase our Angkor passes for the week. Tourist office is rather busy, with dozens of other groups picking up their passes. Speedy and uncomplicated process – tourism office snaps a pic with webcam for your pass, prints and laminates it for you on the spot.
Back in the car, dodging tuk tuks on our way out the carpark and on the way to Angkor Wat. We pass push bikes, tuk tuks and motorcycles all in their own little lane, their tail lights and head lamps blinking furiously. Stop on the road and jump out, taking cameras with us. The driver will park the car and we will meet him later, Devid explains. We walk along a dusty path, tripping on our sleepiness and protruding rocks. Devid weilds a torch. We make our way in the dark, us and the other pilgrims, people from all over the world here to see this spectacle. We are a silent moving mass, save for our footsteps. Across the floating jetty which spans the wide baray (“man-made lake”, which is more like a moat in this case), up the steps and through the chilling stillness of the outer gates. The air almost feels compressed and filled with static; perhaps I am a little giddy at the prospect of having finally made it to this place.
We take a spot on the left side of the main walkway, in front of a water-lily filled pond; Devid advises the sunrise will look best from here. The hardcore photographers have beaten us here, pegging out a prime spot on the edge of the pond – almost touching the mud. We wait patiently, watching the inky black sky for any sign of light. The crowd draws collective breath. Slowly, the darkness falls and the light rises – a soft grey-blue. The first glimpses of Angkor Wat. There is gasping and some slight jostling as the first photos are shot, shutters clicking madly. After some time of standing and staring in wonder, and sick of being elbowed for better shots, we walk slowly around the pond toward the looming structure. There’s a couple hundred people getting around with my white shirt in their Angkor Wat photo.
The enormity of the temple begins to dawn on me (geddit?!) as I haul myself up on the main pathway again. The size of the sandstone blocks and the age of this place is something I begin to dwell on a lot. Such a structure built without the luxuries of modern machinery. Crowds on the path swell, and we’re now starving – hangry, even. We make for the exit, but Devid convinces us to stay “another three minute”. Good call (timely, too). The brilliant orange orb of the sun finally makes it appearance over the left tower of the temple. Worth it. All so worth it. I’m so hungry I could eat the arse out of a low flying duck, but the radiant sun and the world’s most famous silhouette make it all so worth it.
We snap photos, and pose for the ubiquitous shot together in front of the glowing sunrise. I can hardly believe we’ve made it, and I’ve finally seen the sun rise over Angkor Wat. At the appearance of the sun however, hoardes of tourist groups charge up the stairs and into the temple. Devid notes that it’s better to visit in the afternoon, when all the big tourist groups have moved on. “I think now is a good time for breakfast”, he says. Agreed.
Things to note:
- Holy crap those National Geographic photographers are really good, work really hard and get up really early to get those perfect Angkor Wat shots.
- There’s going to be a lot of people. Low season, there’s only about 2000 who head out to see the sunrise… Compare that to the 5000+ who make the trip out in the high season.
- Accept the limits of the situation. Okay, I didn’t the perfect amazeballs shot I wanted, but I was there. I witnessed that sunrise in all its glory.
- Boxed breakfasts are the thing! Most hotels will make one up if you are a guest. There’s plenty of places to plonk down and eat, boxed breakfast or not.
Want more? You can read my first diary entry here.
