Angkor Thom

Our next stop took us just around the corner to Angkor Thom, a 3 kilometer walled and moated city-within-a-city that was the last capital of the Angkor empire. Its distinguishing feature was a series of carved faces, said to be those of Jayavarman VII, the paranoid king who wanted to 'watch' his people wherever he was.

In the grand fashion of a megalomaniac, King Jayavarman also ensured that the five gates to the centre of his kingdom were grandly adorned with his face.  One arch in particular leaves you feeling exactly the size of a single snowflake in a massive blizzard.

The approach

intimidation tactics on the approach 

Next Stop: Bayon, the city's biggest temple

Entrance--he's watching you everywhere 

The terrace of the elephants and a whole lot of road traffic