Westworld Alberta
Issue link: http://westworldmagazine.ama.ab.ca/i/40418
I caught the eye of one woman, and she waved my sampan over to her floating home. As the household of 16 looked on, she showed me her house, two small rooms plus an indoor/outdoor kitchen. They had a TV and what looked like an Internet hookup, and the front yard was a fi sh pen. They moved to the river almost a decade ago to supplement their catch with farmed catfi sh and wouldn't think of leaving. "We like it here. It's cooler than in town and qui- eter, and we can feel the seasons," she said. "Giving up the river would be like giving up our life." I'VE BEEN TO ANGKOR SEVERAL TIMES OVER the years, arriving in Siem Reap both by land and by air, but there's nothing quite like skimming up the Tonlé Sap and dropping anchor just 30 minutes from this World Her- itage Site. Angkor becomes the great reward at the end of the journey. This region in north-central Cambodia was the seat of the Khmer Empire, which began in 802 with the rise of Jayavarman II, namesake of the boat, and eventually extended into modern-day Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, Burma and Malaysia. It's believed that Angkor was the world's largest pre- industrial city, with more than one million people spread over 960 kilometres of hilly forest and farmlands. Hundreds of stone temples litter the region as reminders of the empire's greatness – some little more than piles of rubble reclaimed by the jungle and others masterpieces of engineering and architecture that rival Machu Picchu or the pyramids of Egypt. After disembarking the Jayavarman, I checked in at Amansara, the royal guest- house of Prince Norodom Sihanouk that's been transformed into a leafy retreat in the heart of Siem Reap. With meals served in Sihanouk's old movie screening room and the sights accessible in his 1960s stretch Mercedes, it's like a historical exclamation point to any Angkor visit, and I settled in for a few days of temple touring. The next morning, when I fi nally arrived at Angkor Wat, the biggest and best pre- served of the ruins, I found myself as dumb- founded as I was on my fi rst visit nearly a decade ago. Around fi ve million tonnes of sandstone were shaped and moved and carved into grandiose Angkor Wat, with miles of precisely sculpted bas-relief and towers soaring more than 60 metres. Stand- ing at the far end of the outer gallery, visitors RE RECEIV RECEIVE A FREE FREE TOWN PUMP TOWN PUMP CAA Members Smart Savings Save 30% Every Day on Complete Pairs of Eyeglasses, Sunglasses and Accessories WESTWORLD >> SEPTEMBER 2011 27