Earlier today, we rode the Bamboo Railway, and now we're headed on another out-of-town adventure - a visit to the Bat Cave and the Killing Cave. No, Bat Man and Robin do not live in the former; rather a colony of several million bats (think Carlsbad Caverns) and coming here at dusk is a frequent tourist trek. We've decided to take a pass on that but here's a shot of the Bat Cave from our tuk tuk.
Our ultimate destination is the very top of this mountain; you can just make out the spires of the Buddhist temple we plan to visit.
Our ultimate destination is the very top of this mountain; you can just make out the spires of the Buddhist temple we plan to visit.
The last stretch of road is too steep for our tuk tuk so we need to hire a couple of scooters and their drivers to get to the temple and the Killing Cave. We only hesitate for a few seconds, and the deal's done and we get our helmets!
It's only a couple of km to the top but it's steep, very steep, and we're glad we opted for the scooters rather than attempting to walk up (that was suggested as an option!). And here's the temple, a remarkable structure; every surface is illustrated with scenes from the Buddha's life, his followers, his mother, his sister . . . just about everyone gets in on this action.
What's so remarkable is that this temple was nearly destroyed by Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge; all the monks were assassinated.
Then farther up the path, we come to the Killing Cave, so named because of its purpose during the reign of the Khmer Rouge. This area of Cambodia was one of the last holdouts for them, and there are people today who think there are still some of them still hiding out . . .
Yes, those are human bones . . .
There is a sweet little settlement at the very top of the hill with a spectacular view of the surrounding rice fields (no, they're not called paddies).
And one of the drivers points out a bizarre addition to the landscape - a Russian howitzer. Our scooter driver tells us that the Russians were invited into Cambodia to help drive out the Khmer Rouge and this gun was aimed at a neighboring hill; there was a Khmer Rouge aimed from that hill back here.
I'm starting to feel like I did in Croatia - a scorecard wouldn't begin to help an outsider in this part of the world. Warfare here goes back so far, is so complicated, and allegiances seem to be written in the dirt but set in stone. And somehow, the people have survived . . .
Tomorrow we go to Phnom Penh, our final stop in Cambodia. We've been warned, and warned again, about tourist muggings so will be extra cautious. Have booked a luxurious stay ($50USD/night) and may just cocoon there.
