Kep - a lazy town in South Cambodia

See the locations on Kep Google Map

Picture by ethan.crowley
View from Kep National Park

"Kep is mental therapy. I am liberated in the act of looking down from liberally green and leafy mountain tops in the national park reserve, calmed by catching a wind coming in from the vast ocean on a morning run, mesmerized with imagining the activity that once filled the ruins of foothill villas now long abandoned, and rendered perfectly content with plopping myself down by the waterfront Crab Market with a fish and rice meal that cost me 75 cents". Kbach Untitled finds sweet words for the small seaside town nestled between the ocean and the hills of Kep National Park. Cambodian and Vietnamese islands are just offshore. Kep was originally built as a retreat for the French colonialists. For sixty years it thrived as the favorite coastal holiday resort of Cambodia's elite, with its heydays in the 50s and 60s. During the Khmer Rouge regime brutal fighting happened in and around Kep. And locals in need of money and food started to dismantle the abandoned villas. Many of them are no longer inhabited today, are just ruins. Kep has been a very laid-back town for years. Currently Kep is experiencing a touristic revival. But there's not a lot of activity in Kep. Especially there is no party, Kep is the contrary of Sihanoukville. Mostly a place for beeing lazy, enjoying fresh seafood, going for some walks, trekking through the hills, boating, bicycling and mountain biking or just sitting on the beach or in the shadow of the resort garden.


A must for gourmets: Kep crab market

Kep is famous for its crab market with a dozen restaurants, where you enjoy the delicious meat for example with green Kampot pepper, as Time Travel Turtle describes. And you watch the women heaving cages in and out of the water, harvesting the crabs that are cooked on the dock or sold. The Yummy Traveler shows, what elso you get to eat.

Picture by Franc Pallarès López
On the way to the seafood restaurants

Picture by Rnd!
Crab Market

Picture by mobyhill
Waiting for boiled crabs

Picture by mobyhill
Yummy: Crabs with pepper

Picture by HeyItsWilliam
Dried shrimps

Picture by mobyhill
Durian vendors in Kep


Relax or hike in the jungle of the National Park

Picture by shin--k
One of the beaches in Kep

The beach in Kep is different from the beach of Sihanoukville: it has black sand, is narrow and rocky during hightide and can get cramped on weekends. See video. The best beaches are offshore on Rabbit island (more down in this blog). The eastern end of the beach promenade is marked by Sela Cham P’dey, a statue that depicts a nude fisher’s wife.

Picture by shin--k
Sela Cham P'dey, the wife waiting for the return of the fisher

If you look for a hidden beach Angkoul beach could be worth a visit. It lies south-east from Kep, near the Vietnam border. Follow the road to Ha Tien border. Before the salt fields you turn right (there is a entrance gate for the temple) and just follow this road. It takes about 30 – 40 minutes from Kep (way description here).

Picture by Ku5hi
Temple gate on the way to Angkoul beach

Picture by Ku5hi


Kep National Park is located around the Kep Mountain. The main entrance is behind Veranda Natural Resort. You are expected to pay a dollar entry fee. There are more access points on the west side of Kep Lodge and on the east side of Jasmine Valley Eco-Resort. An 8km trek leads around the mountain with beautiful outlooks towards Kampot, the islands and to Vietnam, the trek takes between two and three hours. See Map of Kep National Park and a video. Inside the park there are squirrels, monkeys, horn bills, deer, wild pigs, snakes, lizards and more animals.

About 8km from the White Horse statue, you can find the so-called “Secret Lake”, locally known as “Tomnop Tek Krolar”. This irrigation dam was established through hard labour under the Khmer Rouge regime. Today it offers bamboo platforms for lazy afternoons and opportunities for tubing, swimming and even water peddle cycling (see panorama picture).



Picture by unsure shot
Pepper farm


Sleep in bungalows or modernist villas

Hotel le Flamboyant: From 60 USD. Eight large bungalows and a beautiful swimming pool in a lush, tropical garden. A bit out of the town. A 25 minutes walk from the crab market. Mostly good reviews on tripadvisor.com.

Picture by ilse ruppert
Le Flamboyant restaurant


Jasmine Valley Eco Resort: From 22 USD. Six mud-brick and thatch bungalows, two tree-houses and two mountain-lodges, surrounded by jungle and natural swimming pools, fed by a stream. Good informations on weather and climate in Kep and for birdwatching in Kep. "Jasmine Valley has been built into the jungle so well that you can barely tell it's there" is one comment on tripadvisor.com, another: "You can expect frogs, lizards and insects in your room but my mosquito net worked perfectly". One more; "If you want a hotel, don't go to Jasmine. If you love nature and you want to take in the whole jungle feeling then go...". The homepage is very informative, with video of every room, so when you study it, you get to know exactly, what is awaiting you, for example a quite long and bumpy way from Kep into the jungle (3 USD with tuk tuk).

Picture by aarongilson

Picture by m_uhlig

Picture by aarongilson


Kep Lodge: From 28 USD. 10 bungalows with pool. Very good reviews on tripadvisor.com. See video and see picture 1, picture 2 and picture 3.

Picture by jnana511

Picture by jnana511
Banana bungalow


Knai Bang Chatt Resort: From 168 USD. 18 rooms. "The resort is made up of 3 restored villas, one of them used to belong to the governor of region. There is no beach, but it's right on the sea. The grounds are covered in green grass with tented beach recliners and even full beds. The infinity pool is salt water and rather small but beautiful. The staff are all Cambodian and friendly as can be", writes travelblog.org. The three villas wer built between 1962 and 1965 by protégés of Vann Molyvann, a Khmer pupil of Le Corbusier. The Blue Villa belonged to the governor of Kep, the Grey Villa was owned by a relative of the King, and the Red Villa was owned by the Head of Customs. Excellent reviews on tripadvisor.com.
See video on youtube.com.

Picture by HeyItsWilliam

Picture by Christoph Rooms
The Blue Villa

Picture by HeyItsWilliam

Picture by HeyItsWilliam
The pool

Picture by Christoph Rooms
The beach

Picture by Christoph Rooms
The Sailing Club

Picture by Jason Tabarias
The jetty of the Sailing Club. See mor pictures of Knai Bang Chatt on flickr.com


Le Bout du Monde: From 40 USD. Bungalows and residences in traditional khmer architecture at the top of a hill, in landscaped gardens and with a lovely view over the gulf of Siam (see video). All houses have solar energy. And there ist an eco-friendly swimming pool. The Guesthouse was the setting for some scenes of the movie "Holy Lola" by French filmmaker Bertrand Tavernier with Isabelle Carré and Jacques Gamblin starring (listen to the soundtrack). The reviews on tripadvisor.com are quite good, but some critical posts got an astonishing aggressive feedback from the management.

Picture by shin--k
Restaurant Le Bout du Monde


The Beach House: From 40 USD. 16 simple rooms opposite the beach, with a pool (see picture). "Even though the hotel is located above the main road, the traffic is minimal and the sound of the surf is stronger than the sound of the cars", says one of the good reviews on tripadvisor.com. See video.


Tree Top Bungalows: From 4 USD. See picture. Basic accommodation, good location according to reviews on tripadvisor.com. Made entirely from wood and palm leaves, the huts are rustic and airy, some on the ground, some on top.


Vanna Hillresort: From 25 USD. Very good reviews on tripadvisor.com.

Picture by mrcharly


Veranda Natural Resort: From 78 USD. A great place for romance and relaxing close to nature. A vast range of rooms, from bungalow (tiny) to bigger rooms and also villas, with much character. "Organic wood, bamboo and rock shapes form quirky touches everywhere you turn, and shells are inlaid in walls and floors, nearly but-not-quite hidden from view", writes justtheplanet.com. They have bungalows with bedroom inside and outside, so you choose, where you sleep. Very good reviews on tripadvisor.com. See video.

Picture by unsure shot

Picture by unsure shot
View from the Villa

Picture by Un rosarino en Vietnam

Picture by Un rosarino en Vietnam

Picture by unsure shot
Papaya tree


Villa Romonea: From 200 USD. A villa for rent for up to 12 guests in six rooms. Built in 1968 by a cosmopolitan Khmer family and designed in stunning modernist style by Khmer Architect Lu Ban Hap. During the Khmer Rouge Regime the family disappeared and the villa was used as a fish storage warehouse, as The Wandering Sybarite reports. In 2007 new owners bought the house and restored it from then on during several years. The villa lies directly on the sea, with a tennis court, a 6 hole golf driving range and a saltwater infinity Pool. "It feels like visiting your wealthy friend's private house" says one of some very good reviews on tripadvisor.com. Read also Cambodia’s Sweet Spot and Bauhaus on the Beach: A Corbusian Retreat in Cambodia.

Picture by Villa Romanea
See more pictures on flickr.com


Botanica Guesthouse: With aircon from 25 USD. 2 km out of the town. You can rent bikes. The winner clear at the lower budget end in Kep according to good reviews on tripadvisor.com. Also the phnom pen loved the family stay at the renovated guesthouse.


Hungry again? Well there are a few recommendations for eating and drinking.



Escape to Koh Ton Sai

Koh Ton Sai (Rabbit Island): Rabbit Island lies 5 km off the coast and is popular destination, either for a day on the beach or overnight stays in basic huts (from 5 USD). Boats leave from the Pier which is 3 km east from Kep Beach. The trip takes 25 minutes.

Picture by fabulousfabs
Bungalows

Picture by fabulousfabs

Picture by Johan Douma

Picture by Johan Douma

Picture by Johan Douma


How you get to Kep

It's a half hour drive from Kampot, Cambodia and the Vietnam border; and 2 hours from Sihanoukville and Phnom Phenh.


Read and see more: Video Luke Nguyens greater mekong (Kep & Kampot)

Angkor Thom: The Great City of the Khmer Empire with Bayon and Ta Phrom (2. Chapter)

Angkor Thom means "The Great City". It was established in the late twelfth century by king Jayavarman VII and the last and most enduring capital city of the Khmer empire. The earlier city Yasodharapura was centred further northwest. Angkor Thom overlapped parts of it. So the former state temple of Baphuon got part of Angkor Thom. The roads lead to the temple of Bayon in the centre.



Prasat Bayon

Picture by emilio labrador

Prasat Bayon was built in the late 12th century or early 13th century as the official state temple of the Buddhist King Jayavarman VII (1181-1218). After his death it was modified and augmented by later Hindu and Buddhist kings. Bayon is famous for the 216 serene and massive stone faces on the many towers which cluster around its central peak, symbolizing Mount Meru. On the outer wall of the outer gallery you see a series of bas-reliefs depicting historical events and scenes from the everyday life of the Khmer. The outer gallery encloses a courtyard with two libraries. The inner gallery is raised above ground level. Its bas-reliefs show scenes from Hindu mythology. You discover Siva, Vishnu, and Brahma, the members of the trimurti or threefold godhead of Hinduism, Apsaras or celestial dancers, Ravana and Garuda. The upper terrace is home to the famous face towers.

Picture by MRisgaard

Picture by marhas
You walk towards the centre of Angkor Thom and can already recognise the famous stone faces at the many towers of Prasat Bayon

Picture by marhas
On the way to the upper terrace

Picture by Anandajoti
Apsaras carved out of the sandstone

Picture by marhas

On the outer wall of the outer gallery you find a series of bas-reliefs depicting historical events and scenes from the everyday life of the Angkorian Khmer.

Picture by sharon.schneider

Picture by Peter Broer
Bas-reliefs on the outer wall of the 3rd enclosure, here showing a naval battle on the Tonle Sap between Khmer and Cham forces (in the eastern part of the southern gallery).

Have a look at panoramas of the bas-reliefs on the south wall:
Offerings, Pig-Boiling, Archers, Khmer-Cham Fighting (Archers, Spear and Sword Fights)
Three Boats with Cham, Chinese and Khmer Warriors
Hand-to-Hand Fighting, Pig and Cock Fighting, Chinese Junk
Elephants and Warriors marching to War
Palace Scene, Worshipping of 4-Armed Vishnu, Siva in a Temple, Dancing Scenes

Have a look at panoramas of the bas-reliefs on the east wall:
Elephants and Warriors marching to War (East to West)
Elephants and Warriors marching to War (West to East)
Elephants and Warriors marching to War with Intermittent Fighting (East to West)
Elephants and Warriors meet in Battle

Have a look at panoramas of the bas-reliefs on the north wall:
The Chams defeating the Khmer


Moving on in Prasat Bayon you will encounter a lot of female energy: Everywhere you see devatas.

Picture by marhas

Picture by Toby Simkin

Robert McCarthy is now cataloging the 377 devatas at the Bayon. Peter Sharrock from the School of Oriental and African Studies, estimates that the original Bayon structure displayed 6,250 celestial dancers. Read his chapter “The mystery of the face towers" in the book Bayon: New Perspectives. This book brings together leading experts and their findings and insights about Bayon's art, architecture and inscriptions. Sharrock has new answers to one of the big questions about Bayon: Who are the guys on the face towers? Many experts have said that they depict the Mahayana deity Lokesvara. But Sharrock has a different idea. He sees Tantric influence. Tantrism flourished in northern India in the Middle Ages. Sharrock thinks that the face towers depict a tantric deity called Vajrasattva. Read more on World Cultures From New Perspectives.

Picture by Peter Broer
The central sanctuary of Prasat Bayon

Picture by marhas

And now have a look at the mysterious faces:

Picture by marhas

Picture by nac888

Picture by marhas

Picture by marhas

Picture by sharon.schneider

Picture by marhas

Picture by marhas

Picture by sharon-schneider

Picture by Anandajoti

Picture by foonie



Terrace of the Elephants

The 350 meters long Terrace of the Elephants was used by king Jayavarman VII as a platform from which to view public ceremonies and it was the base for his audience hall. It was attached to the palace of Phimeanakas, of which only a few ruins remain. The middle section of the wall is decorated with life size garuda and lions; towards either end you see elephants with their Khmer mahouts.

Picture by Alan Bennett

Picture by foonie

Picture by Norman Li

Picture by marhas
From the Terrace of the Elephants you see some of the twelve towers of Prasat Suor Prat. According to a Cambodian legend, the towers served as anchoring places for ropes which stretched from one to another for acrobats performing at festivals. See also this gallery of photos.



Ta Phrom

See Pictures

Picture by foonie

Picture by ND Strupler



Banteay Kdei

See Pictures



Banteay Srei

A 10th century temple dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva. It lies near the hill of Phnom Dei, 25 km north-east of Angkor Thom. Banteay Srei is built largely of red sandstone.

Picture by ASR Photos



Bakong

See Pictures



Beng Melea

Around 40 km east of Angkor. "Did you know that Angkor Wat has a stepsister? Born to the same father, King Suryavarman II, little is known about her", notes livingif.com. Beng Melea (means Lotus Pond) has not been restored until now. So one can see the original carvings and "the strength of the jungle pulling the temple down". It was built as a Hindu temple, but some carvings depict buddhist motifs. The primary material is sandstone. It is assumed that Beng Melea was built in the early 12th century.Read more in a great essay by Willard Van De Bogart: Stones in the Sky - Part V. See Pictures

Picture by Many Moon Honeymoon

Picture by Tomomi Sasaki
The jungle takes over.

Picture by Peter Waterman

Picture by Peter Waterman



Koh Ker

The Khmer empires capital was located in the Angkor area for 500 years. But there was one short interruption: In 928 A.D king Jayavarman IV created a rival capital in Koh Ker - 150 kilometers from todays Siem Reap. One way takes 2.5 hours. The empire was ruled from here for 23 years until his son Hashavarman II returned it to the Angkor area. The most impressive ruin is Prasat Thom (Big Temple), a 7tiere pyramid.


Picture by Arian Zwegers
Prasat Thom

Picture by duhangst

Picture by mrcharly



Baksei Chamkrong

On the left side of the way from Angkor Wat to Angkor Thom. Pictures



East Mebon

The temple stood on an artificial island at the center of the now dry East Baray reservoir.



Pre Rup

South of the East Baray. Pre Rup is aligned on a north-south axis with East Mebon.
Pictures by foonie.



Preah Khan

Northeast of Angkor Thom. See pictures by foonie.

Picture by ggallezot



Ta Keo

A causeway of 500 meters connects its eastern entrance to a landing stage on the Eastern Baray. Pictures by foonie



Ta Som

Northeast of Angkor Thom. See pictures by foonie.

Picture by foonie



Read what National Museum of Cambodia writes about
Khmer Art History
See also the National Geographic Documentary:
Stolen Treasures of Cambodia 1
Stolen Treasures of Cambodia 2
Stolen Treasures of Cambodia 3

Cambodia is trying to get back stolen art, for example from the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The so-called Kneeling Attendants are the highlight of its Southeast Asian collection. They originally adorned the sanctuary of Prasat Chen, at the temple complex of Koh Ker. Paramilitary groups trafficked them, sculpture by sculpture, overseas. Read:
Should Cambodian 'blood antiquities' be returned? on http://edition.cnn.com
Cambodia Says It Seeks Return Of Met Statues on nytimes.com
A legal battle in the US over the fate of a 10th-century Khmer statue has heated up, with federal prosecutors accusing the international auction house Sotheby’s of lying about its provenance in an effort to sell it for millions of dollars. They claim that both Sotheby’s and the statue’s owner knew the statue had been stolen from the Koh Ker temple complex in the early 1970s. Read on phnompenhpost.com.



Far from the madding crowd of Angkor Wat, in a remote southern province in the Mekong floodplain, Lawrence Osborne wades deep into Cambodia’s misty past—and the source of some of the country’s most magnificent and mysterious art. Read:
Cambodia's Undiscovered Temples on cntraveler.com about Phnom Da, Angkor Borei and Phnom Bayong.



Read more:

Angkor Archaeological Park: The incredible remains of the Khmer empire (1. chapter)

Siem Reap - the gate to Angkor

Hotels and Guesthouses in Siem Reap – and your reviews

Mouthwatering food in Siem Reap: Reviews of restaurants.

Magical Tonle Sap Lake: Living on the water and with the nature