Phanom Rung and Prasat Muang Tam

December 17, 2024 – Ban Chaloem Phra Kiat – Smart Resort – 34 km day ride

Gordon: Today we did an unladen ride to a couple of Khmer sites, Phanom Rung and Prasat Muang Tam.  They were both constructed by successive regimes between the 10th and 13th centuries, but predominantly by the Angkor culture in the 11th and 12th centuries.  Almost all of the iconography is Hindu.

Phanom Rung is spectacularly located on an extinct volcano that rises 400 feet above the surrounding plain.  It was a brutal but short climb up through the forest to the historic site.  Because of its location on a mountain, the religious site was considered to symbolize Mount Kailash, the holy mountain in western Tibet.

Prasat Muang Tam is a more modest site, lacking a large central prang.  It does however have four L-shaped ponds that contrast beautifully with the religious buildings.

Between historic sites we stopped at a roadside restaurant for lunch.  We had the usual larb (chopped meat and vegetables) and sticky rice.  It was excellent, but the surprise addition to the meal was a bowl of grubs (probably silk worm larvae) and mystery vegetables in a cold green sauce.  I didn’t wish to offend, so I ate it all, though I still harbour a few food safe concerns about cold food at open air restaurants lacking running water.  The larvae didn’t have a lot of flavour, but I’m happy to have finally tried them.