While the town's backpacker center was glitzy and fake, it was somehow not as bad as I had expected and certainly not as bad as Bangkok's Khao San Road or as in Luang Prabang. And the temple complex is indeed impressive although it gets "busy" at some places.
So, I'm glad I made the trip although I most probably will not bother going there again. In two full days, you can rush through the sites with some advance planning, but if you have the time, I suggest that you allocate three days.
The southern gate of Angkor Thom (which means Great City) is one of the most famous sights. The bridge crossing the moat is flanked by 54 demons (asuras, on the right) and 54 gods engaged in an epic tug of war as they are pulling a giant seven-headed naga. They're probably churning the Sea of Milk.
This is part of the Hindu creation myth where the gods and demons cooperate for 1,000 years by alternately pulling a giant naga (Vasuki) coiled around Mount Mandara to produce the elixir of immortality. As in real life, once the objective is achieved, one partner to the deal cheats the other. In this myth, the gods refuse to share the elixir with their partners (the asuras) who then try to steal the elixir.
It makes me wonder, if you cannot trust Hindu gods, who can you trust?
Bayon looks like a pile of rubble from the distance but actually has bas-reliefs more impressive than those of Angkor Wat. Bayon has three levels and on the first level alone, the bas-reliefs stretch for 1,200 meters.
The Ta Phrohm temple is very interesting because the temple has (almost) been left in the same state as it was when it was "found" by the French around 150 years ago. This means that the jungle has only been partially cleared; in particular, several large trees have been left standing such as the silk cotton tree in the picture below.
The last picture is from Angkor Wat and is basically only chosen because the sky was so wonderfully clear and blue that day.
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