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.
Um …the worm meal looks delicious
My struggles with eating that dish really had nothing to do with the larvae, it was the cold, slimy sauce. Served in another dish, say a nice larb, I think the larvae would be fine.
wonderful. thanks so much for all the amazing photos and for sharing your experiences.
We’re honoured that you are taking the time to read our scribblings and look at our photos. We’re in Southeast Asia until February 4th, so lots more to come.
Some beautiful places where it appears you can wander around at your own pace with very few other tourists. We all need to try eating larvae. I hear it’s going to be part of our future.
All of the historical parks are lovely places to visit, full of birds and interesting trees. There are few tourists in this region, so there is an unhurried feeling at each of the sites.
There really does need to be less meat, particularly beef and lamb, in our collective future. The people in Isaan are ahead of the curve: they’ve been enjoying insects, frogs, rodents and anything else they can catch for centuries.