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Photo: The giant smiling faces at the Bayon
One of the most
recognized and famous place of interest here in
Angkor is the Bayon whereby you will have the
opportunity to witness the countless gigantic
smiling faces of Avalokitesvara in this temple.
This astonishing monument was built in the
1200's by the great Jayavarman VII and it is
located in the middle of Angkor Thom city and
there are roads leading to this temple directly
from the gates at each of the city's cardinal
points. Since the Bayon has no wall or moat of
its own, the walls of the city are used to
represent the mountains and oceans surrounding
the Bayon's Mount Meru. The Bayon is one of the
most famous tourist attraction in Angkor.
One particular
item of interest among tourists are the over one
thousand meters of bas relief consisting over
eleven thousand figures and depicting vivid
scenes of mythological and historical and daily
scenes and events on its outer wall.
This temple is believed to be the last state
temple built in Angkor. Although built as a
Mahayana Buddhist temple, the temple was later
converted to Hinduism in the middle of the 13th
century.
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