Posts Tagged ‘Angkor Wat’

ANGKOR WAT & THE TEMPLE COMPLEX – CAMBODIA

Thursday, June 24th, 2010

It has been a full day today.  I woke up around 5am and talked with Cindy for a while before meeting Mike for breakfast in the dining room of the Jasmine Lodge.  Our car arrived at 7:45am and we were on our way to the temple complexes of Angkor.  As we drove through the main entrance, we were first greeted by a popular mode of transportation for some of the temples.  We opted to hike in spite of the incredible heat and humidity (what were we thinking?).

After playing with the elephants, we walked toward our first temple of the day…but not before having the opportunity to  meet the Welcoming Committee.

The morning itinerary was really tight with stops to see the giant faces of Bayon, the South Gate of Angkor Thom, and Baphuon (the site for the movie “Temple of Doom”) before eating lunch.  Nothing “interesting” today on the menu – banana flower and chicken salad, yellow curry chicken, and fresh fruit.  After lunch, we wandered over to some of the little shops that surround the complex.  Mike picked me up a copy of a great book on ANGKOR from one of the kids pitching on the corner.  Unfortunately, it’s in Italian – but the pictures are amazing.

Together, Mike and I have over 720 pictures just from today’s visit to the temple complexes.  The jewel – the biggest and most impressive – of all the ruins is Angkor Wat.  This is the one I had been waiting for all day.  The others were spectacular but Angkor Wat is mystical and magical.

It took close to two hours to get through this complex and that was at a quick pace!  I could have easily spent an entire day here wandering the tunnels, looking at the many buddha’s, and climbing the massive spirals.  Around every corner is another mystery, carving, or story.

We wrapped up the day hiking up one of the temple mountains – Ta Keo – to check out the view.  Our guide did not join us on this hike.  He just waited for us at the bottom of the mountain.  What e didn’t know there was actually another temple up there but, much to our surprise, the path opened up to yet another set of amazing ruins.

They look huge because they are!  We climbed all the way to the top and stood among the spirals.  The view was spectacular, overlooking the valley and the distant Angkor Wat complex.  It was an inspiring way to end the day.  Our driver and guide dropped us off at the Jasmine Lodge where we couldn’t wait to get out of our sweat soaked clothing and into a cold shower!  Diner is yet to come….

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SIEM REAP, CAMBODIA

Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010

DISCLAIMER:  Forgive me if some of this doesn’t make sense or if you find my writing style not quite up to my usual standard.  I’m still battling some minor jet lag but, mostly, we’re just taking it all in.  Three countries and five cities in ten days!

I was up early this morning so I could Skype with Cindy.  It was awesome to see her beautiful face on my screen from the other side of the world!  We had a chance to catch up on things and explain some of the pictures I’ve been sending her.  It’s hard to imagine some of them if you’re not here.  Mike met me in the lobby for breakfast and then our car picked us up to take us to the airport.  It would be a quick flight on Vietnam Airlines from Saigon to Siem Reap.  We landed right on time around 12:30pm and our guy was there in his tuk-tuk to pick us up.  We had the whole day ahead of us.

There is a striking difference between Ho Chi Minh City and Siem Reap.  As we flew over, the first thing you notice is the farmland.  The second thing you notice is the lack of roads and highways.  It’s very rural, very basic, very underderveloped.

Once we checked into our hostel – the Jasmine Lodge – we made arrangements with Kunn (the owner) to have one of his employees stay with us for the day and escort us around town for food, shopping, and some adventure.  Turns out, we were able to go to all the “local” places because we had a translator and someone to help us “bargain” for goods!  The first stop was the Old Town Market where we did a little souvenir shopping.  I bought a couple of things for Cindy for the house and then we were off to find lunch.  Our dude helped us order some authentic Khmer food – some of it kind of spicy!

After lunch, we wandered the Market again and tasted some of the locally grown fruits.  I know it sounds like I don’t do anything but eat my way from country to country but there are so many things to experience.  And mixing with the locals is never dull!  And having Mike with me means we can always find an interesting challenge!!

After lunch, we jumped back into the tuk-tuk and made our way to the Angkor Museum in preparation of our tour of the temple ruins tomorrow.  This was a really cool place filled with antiquities from the 9th-13th centuries and a great timeline of the Kingdom of Cambodia.

The tour tomorrow is going to be about 7 hours and starts at 8am.  It’s going to be another long day but exploring Angkor Wat has been on my “bucket list” for a long time.  I can’t believe that I’m on the other side of the world ready to explore one of the greatest finds in civilization.  I know it’s going to be a day that I will never forget.  Inside the museum, there was a small version of the Temple Complex – which is HUGE (almost the square mileage of Los Angeles – that’s what they tell me).

After the museum tour, we rode around in the tuk-tuk and did some further exploring.  We stopped along one of the streets to check out the vendors.  Some very interesting fare on the cookers you might say.  We bought some crickets, grasshoppers, and large water bugs to try.  They had been either fried or roasted and then seasoned with various spices.  Most of them were crunchy but the water bug was a little “meaty.”  It tasted a bit like peanut butter actually.

After those tasty appetizers, our guide rustled us back into the tuk-tuk and we were off…bag of crickets in hand.  Because we have an early day tomorrow, we decided to eat dinner and head back to the hotel.  We stopped at another amazing little place – very regional, very local.  Only about 5 tables filled with people who clearly frequent there often and all know each other.  The “food of the day” was beef!

Mike and I did a little magic for the small group of people there.  It never ceases to amaze that, in spite of language and cultural differences, and little magic goes a long way!

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SUMMER COMES RUSHING AT ME

Wednesday, April 28th, 2010

We are hanging out in Albany, NY for a couple of days – trying to relax and catch up on a little work at the same time.  Our spring tour is almost over.  I am looking forward to performing in Utica and Albany, NY this weekend and then on to Newport News, VA later in May to wrap the season. Shows have been going great, audiences have been fantastic, and we’ve had numerous standing ovations and sold out performances.  It’s been a great season!  But when you’re on the road as much as we are, it’s difficult to put the energy and effort into all the projects I have on my plate.

We are brainstorming and working on several new illusions for next season as well as a couple smaller effects. I think they are going to be strong additions to our production.  Within the magic industry, there are only a handful of consultants and creators.  Each of them have their unique style and philosophy about the art.  I have the privilege of working with two of them who truly appreciate theatre and our philosophy.  I believe these guys understand exactly what we want to accomplish with our show.  Not simply a “magic show,” but something more.  They are valuable in helping us develop that one “thing” that continues to set us apart from other magical performers in our industry.  But in order to help us do that, we have to know what it is that we want.  One of the reviews I’m most proud of came from the Dayton Daily News, OH:

“One reason their combination of Broadway production and rock concert is turning an increasing number of heads is originality.  In a business rife with imitation, they take pride in doing things their own way.  The Spencers put on a show that’s equal parts Broadway production and rock concert.”

It is becoming more and more difficult to be unique in a field that is “rife with imitation.”  I’ve never quite understood those illusionists who would rather duplicate what others have done rather than carve their own niche, make their own way, or develop their own style.  I can’t imagine what it must be like to be David Copperfield.  His illusions are often the basis – not the inspiration, but rather the foundation – for what other magicians believe is “original.” This lack of originality only pushes us to work harder, to communicate with our consultants to come up with new ideas and illusions, and to find ways to incorporate them into our production in ways that no one else has.  It’s a combination of many elements – not just a few tricks on the stage. Making those tricks into “theatrical magic” is a much bigger challenge.

As Summer comes rushing at me, I’ll be working very hard to wrap up several of projects that have been “ignored” while touring – starting with the Hocus Focus curriculum.  I’ve been working on this for almost two years now.  I’m very proud of this work and hope it’s going to make a big difference in the field of special education and autism.  I have some strong motivation to get this one finished.  I’ve been asked to be a presenter at the international conference on special education being held in Riga, Latvia this summer.  It’s a great privilege and something I am very excited about doing.

In a nutshell, here’s what Summer 2010 looks like for me:

ITALY – I’m heading to Italy in late May, combining business and pleasure.  This trip is mostly a way to relax and spend some time with Cindy in one of the most romantic countries in the world.  I also collaborated on a research project at the University of Rome with the Healing of Magic and hope to meet Dr. Mario Occhipinti while there.

MAGIC CAMP – I’m teaching Magic Camp at LeTourneau University in Longview, Texas for week in early June.

SOUTHEAST ASIA – In late June, I’m hiking Vietnam/Cambodia/Thailand to work with New Future for Children orphanage.  This is going to be a very different trip for me in a part of the world that intrigues me.  I’m going to visit the temple ruins of Angkor Wat among many other things.

LATVIA – In early July, I’m speaking at the international conference on special education in Riga, Latvia.

MAGIC CAMP – And, finally, I’m teaching Magic Camp in Hampton, VA for a week in August.

And when not traveling, we will be working on some of the new illusions that will be a part of next year’s show!

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