Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
South of Kompong Thom
There are several interesting sights south of Kompong Thom, easily combined in a
day-trip with Sambor Prei Kuk and including the stone-carving village of
Santok
and
the colourful hilltop temple complex at
Phnom Santok
.
Santok
15km southeast of Kompong Thom on NR6
Stretching for a couple of kilometres along NR6, the village of
SANTOK
(aka
Samnak
or
Kakaoh
) is instantly recognizable thanks to the long lines of stone carvings lined up
along the roadside - ranging from huge Buddha heads fit for a temple to diminutive
figurines which would fit comfortably on a small mantelpiece. Also in the village is
Santuk Silks
(Mon-Fri 7am-4pm; free;
T
012 906604), run by Vietnam veteran Bud
Gibbons and his wife, where you can see silk worms munching on mulberry, watch
spinners and weavers at work, and usually buy a scarf or two from the weavers (from
around $20).
3
Phnom Santok
2km north of NR6, 17km southeast of Kompong Thom (the turn-off from NR6 is about 100m past Santuk Silks in Santok village)
An enjoyable half-day trip from Kompong Thom, the jaunty modern hilltop temple
of
Phnom Santok
sits atop a 180m-high hill, conspicuous in the pancake-flat
countryside. The hilltop is a popular weekend destination, but quiet during the
week, when you can often have the place pretty much to yourself apart from the
occasional resident monk.
From the car park at the bottom, 809 steps climb steeply up the wooded hillside
(there's also a road to the top - too steep for tuk-tuks, although there might be a moto
at the bottom to take you up for a dollar or two if you don't want to hike up the eight
hundred-plus stairs). A pair of sweeping
naga balustrades
flank either side of the steps,
with more than five hundred miniature figures on either side playing tug-of-war with a
pair of giant snakes. The
summit
is topped with a colourful hotchpotch of mainly
modern viharas, shrines and pavilions. Directly behind the central cluster of buildings,
a rock overhang creates a natural shrine embellished with several small Buddhas carved
into the rock face, although no one seems to know how old they are. Past here, a tiny
path weaves across the hilltop past further small shrines and between large boulders
(including two balanced precariously on top of one another), while to the west, a
narrow path leads part of the way down the hill to a further collection of rock carvings,
including an impressive reclining Buddha.
Wat Hat Nokor
2km west of the village of Taing Kok, 70km from Kompong Thom • Donation • Public transport will drop you either in the village or at the
turning for the temple, from where motos are readily available ($4 return including waiting time) - if you're using public transport on to
Kompong Thom, you'll need to flag down a taxi or minibus, best done at Taing Kok's small market
The small, rural
Wat Hat Nokor
is notable mainly for the eleventh-century
temple
built by Suryavarman I. The temple was never finished, and it's assumed that either
the architect died or war intervened during its construction. A single gopura on the
eastern side of the temple gives access to a courtyard enclosing a cruciform
sanctuary,
Prasat Kuk Nokor
. The central section of the south wall has collapsed, but
you can still see a chamber built into the wall, where the sick came to be cured
using holy water blessed by flowing over the linga in the central sanctuary. The
library in the southeast corner of the courtyard was formerly used as a prison by the
Khmer Rouge.
