Located within the walls of the 13^th Century Khmer city of Anchor Thom, the Buddhist temple of Prasat Bayon watches over its surroundings with over 200 pairs of smiling eyes.  Part of the immense Angkor Archaeological Park, the Bayon lies just a kilometre away from its more famous neighbour, the vast sprawling temple complex of Angkor Wat. 
 
Lesser known perhaps, but Prasat Bayon is equally iconic to many of those who visit the Park.  And while Angkor Wat is known for the grand scale of its construction, the Bayon by contrast looks as though its builders have tried to squeeze too much architecture into too small a space.
 
The Bayon is the state temple of Angkor Thom, the capital city of King Jayavarman VII’s Khmer Empire.  King Jayavarman was the first of the Khmer rulers to be Buddhist (Previously, Khmer culture had been Hindu) and the Bayon is unique in being the first and only Buddhist temple within the nine square-kilometres encompassed by the city walls.
 
Prasat Bayon is set out on three separate levels, each higher level within the bounds of the last.  The first two levels consist of galleries that are extravagantly decorated with detailed bass-relief carvings that follow a clockwise path.   The carvings on the walls of the outer galleries show scenes from everyday Khmer life as well as depictions of various battles between the Khmer armies and their enemies.  The inner galleries, as in many other parts of the city, are carved with images of figures and scenes from Hindu mythology, such as the creation story, the churning of the sea of milk.
 
The third level is the part of the temple for which it has become famous and which attracts the most attention from tourist cameras.  This level comprises 54 square towers.  On each side of every tower, a gigantic face has been carved which smiles serenely down through hooded eyelids.  It is not clear whether these 200-plus charismatic faces depict the Buddha principle, or King Jayavarman, or some peculiar combination of the two.
 
Visiting the Temple
 
Visiting Prasit Bayon, the wider city of Angkor Thom and the Angkor Archaeological Park in which they are located is easily arranged from the nearby town of Siem Reap.  Hotels in the area are of a very high standard and 5-star accommodation is plentiful.  Worthy of a recommendation: Raffles Grand Hotel D’Angkor boasts award-winning spa facilities, set in 15 acres of old-world colonial splendour; while the AMATAO Tropical Residence provides a uniquely different luxury experience by having styled its grounds as carefully sculpted, lush tropical jungle.
 
All leading hotels in the area are geared towards making your visit as easy as possible and will be happy to arrange all transport to and from the Archaeological Park, experienced guides and helicopter or light-aircraft tours of the sight, as required.

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