No tensions at Ta Muen Thom

Off-duty Khmer and Thai troops, two local women and myself enjoy a moment of bonding at Prasat Ta Muen Thom

I mentioned a few days ago that during my visit to Prasat Ta Muen Thom, on the border between Cambodia and Thailand, the Thai and Cambodian troops stationed in the vicinity were mingling freely, sharing stories, jokes and cigarettes. Though the temple site itself is clearly in the control of the Thai soldiers, who were patrolling the area with their weapons on display, the wooden gate that leads across the current border and into Cambodia, was open and two Khmer soldiers wandered over to join a couple who were already sitting with their Thai counterparts. It was all very amicable and Tim and I joined the group for a chat with our smattering of Khmer and Thai and their limited English. A couple of women also joined in to add a bit more spice and laughter and half an hour later we were on our way, after the obligatory photo opportunity of course. The paved road that leads right up to the temple from the Thai side was under the watchful eye of a Thai army post. I didn't venture past the gate that leads onto the Cambodian side but read recently that they've also put a road up to the site. There was no entry fee from the Thai side, and the temple sits about 60kms southeast of Phnom Rung, as the crow flies.

These two Khmer soldiers and their dog had just wandered through the gate that marks the border

Here's the gate amongst the trees and the edge of the temple's laterite steps

A look at the end of the paved road before the path winds to the temple from the Thai side

A sober reminder not to stray off the paths or take a leak in the forest next to the temple site

Ta Muen's sad legacy

The head of this dvarapala male guardian has been chiselled away at Prasat Ta Muen Thom

The destruction of the intricate sandstone carvings at the border-straddling temple of Prasat Ta Muen Thom is heartbreaking. On my visit to the temple last week, which is the subject of a long-running dispute over ownership between Thailand and Cambodia, it was obvious that the temple, because of its remote location in the forested border area, had suffered badly at the hands of temple thieves over the years. For several years in the 1980s it was held by the Khmer Rouge, who in league with art dealers, tried to remove all of the temple's carvings, damaging many in their crude attempts which included the use of explosives. The main sanctuary and satellite buildings are now devoid of any lintels or pediments and the dvarapala male guardians and female devata that decorated the pilasters next to the doorways, are in a distressed state, as you can see from the pictures here. Heads have been chiselled away, whole sandstone blocks removed or feet have been left as a reminder of the beautiful 11th century carvings that once graced this important temple. I was so pleased to be able to visit this temple, particularly in light of the on-going border tensions between the two countries, but the destruction I found sadly reminded me of visits to other temple sites like Preah Khan of Kompong Svay where similar antiquity thefts have left the temple a mere shadow of its former self. More from my visit to the Ta Muen group of temples soon.

This decorated pilaster and male guardian have been destroyed by temple thieves

More crude attempts to remove cravings have left horrifying scars in the sandstone sanctuary

Further destruction, this time of a female devata, whose dress and feet remain

Border surprise

9 temples in a day was today's diet on my tour of the Khmer temple sites of Isaan, northeast Thailand. It included the disputed border temple of Ta Muen Thom, where we found the wooden gate masquerading as the border post, wide open and the Khmer and Thai troops mingling freely with each other, sharing jokes and cigarettes. Nice to see, though the Thais were clearly in charge of the temple compound itself. I didn't expect to be able to visit the temple due to the border tensions over the past year, so was cock-a-hoop to get in, though the destruction that has been wrought on the wall carvings was upsetting. Pictures showing the tampering will be posted when I return to Phnom Penh on Friday. We started the day early at 6am with our car and driver Mr Moo. First stop was Phanom Rung (the Thai spelling), which with its hill-top location and wealth of carving just pipped Phimai in the temple charts, though I rate both very highly. More later. Mueang Tam (Thai spelling again) was a quiet oasis broken only by the party of 100 schoolchildren who arrived just as we were leaving, thank goodness. We clocked up visits to some of the smaller sites in the vicinity, including the three temples that constitute the Ta Muen group right next to the Thai-Cambodian border. We finished off at Prasat Ban Phluang in the pouring rain before heading for our overnight stop in Surin. The hotel we booked wasn't swanky in any way afterall, so no wonder they gave it to us at rock-bottom price. We have a couple more temples to visit in the morning before we head back to Khorat for 1 more night and then to Bangkok for a night. The highlight of the day, besides the high of the temples, was our lunchtime stop in the town of Ban Kruat where we found Mr Dang and his restaurant. He produced a full English menu with every conceivable English pub/cafe grub you could ask for. I had steak and kidney pie, chips and baked beans and it was superb. Mr Dang serves the expats in the district, who he said numbered more than 200 families, with many coming from the US, England and Scandinavia. A corner of England in an unlikely setting.