A heavy thunderstorm right after lunch, just glad it wasn’t this morning when my guide took me by tuk-tuk to see Angkor Thom! It being the last day of a holiday here families were out in force camping by roadsides having their picnics, getting photographed at scenic spots, adding to the usual tourist crowd. Mayhem on the roads, large packs of cyclists, coaches, cars, tuk-tuks like I was in, and motorbikes proving who needs roads. What could have been ancient temple sounds reverberated through.

Angkor Thom is part of what was a major city back in Cambodia or Kampuchea’s heyday. Only the temples now remain, and they are being slowly restored, the French did a lot of the early restoration after they discovered the ruins in the 19th century. Sanskrit writing on the walls, carvings of everyday life, amorphous shapes of Hindu deities, a long-dead King’s head in various sizes looking out from everywhere. Look upon my works ye mighty and despair. Butterflies and dragonflies abounded. A thin green snake curled round a pillar on a bridge.

Some of the temples looked very much like the Mayan temples I saw in Mexico. My guide subscribed to the notion that the ancient societies were interconnected - or perhaps similar materials led to their buildings looking similar. A question for better minds than mine. The tuk-tuk driver kept us provided with cold bottles of water, very welcome in the sweaty heat. I had a good lunch back at Montra Nivesha, and booked up to see some Apsara dancing tomorrow evening. Got some cashew nut cookies in the afternoon and had to refuse many offers from tuk-tuk drivers.

In the evening went to see the tremendous Phare Circus. They have stalls selling reasonable ‘street’ food on site, slightly involved as you get vouchers first then pay using those. It was a challenge to find somewhere dry to eat yet not be blasted into the Arctic regions by the cooling fans around. It was raining hard after the show too. The Phare Circus had a warm-up act of youngsters doing some classical dances, you had to get there early for a good view of this.

The stunning main event was in a small Big Top. A small troupe displayed convincing circus skills to music from traditional Cambodian instruments. What impressed me about the performance was that it was Cambodian in flavour, that they had worked different acts into a coherent continuous storyline, and that it felt primal. Like scholars like talking about Urtexts for ancient works, this felt like Ur circus.