Meekers In Thailand: Taste of Angkor Wat

During our trip through northeastern Thailand we decided to visit Phimai historical park. This park protects one of the most important Khmer temples of Thailand. It is located in the town of Phimai in the Nakhon Ratchasima (sometimes called Korat) province. This town is about 6 miles off of the main highway traveling from Bangkok to Udorn. The temple in Phimai marks one end of the Ancient Khmer Highway from Angkor. As the enclosed area of 1020 meters x 580 meters is comparable with that of Angkor Wat, Phimai must have been an important city in the Khmer empire. Most buildings are from the late 11th to the late 12th century, with similar style as Angkor Wat. However, even though the Khmer at that time were Hindu, the temple was built as a Buddhist temple,as Buddhism in the Khorat area dated back to the 7th century. Inscriptions name the site Vimayapura (which means city of Vimaya), which developed into the Thai name Phimai.

View of one section of ruins

In Cambodia is a very famous tourist destination called Angkor Wat (Angkor Temple). Angkor Wat was first a Hindu, then subsequently a Buddhist, temple complex in Cambodia and the largest religious monument in the world. The temple was built by the Khmer King Suryavarman II in the early 12th century in Yasodharapura (present-day Angkor), the capital of the Khmer Empire, as his state temple and eventual mausoleum. It has become a symbol of Cambodia, appearing on its national flag, and it is the country's prime attraction for visitors.

Elder and Sister Moleff

We were traveling with Elder and Sister Moleff, who are the new Family History senior Missionary Couple in Thailand. Elder and Sister Moleff hail from Prosser Washington. They went to the same Chapel as Lois's Sister Beth. They lived in the ward that covered the opposite side of the Yakima river but did meet in the same building. Elder and Sister Moleff are on their second mission together - recently returning from Novosibirsk Russia .

I enjoyed talking with the young lady who works on site. She has worked on site here for about 10 years. Her husband is also works at the site. She really enjoyed telling me about the site. Her responsibilities mostly included landscaping upkeep. She was not a tour guide - but we got that kind of treatment for about 15 minutes that we got her attention.

Note the worker down low in front

Worker with Elder Meeker - Elder Meeker never misses a change to use his Thai language skills.
Based on her attire - you would assume it is cold - It was very hot that day (like every day in Thailand)