Is this the best intruder alarm?

Angkor Wat is a Hindu-Buddhist temple complex in Cambodia and is a beautiful place

I got to visit there on my travels

There are literally thousands of temples, located on a site measuring 162.6 hectares 

You need a few days and even then, you only scratch the surface of the wonders

I was with a group and we were dropped by a tour bus with our guide

The group started to fan out over this temple ground

Much to the annoyance of the guide

The guide wanted us to around her

The guide announced to everybody

“While temple has been swept for mines, I cannot guarantee we found them all”

Funny, how, at that point we filed in single file behind the guide

Being careful to only step where somebody ahead had stepped

I’m sure you know when to travel you need to respect the people and places

And not to place first world ideas and ideals on what is not a first world place

Angkor Wat is the most amazing place I’ve ever visited and it’s a photographer’s dream

In those days I was shooting 35mm film

The photos of the temples, trees and roots are gorgeous in black and white

One of the tour group said, 

“wouldn’t it be great if we came back tonight and shot some photos in the dark”

In this temple there were 2 guards, dressed like Khmer Rouge soldiers

In perfect English, one said, “I wouldn’t come back as we alarm the place”

The tourist who mentioned coming back had a “I don’t take no for an answer” look 

At which point the guards held up 2 mines and said,

“When we are not here, we activate these as intruder alarms”

It wouldn’t surprise you, we stayed in the bar and didn’t try and be heroes that evening

When travelling respect advice from the locals

And be careful of intruder alarms