The first sight of Udong, 40 miles northwest of Phnom Penh, is a jumble of spires of stupas atop a wooded mountain rising from the surrounding plains. Udong was Cambodia’s capital for over two hundred years from 1618, established when the royal family of the time was driven from the city of Longvek by invading forces. It was abandoned in 1866 in favour of Phnom Penh. On closer inspection Udong is seen to be two hills one slightly elevated than the other and said to resemble the head of a naga or cobra. Several interesting stories were in circulation about this hill during the heyday of Udong. The smaller hill has several religious edifices and the other hill mainly memorials of monarchs from the 17th to the 19th centuries along with Buddha statues and viharas. The remains of Udong cover an area of about 1,500 meters by 700 meters.
The best way to see the monuments on the hills is to climb the 509 steps leading to the newest stupa on the higher hill in which relics of the Buddha has been interred and which also affords the best views over the plains below. A path at the top allows visitors to go from one hill to the other without too much bother. Among the more significant antiquities on the smaller hill is a building that looks like a temple but is really the Ta San Mosque. Udong was the base of the Muslim Cham people of Cambodia who coexisted with the Buddhists here. The city is still their spiritual and religious centre. There are several small stupas and Buddha statues scattered around this hill. The taller hill is named Phnom Preah Reach Throap or Hill of the Royal Fortune as according folklore a 16th century Khmer king buried the royal treasure here to prevent it from falling into the hands of invaders.
The most impressive structure on this hill appears to have been Vihear Preah Ath Roes, a huge statue of the Buddha housed in a massive structure supported by eight tall columns built in 1911 by King Sisowath that was seriously damaged during the Cambodian wars in the 1970s. Now a new massive golden Buddha statue has taken the place of the damaged one but the enclosure is yet to be replaced. Close by are several small viharas with statues of the seated Buddha which are popular with devotees. At the northwestern end of the hill are several memorials impressive and plain of past Cambodian monarchs and the stupa with Buddha’s relics completed in 2002. Down the hill is a memorial to more recent events in the history of Cambodia, a pavilion depicting Khmer Rouge atrocities and at the bottom of the hill a building dedicated to the memory of some of the victims of the Pol Pot regime. Many visitors make a day trip from Phnom Penh to Udong to see this part of Cambodia’s impressive and sometimes sad history, to see views from the hills of the endless plain with pagodas and stupas below and of the sunset which is truly magnificent from here.
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