Khmer Spa: Neak Pean/ afternoon of 8/3

Neak Pean means "twisted together" and it's so named because at the base of the circular platform runs a gigantic stone snake with coiled body twisted around like a soft-serve cone frozen in gray stone. The temple sat in the center of a square man-made pond, 230 feet on each side, and was reached by boat. It seems to have been a healing center. Wanna told us that "in the formerly time" of King Jayavarman 7th, astrologists would diagnose which "element" was responsible for the sickness, and then you could go to one of the four sides of the pond, where water would drain out of a gargoyle shaped like an animal representing that element. The pond is supposed to represent the Himalayan hot-spring lake of Anavatapta, at the top of the universe, which gives birth to the four great rivers of the earth (so says my guidebook, without telling me what the four great rivers were...) and has curative powers revered in India. Although it was the rainy season, the pond was dry during our visit, so we could just walk to the central temple. Actually the kids were more interested in sculpting with a pile of sand conveniently left on a set of stairs.