Phnom Chisor

Phnom Chisor stands on a hill about a hundred metres above the Takeo plain, a Hindu temple of the early eleventh century built of laterite and brick with sandstone lintels, its sanctuary still holding images and a working monastery alongside. The original approach was a stone stairway on the eastern side running down to a gate and a baray, and looking along that line from the top, with two smaller temples on the axis and the paddies stretching away, is the thing to see; most visitors now climb the newer southern stairway of some four hundred steps instead. Carved lintels survive over several doorways. The site is quiet, sees few foreign visitors, and combines with Tonle Bati on a day out from the capital.

What you actually see

• The hilltop sanctuary - the eleventh-century temple and its images.
• The eastern axis - the old stairway, gate and baray in a straight line.
• Carved lintels - surviving sandstone carving over the doorways.
• The paddy panorama - the Takeo plain from the summit.

When to go

November to March; the climb is hard in the hot season. Early morning is coolest and the light along the eastern axis is best then. Holy days bring local worshippers.

Honest expectations

The stairway is around four hundred steps with little shade. The temple is ruined in parts and the modern monastery buildings sit awkwardly against it. Facilities are minimal and vendors work the stairs. Interpretation is nonexistent.

Nearby

Tonle Bati lies north; Phnom Penh is beyond it.