Let’s start with this assumption: Cambodia is magnificent. Impressive. Elaborate but traditional. Cambodia is Angkor Temples, but not only. That’s the story behind it.

Let’s begin with the “already seen stuff” – Angkor Wat, the largest religious monument in the world, on a site measuring 162.6 hectares. Originally constructed as a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Vishnu for the Khmer Empire, it was gradually transformed into a Buddhist temple towards the end of the 12th century. The temple is at the top of the high classical style of Khmer architecture. It has become a symbol of Cambodia, appearing on its national flag, and it is the country’s prime attraction for visitors.

Angkor is not only one main temple though: there are tons of other temples, some bigger and some other smaller, nearby and far far away. They are also not nearly as old as some European medieval castles: Angkor was built between the 9th and the 15th centuries and was abandoned in 1431.

Let’s face the second most famous one – Angkor Thom.

As you can see, this is the temple of the thousands faces – which are incredibly realistic according to certain daylight. To access this temple complex you will need to enter a gate, but not a random gate. Like this epic gate, and it’s your choice how to reach Angkor Thom, elephant or TukTuk.

Nonetheless, there is another way more famous temple for few non-historical related quests. Indeed, the Ta Phrom temple appeared in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider‘s film and this granted a worldwide visibility.

Guess why it was THE chosen one for this kind of adventure film. Unlike most Angkorian temples, Ta Prohm is in much the same condition in which it was found: the photogenic and atmospheric combination of trees growing out of the ruins and the jungle surroundings have made it one of Angkor’s most popular temples with visitors.

I should mention at least one more temple, which was super photogenic: Neak Pean which is an artificial island with a Buddhist temple on a circular island. An island into an island. Neak Pean was originally designed for medical purposes: the ancients believed that going into these pools would balance the elements in the bather, thus curing disease.

Then i can throw in few more pics about more noteworthy temples -for a full list you can look here.

Then some details – going from the door-to-door symmetry to the Buddhist flags:

And then, when Mother Nature takes over. A small seed can disrupt history.

And last but not least, few more local impressions.

To the next one – one more story about Cambodia and then toward New Zealand!