The ruins of the great city of Angkor
Sun rises behind Angkor Wat, which unusually faces west, on a hot and humid summer day during rainy season. I was very lucky to get a good sunset on that day, as it rained constantly.
Machu Picchu, Tenochtitlán, Heracleion. The list of lost cities found in jungles, deserts or under the sea by modern archaeologists goes on. Once myths, now part of history. El Dorado, Atlantis, Z and many others still fuel the imagination of dreamers who hope to one day stumble upon ruins.
The city of Angkor was never lost, per se, but so much of it's history has been forgotten that it's almost as it has. The Khmer Empire was the greatest on earth and to this day parts of it are still being unearthed.
Capital of the great Khmer Empire in the 12th century, Angkor must have been a magnificent place to be in it's time. With a population estimated at the time of more than a million people, it's total area was greater than today's Paris and has more stones than all structures in Egypt combined.
In Angkor (word that stands for capital in sanskrit) we find the symbol of Cambodia, pictured in the country's national flag, the Angkor Wat (Temple City or Pagoda City).
The Angkor Wat is surrounded by a 3km long moat, with a stone bridge taking to the central part.
The Angkor Wat was the first temple I visited during my stay in large complex. It's the largest religious monument in the world covering 162.6 hectares of land and was built by Suryavarman II in dedication to the Hindu god Vishnu, the guy that unified the empire.
Cambodia is HOT and HUMID. I can't stress more these two words more without waking up the neighbors. Go early and take tons of water. I mean at least 3 liters per person. There will be vendors selling you stuff everywhere. Water is one dollar.
Here is a map so you can better understand the place.
Millions of tourists per year, specially during dry season, becomes unsustainable and causes damage to the ruins, which are stepped on and touched indiscriminately. This picture was taken at the entrance of the Wat, to the west of the Cruciform Terrace off the limits of the above map.
From the Cruciform Terrace you start to get a better view of the towers, that disappear behind the walls as you get close.
Angkor Wat has a huge corridor surrounding the temple like a frame. Along the walls are inscriptions of great battles of the Khmer empire. View from inside the Gallery of 1000 Buddhas into the Battle of Lanka corridor.
Engraving in the outer corridor of the Wat with what seems to be a bullet hole, from the confrontations between the Vietnamese and the Khmer Rouge.
Man takes a break from the hot and humid Cambodian summer outside a window at the Wat.
Angkor Wat was originally built as a Hindu temple later converted to Buddhist in the 14th or 15th century. Here a Buddha declared the base of a column.
Standing under doorways that seem to repeat into almost infinity gives the impression you are standing in between mirrors, but with no sign of your reflexion.
A butterfly rests on the centuries old engraving on the north side of the Angkor Wat.
Very similar to the view from the Cruciform Terrace is the entrance of the main temple. It's interesting to note that these temples were not built as a place for worship, but as a house for several gods, so they were never intended to be visited by masses of people.
Inside the main building is a dry pool. There is a similar one on the opposite side.
Columns full of inscriptions in Sanskrit decorate the interior of the main temple.
Finally I get to the main temple. Looking at the ruins, I can't help but imagine how this was in it's prime. A lot of the decoration was in gold and was looted, and in wood, which rotted away.
A couple chats and rests in the shade just outside the central part of the temple. Possibly the girl wasn't allowed to go the top of the temple. It won't matter how hot it is, you have to wear a shirt with sleaves, pants that go under the knee and no hat to enter the topmost bit of the temple.
From the highest point you have a clear view of what was a great city, now reclaimed by the jungle. With the exception of the temples, the houses of the gods worthy of stone, mortals built their houses with wood. That's why only the temples survived while everything else disappeared.
Inscriptions on the columns were added later and were written in either Sanskrit or ancient Khmer.
Two Chinese toursist pose for photos inside one of the long hallways of the Wat. Many Chinese and Korean tourists love to take pictures of themselves, it seems even more than enjoying the site.
Two young monks rested beside the empty pools at the base of the temple. Many people would stop and donate them money and pray.
A statue of Vishnu, the God with 4 pairs of arms is now in the southwest corner of the temple, but it is believed that this statue may have been originally placed in the very center of Angkor Wat, at the top.
It is truly a breathtaking experience to visit Angkor Wat. So much raw history right in front of your eyes and still so much to be uncovered.
What's next? Machu Picchu, Tenochtitlán, Heracleion? Maybe. If I'm lucky I might stumble upon Atlantis too.