Cambodia was once home to the powerful Khmer Empire, which ruled much of Southeast Asia from the 9th to 15th centuries. The Khmer built hundreds of massive temples at their capital of Angkor Thom, including Angkor Wat, considered the largest religious structure in the world. Over time, the Khmer kingdom declined as the jungle overtook the abandoned temples. The site was rediscovered in the 19th century and restoration efforts continue today to reclaim the temples from the encroaching forest. Visitors can now see the ongoing struggle between nature and architecture at temples like Ta Prohm, where trees grow from the walls and their roots split the stone.

2. Kambodia is a medium sized country in south-east Asia.
Its an area is 181,035 Km2 and the population reaches a
.little more than 10 millions
Until about a decade ago the country suffered a
devastating civil war, the murderous regime of the
Khmer-Rouge, that was followed by Vietnamese
occupation. This poor country, opened to international
tourism only in the last few years, offers one of the
greatest wonders of the world – a UNESCO “World
. legacy site"- the marvelous Khmer temple complex
The Khmer dynasty ruled for about 600 years, between
the 9th and the 15th centuries. Their kingdom spread
over an area of what is now known as Cambodia,
Thailand, Laos and Vietnam. The Founder of the
Dynasty – king Jayavarman and his descendants, built,
in and around Angkor Thom, their capital, hundreds of
.gigantic temples

3. As time passed the Khmer regime has decayed, the city
and the temples were neglected and the tropical jungle
. covered the ruins
Angkor Thom was lost, forgotten and hardly known even
.to the local population
The site came back from oblivion in the 19th century
when Henry Mouhot, a French botanist investigated the
area and discovered the remains of the temples hidden
under the thick jungle vegetation. Excavation and
restoration works started at the turn of the 20th century
and are still in process. Though only a fraction of the
buildings have been restored, the splendor of the temples
is breath taking. No less fascinating is the successful
struggle of the wild jungle to re-capture the collapsing
.building

4. Here is jast a preliminary realization of the conflict betweein the trees to
the buildings

5. Angkor Thom city remanis

6. The gates of Angkor Thom - the ancient capital - are guarded by ferociouos stone
soldiers. Many of the buildings, including the 8 meter high city walls can still be
seen. In its climax, in the 12th century, Angkor Thom was one of the biggest
! cities of the world, with nearly a million inhabitants

11. The city walls and the various structures are covered with beautiful reliefs

15. Battles and victories descriptions on the angkor walls

16. We start our tour, just to get the idea of a Khmer temple,
(.with– “Prasat Kravan” (The flowers temple

19. A view inside the towers and beautiful reliefs in front

21. The eternal struggle between man made structure and the jungle. Many temples
have been cleaned and restored, but some were left nearly un-touched, clearing
only a narrow lane for visitors (e.g. “Beng Melea” the “Jungle temple”(. Some
others were partially cleaned and remnants of the rain forest can be seen
entangled within the walls. We are now on the way towards two such temples (Ta
Prohm and Koker( situated about 140 km from the province capital Siem Reap.
Most of the famous temples are in the vicinity of this town and it serves as a home
.base of all the excursions in the area

22. Beng Melea” temple - The entrance clearly shows the“
.struggle between the nature and man made structures

26. Trees grow on the wall and simply
crack it apart
Roots ensnare the buildings in
a tight envelope

28. Only in the underground corridors, or few other corners we can see the
naked walls and thair decorations

29. Some more evidence to the “jungle force”- “Ta-Prohm” temple

34. Koker – The “five towers Temple” – Each tower and his private tree

36. The tree envelopes the tower from outside while the roots penetrate into
the hollow cavities and rooms within

38. Finally – an example of
a cleaned and
beautifully restored
.
temple
Pre Rup “ (the “
staircase temple) Built
by King Vorman the 2nd
.for his father’s funeral

42. Pre Rup“ – View from the top floor“

45. We are on our way to the “Koker Pyramid temple”. The colonade along the
road has partially collapsed, but the pyramid itself is still 90 meters high and
proves a real challenges to climbers

49. view from ”The “Koker Pyramid temple

50. Banteay Kdei” temple. Here we’ll direct our attention less towards the building “
itself and more towards the multitude of ornaments: sculptures and reliefs
. depicting plants, lions and human figures , ex: dancers, guards etc

56. Ta Som” temple – a magnificent entrance adorned with huge carved portraits“

59. .Once you go through - plenty of reliefs, sculptures and various decorations

64. And one more hidden temple,“Banteay Kdei”,but inside is a wonderful art display

68. Here we are in ”Bayon” complex with its 54 towers, each tower and wall is
differently ornated.One is stunned by the beauty and the eyes cannot absorb it all

72. Thousands of reliefs on the walls around

75. Finally, the greatest of them all – “Angkor Vat”. Considered the biggest temple in
the world, this complex is spread over 30 hectares and is surrounded by walls
( .and water filled moats ( remains thereof are seen below

77. A multitude of courtyard and colonnades. The central tower is a challenge
.to climb up and even a greater challenge to climb back down

79. And for “dessert” - local beauties who managed to keep their elegance for more
.than thousand years

81. Our visit to the
Cambodian temples is
over and it is time to
return to our modern
noisy, concrete
covered civilization .
The sights and
experiences will be
kept in our memory for
.a long time