Angkor Wat, Cambodia

 This is a magical place, there is no doubt about that. 

The Khmer Empire’s various capitals thrived here from the 9th to 15th centuries, while their rulers presided over an empire that stretched from Myanmar (Burma) to Vietnam. Including forested areas and newly discovered “suburbs” Angkor covers more than 400 square miles.

Though just one of hundreds of surviving temples and structures, the massive Angkor Wat is the most famed of all Cambodia’s temples—it appears on the nation’s flag—and it is revered for good reason. The 12th century “temple-mountain” was built as a spiritual home for the Hindu god Vishnu.

The temple is an architectural triumph laden with artistic treasures like the bas-relief galleries that line many walls and tell enduring tales of Cambodian history and legend.  I did not take a lot of pictures of these, because it was hard to capture just how cool the story telling technique is.  The stories are largely about gods, but some center on man.  The majesty of the temple, with restoration that is more complete than anywhere else that we traveled to, is well captured in this reflecting pond shot.