Angkor Wat

There are two great complexes of ancient temples in Southeast Asia, one at Bagan in Burma, the other at Angkor in Cambodia. The temples of Angkor, built by the Khmer civilization between 802 and 1220 AD, represent one of humankind's most astonishing and enduring architectural achievements.

This is a sunrise view from Angkor Wat.... so peaceful.


Elephants scuptures

Since the 1990s Angkor Wat has seen a resumption of conservation efforts and a massive increase in tourism. The temple is part of the Angkor World Heritage Site, established in 1992. The temple has become a symbol of Cambodia, and is a source of great pride for the country's people. A depiction of Angkor Wat has been a part of every Cambodian national flag since the introduction of the first version circa 1863.



Angkor Wat has become a major tourist destination: attendance figures for the temple are not published, but in 2004 the country received just over a million international arrivals, of whom according to the Ministry of Tourism 57% planned to visit the temple. The influx of tourists has so far caused relatively little damage, other than some graffiti; ropes and wooden steps have been introduced to protect the bas reliefs and floors, respectively. Tourism has also provided some additional funds for maintenance approximately 28% of ticket revenues across the whole Angkor site is spent on the temples although most work is carried out by foreign government-sponsored teams rather than by the Cambodian authorities.