The Angkor Temples--Angkor Wat

As part of my undergraduate studies, I spent a semester at Edinburgh University and took a class that explored the notion of 'the sublime'.  My professors connected it to a series of Victorian novels, landscapes and a general obsession with trying to understand that which could not be defined; I appreciated this nuance but didn't necessarily understand it. Not until Angkor Wat.

The Angkor temples cover nearly 400 square kilometers in Central Cambodia and were created between the 9th and 15th centuries.  There are over 37 temples, some huge, in this space. The site has been capital to the Khmer Empire at several points in history and has survived occupation, civil war and looting at various points in recent history.  

From Siem Reap, our tuk tuk driver picked us up and ferried us to the ticket station--a remote building some 10k away from the entrance.  We paid our one-day $14 fee and were given photo ID cards that we were required to procure at various points in our day.  Most people opt to spend 2-3 days wandering the temples but since time was of the essence, we crammed the 4 biggest temples into one day.  

First Stop Angkor Wat 
Angkor Wat, built between 1113-1150, is the largest temple of the Angkor complex and is considered the world's largest single religious monument.  From a distance it looms impressively and when you get closer it doesn't lose that appeal.  

Despite the 38-degree heat, the temples were teeming with tourists.  We crossed paths with people from all over the globe who followed us from place to place.  Fortunately, we managed to snap a few pictures that didn't show the hordes. 

12th century etchings 

Buddha 

 

 Embracing my inner Asian tourist 

High angle shot 

We spent a solid two and a half hours exploring before catching our tuk tuk to the next temple.  But over and over again, I couldn't shake the sensation of woah.  My brain did not comprehend what I was seeing.  I didn't, I don't understand how something so vast, so intricate could be built in a time before heavy machinery.  To me, Angkor Wat was a testament to the human spirit, an ode to the sublime.