Let’s go back to the Temples. For Temples were, essentially, the main reason why I made so much effort to get on the other side of the World. And before we enter the mysterious world of the ancient Khmer’s Empire, let me just remind you of the few interesting facts about it.
The Khmer Empire existed way back in 9-13 centuries and combined not just Cambodia, but also Vietnam, Laos and Thailand. Yes, it was huge!
Apart from “usual” historical events, like conquest of your neighbours, Khmers have also become famous for their construction skills.
They did build on a large scale. If it was a temple – stretched for up to 10sq miles, was surrounded by the fortified moat filled with water and the temples themselves impersonated castles, had libraries, etc. In some sense, there were the towns with the temples inside their walls, ready to become a protected retreat in the unfortunate event of a war. An interesting fact about Angkor Temples – they were built with no concrete or any other binding substance! The blocks were attached together with the locking rods.
Absolutely amazing, as is the fact they stood a test of time as much as they did and the only force that did brought some down was a force of nature – some temples were discovered in the jungles as late as 18 century and had to be rescued from tenacious grip of the trees and lianas. Even now not every temple has been cleared and the effect of the Tomb Rider essence is very strong. It has to be seen to be believed!