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I'd seen a picture of Angkor Wat, the most famous of the Temples in Cambodia,  from Isobels' last trip - and had decided then I had to see it for myself. I was not disappointed...

In fact, one visit was not enough as there is too much to take in with a single trip. So we head for Ankor Wat late afternoon and stay for a sunset, then visit a few days later at dawn - avoiding the madding crowds.

We pass through the swathe of postcard sellers and head over the surrounding moat - which is actually part of a massive irrigation system - through the outer walls of the temple and on into its core.

The temple itself is not one but many small temples - each adorned with bas relief's on every surface that is not a step. The temples are still in use and we meet a number of Buddhist monks attending to their duties - most are early twenties as their elders were all but exterminated by the Khmer Rouge.

The temple (Wat) was 're-discovered' in 1860, having been lost for centuries. It was built by Suryavarman II between 1112 and 1152 to honor the Hindu god Vishnu.

The lower levels consist of an outer corridor with incredible bas reliefs showing numerous historical battle scenes and religious stories such the 'Churning of the Ocean of Milk' - this piece shows 88 asuras (demons) battling with 92 deva (gods) pulling on a giant serpent in a celestial tug of war. The serpent, wrapped around a sacred mountain mounted on Buddha's back (represented by a turtle) causes the sea to churn and creates the elixir of eternal life - the gods win this and live forever. Awww!

The central temple, on three stories, is made up of interlinked galleries around central squares. Numerous Buddha statues await as you climb the treacherously steep stairs to the top. It is here we watch our first sunset.

Its not really possible to take in the enormity of the construction task that created such a perfect temple - each bas relief carving is perfect and matches the next yet there must have been an army of stonemasons chiselling away for years to complete the work.  I wonder how many cups of tea, with eight sugars and milk, were consumed by the labourers over this time...

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