This one's the main event. The big kahuna. The reason why you've suffered through flights, bus trips, car rides, bad food, well-intentioned locals who have no idea what you're talking about. This is Angkor Wat. It's one temple, yet people refer to this entire area as Angkor Wat. And much like driving on Skyline Drive in the autumn, if you can ignore the other tourists you will experience a thing of awe and beauty.
Having never been to the Great Pyramid in Egypt, I will nevertheless posit an opinion: Angkor Wat is better. Whereas the sheer size of the Great Pyramid is indeed impressive, the stone blocks are just that. And the entire pyramid is a pile of plain stone blocks. Impressive? Undoubtedly -- but more for engineering than artistry.
All of the stone you can see at Angkor Wat has been carved into something other than square. Beit the doorways that look like they have more molding that Home Depot carried, or the hundreds upon hundreds of pin-up girls (Asparas, or heavenly dancers) that appear throughout the temple -- every bit of stone has had the hand of a skilled craftsman create its experience.
And the place is huge. The moat is a square, a mile on each side. The temple is so sprawling, it's a challenge to see even an overview in one day.
Personally, we visited other temples that I preferred. The crowds of tourists preclude any intimacy with the temple. And it's so big that it's difficult to even begin to understand it. But there is no denying that it's a masterpeice of both architecture and art -- as beautiful from far away as it is up close. In scale and artistry, it rivals and surpasses anything I've seen in the US or in Europe. If you can afford the time and expense, you should see what these folks created.
