Tomb Raiding

Next we journeyed to Siem Reap, gateway to the mighty, mighty Angkor Wat. The very mention of these words conjures up images of lost temples, eastern mysticism and monster trees - no matter where you go in Cambodia, you can not escape the iconic towers of Angkor Wat. The temple is found on the flag, on postcards, on t-shirts, and even on the national beer.

We travelled from our modest, rural homestay to the the bright lights of Siem Reap, seeing the muddy aftermath of the recent flooding of Cambodia's flat, rural terrain. Most traditional Khmer homes are built on stilts, but for some that still was enough to keep them standing. We watched as people took small wooden boats to their front doors or tightroped across spindly bridges built using tree branches that hadn't been engulfed in the huge swell of the Mekong river. Tops of trees peeped out from the water just beyond the houses, and men were still spending their days trying to pull and surviving crops from underwater to feed their families

As we chugged into Siem Reap that night, a tuk tuk driver named Pao took us to our hotel and instantly offered us his services to take us around the temples. Aha, back to the tricks of the tuk tuk trade and like that we were thrust into the city race and chase once more. It was a contrast we weren't prepared for and, over a dinner of traditional amok and loc lac, I heard myself saying to Med: "it's too noisy here, shall we just go back to the hotel?" In my defence, we were still exhausted from our adventure and it was pushing 10.30pm!

After a day adjusting to the Siem Reap scene, we accepted the inevitable and hired Pao's services for a sunset tour of the temples. If you can't beat them (off with a stick), join them.

The great temples of Angkor, which are an UNESCO heritage site, were constructed between

800 and 1200 AD and served as the seat of the mighty Khmer empire. The Angkor complex contains over a thousand weathered temples and is believed to be the largest religious structure in the world. The site supported what would become the largest city of the pre-industrial world. While London had a population of 50,000 and was building cathedrals during this period, one million people lived in the Angkor kingdom during its height. Today, they offer a crumbling window into the life of the time. Hindu symbols mix with serene Buddhist expressions, carving historical reminders of how different religions ebbed and grew with the changing power of kings.

People now use the term 'Angkor Wat' to describe

the whole area, but in fact there are many, many

Wats. Standing tall in big compounds, little compounds, some with sculptures, some stripped bare, all spread out over a large area (all the way into Thailand, actually). The infamous Angkor Wat rises majestic from the forest of temples -

and would be our first glimpse as we journeyed by tuk tuk for some sunset viewing from Phnom Bakheng.

Bakheng Hill is the elevated temple from which almost everyone watches the sunset in Angkor. It's a truly beautiful sight, although incredibly crowded. It was like arriving for a big music concert, with security waiving everyone up a steep path to get us all there in time. We had to do a comedy walk sideways up the narrow stone steps as they have been eroded over thousands of years.

The sun glowed hot and red as it sank down into the treeline, illuminating the sky in a pink spotlight. If you didn't look left or right, or in front or behind you at the other people, and wore ear plugs to block out their murmurings, it was perfect. "Hmm," we thought, maybe we should have followed the advice of something we read online about a temple further away for sunset.

But maybe another 100 people had the same idea. This is Asia sightseeing at it's finest.

The next part of the story nearly didn't happen: sunrise at Angkor Wat. We set our alarm for 4.30am, went for an early night...and then woke up to our hotel phone ringing at 5.20am. A few seconds to realise where we were and we leapt out of bed, threw on some clothes, brushed our teeth (this one is for mum) and hurtled out the door five minutes later to find Pao waiting in his tuk tuk. "Put your foot on it Pao!" and put his foot on it he did!

We arrive just in time to see the striking silhouette of the five towers of Angkor Wat against the milky pink, morning dim. Locals are selling coffee and tea, groups of people hold cameras up to the sky and whispers of tourists float on the hush of silence all around.

The perfect symmetry of the shadowy reflections and the scattering of lotus flowers on the water made for a breathtaking sight. The new morning sun illuminated the temple carvings and intricate spires. Monkeys climbed on the ancient walls, unaware of their significance. A dodgy alarm clock couldn't ruin this moment.

To get ahead of the crowds, and to the confusion of Pao, we leapt out of Angkor earlier than most to head to Bayon, a crumbling complex known for it's gazing stone faces. The main attraction here, Angkor Thom, is decorated with 216 faces of Avalokitshvara (I'll admit I had to look that one up) along with 12,000 meters of bas-reliefs (that too) and around 11000 figures (yep, and that one) all of which add up to a sight even more impressive than the last.

As the sun rose high into the sky, we left Bayon and we tuk tukked on to several other temples, including the Ta Prohm, where the surrounding jungle has moved in a taken up residence amongst the aged stonework.

The film Tomb Raider was famously shot here, and today it's as overgrown with tourists asking about Angelina Jolie as it is with trees. Still, the huge mangled and contorted tree roots engulfing the ruins was a sight to behold; mother nature reclaiming what is rightfully hers.

By 2.30pm, we were templed out and in need of shade. We just don't have the stamina for 12 hours of sightseeing and I am bemused by the

tourists who do. The ones with their multi-functional rucksacks, brimmed hats, expensive walking shoes and suncream hanging from their necks. The ones who seem to evade sweat and dirt in their light-coloured clothing and have a guide who speaks ten languages showing them round. Well, we can't handle that pace, so we headed back to our hotel to reflect on the magnitude of what we had just seen.

Of course, as with any Asian sightseeing experience, there was a downside to our Angkor adventure. Cambodian children are the most persistent and canny sellers in South East Asia, and most of them gather to work the crowds of Angkor. Children as young as three or four are sent out begging or selling postcards, bracelets and fans by their families. Charmingly, they memorise English words and facts about the country you're from: "Your capital city is London, the next biggest is Manchester. You have a Queen and lots of rain." Their brown eyes sit wide on their grubby faces and it's so hard to ignore them. Something needs to be done to give these children the opportunities in life they deserve.

Despite this frustrating sadness, something which is tragically as common in Asia as sticky rice, my lingering thought from our Angkor experience was 'pride'. In a country where politics and poverty can so easily pull people apart, it is the pride in their history and heritage that unites all members of society.