In the very heart of jungles, surrounded by a stripe of water around the perimeter, a huge regular-shaped rectangle that seems like it is giving geometry classes to the starts overlooking it is situated. Silent skies saw times of shiny glory and painful descent of this amazing object. Over five centuries it had been the prime pearl of the mysterious Khmer Empire, its crowning glory and its enemies’ envy.
World’s larges religious complex – Angkor Wat – effortlessly sets records and boggles its guests’ imagination just as easily. To find something that’s never been lost… French globetrotter Henri Mouhot, who spent many years working as his native language teacher in Russia, thought his eyes were deceiving him. A wearisome tour into the depth of unexplored jungles brought him to an immense monument of Medieval Ages that seemed like it was opening an ancient capital of Khmer Empire Angkor. An amazed explorer was welcome by Angkor Wat – Temple-City, the silent keeper of Cambodia’s lost grandeur. By means of lips and pictures of the Frenchman it would for the first time win hearts in colonial Europe, where for a long time they were failing to believe in the existence of architectural diamond in tropical wilderness of South-East Asia.
But actual discoverer of the temple was Portuguese monk Antonio da Madalena. Three centuries prior to the “discovery” of the Frenchman this was how he described what he had seen in Cambodia: “… construction… that has all the refinements which the human genius can conceive of”. And although by that time the temple was ravaged by enemies of Khmers, it threw a Western outsider off his feet with its perfect proportions and truly unique architectural style.Photo thesuburban.com
Fancy Taj Mahal that instead of white domes is decorated with stone lotus buds and replace white pomposity with gravity of gray sandstone – and you will get a vague image of Angkor Wat that outdoes Indian pearl in both scale and age. 200 meter wide moat filled with water surrounded the complex from all the sides with only two bridges leading to the isle. And it wasn’t for no reason that so-called gopuras (that means towers in Hindu culture) were overlooking entrance gate. They used to complete Temple City’s security and emphasize its grandeur.
When you’ve found your way inside Angkor Wat, first thing you pay attention to is thousands men, deities and legendary animals that live lives of their own on kilometers-long bas-relieves and give visual idea of what was going on in the Empire and its capital many centuries ago. All of them are scenes from Khmer and Hindu epics “Mahabharata” and “Ramayana”. Wall paintings are our wordless fellows on our way to the heart of the temple, central sanctuary with the highest tower. In order to climb to it you’ll have to take almost upright stairs.Photo fodors.com
Such difficulties do not scare tourists away; their daily inflow to Angkor Wat constitutes impressive 20 thousand persons. Guests of the Temple City are told about its controversial history that doesn’t answer the question why inhabitants of Khmer capital abandoned it in 15th century. Tour guides also let tourists in on secrets of bas-relieves and at the same time explain principles of the complex’s five towers location from the perspective of Hinduism. They astonish travelers even more when they describe methods of construction of Angkor Wat because stones of the temple were worked into places to fit each other with pinpoint accuracy without the use of connective mortars at that. There is also a legend suggesting that the Temple City was built from top downward. However, even scientists have troubles explaining such a phenomenon.Photo angkorfocus.com
Nevertheless, we should bear in mind that in our times (that may be excessively cynical ones) everything great makes it into mass culture sooner or later. Angkor Wat, too, failed to avoid such a fate. This territory became shooting location for movies, the most famous of them being about Lara Croft, in which Angelina Jolie, mother of many children, turns out to be stronger than all the men of the globe. Also, in January, 2011 British rock musicians Placebo performed a charity concert there and even eliminated all unprintable words from their songs – seemed like nothing other than a tribute to sanctuaries around. This is why one should get to Cambodia as soon as possible until it becomes irrevocably touted to the utmost. By the way, previously they had little liking of outsiders in the Temple City – there was a reason it was surrounded with a huge moat where crocodiles were raised.
Buddhists say: to get rid of suffering, one should get rid of desire. There are special places for that. Today we suggest you to check out our top five of stunning temples, where Buddhists and tourists are looking for a way to harmony for their souls.
What do you imagine when you hear the word "abbey"? I'm sure most people will first of all think of Westminster. But what if I said that in fact it is no longer an abbey? So what makes these medieval buildings so special? Let's look at the example of buildings from different European countries.
Stereotypes are terrible. They form a definite picture of the world in our heads, and it is not so easy to change. Take, for instance, the concept of skyscraper: imagination of 90% people immediately provoke skyline of American cities, familiar from movies and TV. It is quite logical, but nowadays panorama of the best luxury skyscrapers is in other direction – keep moving to the East. For Arab structures may outdo Western ones in all respects.
We were catching the warm spring sun rays at almost empty Warsaw Sunday streets. When the sun had hidden behind the skyscraper - we got high on the tallest among them to enjoy the sunset.
The architecture of temples has interesting and sometimes controversial history. Quite often the novelties and fundamentals of movements in architecture started with the building of temples with sophisticated design. The Polish Roman Catholic churches are rather bright in their beauty.
First exhibition of paintings in the world’s most visited museum the Louvre was opened on 1793. But its building was well-known far beyond France, though the edifice was not used with such lofty cultural purposes.
"A small territory with a great mission" is the motto under which on February 11, 1929 Lateran Treaty between the Kingdom of Italy and the Holy See recognized Vatican as a sovereign territory. It was an agreement which opened doors for curious patrons who for centuries had been trading gossip about "What is kept inside Vatican castles?".
On this great holiday for all Christians of the Orthodox rite, we want to present you a video about the holy places of Palestine, namely the city of Bethlehem.
With this article, we want to inspire both current and future students with a selection of the most impressive universities and institute campuses. Those who have already received degree will probably get filled with admiration, too, and start thinking whether or not to get another one because in such places one hits the books especially fruitfully.
Where to look for Clementin, the narrowest hotel in Czech Republic merely 3.28 meters wide, how to chose between Pilsner Urquel, Krušovice and Gambrinus, when to feed gold-colored carps and why tram 91 has no peer? Elvira Matrosova learned about these and more. And despite the fact that this city stands on Vltava (Wilth-ahwa – literally means Wild water), it is aristocratic, consistent and calm yet far from Puritanism.
More than fifteen hundred years ago Romans were awe struck when they caught the very first sight of the Sistine Chapel. After that masters of painting were born and dead as well as whole pictural art styles. And contemporaries of you and me gape on the distinguished temple.
When we hear about "water city", Venice immediately comes to mind, doesn’t it? Tranquil gondolas, narrow waterways, gentle light of the evening sun and ancient architecture create that heady romantic cocktail which attracts tourists from all over the world to the Italian city.
The word is, Guy de Maupassant hated Eiffel Tower. The famous writer believed that it was uglifying the face of Paris without benefiting the city. Nevertheless, he could be often seen in a cozy cafe on the top of the construction. In such cases the author of “Bel Ami” used to say that “it was the only way the damned tower dropped out of his sight…”
There is hardly a person, who did not cancel his or her appointment or a walk due to nasty weather, since it is a challenge to get dressed, to keep warm, to wait in the bitter cold for transport, instead you feel like wrapping yourself in blanket and read a book.
The Kingdom of Cambodiais the officialmodern-day name of the country in the southeast of Asia (Indochina). This destination is a great tourist alternative tomore glorious Asian kingdom of Thailand. Cambodia is betterat least because it is not mainstream. The Kingdom of Cambodia is not quite a fairy-tale, although it is very exciting...
Should we have a look at notes of those who plan their trips to Spain, next to the darling of all hearts, Barcelona, Montserrat is bound to rank second. Also, the mountain of the abbey is a must-visit spot for local dwellers, too – they believe it necessary to visit Catalonia’s religious heart at least once a year.
Sauntering through picturesque nooks of Grand Dame Europe we look around without even suspecting how many interesting things there are beneath our feet. If you are annoyed with standard tours that include marathon race around museums and monuments, we suggest you have a look at good Old World from a different perspective. Or more specifically, look under its feet.
Why have three wives if there is a chance to get hold of jewels? And as soon as a name of a king becomes “nourished” with a collection of family relics, one can start thinking about the one and only who will continue a reputed kin. Knowing that Thirty Years’ War was about to begin, Christian IV of Denmark and Norway ordered to build a castle that would be impossible to destroy.
Majestic and beautiful, contradictory and frightening ... The UNESCO World Heritage List includes into their ranks important works of culture, history, or objects of environmental importance. According to UNESCO rules, a heritage site must be a masterpiece and be of value to a specific era, contain information about unique traditions, reminisce about historical events, or include the habitat of rare species.
Sometimes it happens that you look at a postcard with a picture of a city and instantly realize that this is Kyiv, or Moscow, or Rome or your native village. And it isn’t courtesy of your geography teacher but back-breaking efforts of artisans with whose hands commonly familiar architecture masterpieces were created. Today we recall Italian conqueror of marble Gian Lorenzo Bernini.
Photo thesuburban.com
Photo fodors.com
Photo angkorfocus.com
