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What's So Great About Angkor Wat?
Travel websites, magazines, brochures and television shows are often preaching to us about the latest 'must-see' destination or the '101 places to see before you die'. But are these reviews simply funded by the relevant destination's tourist board or are we really getting a true overview?
Let's look, for example, at the increasingly popular tourist destination of South East Asia, Cambodia. Many will be more than aware of the captivating array of temples of the nation, including the imperious Angkor Wat, yet there is so much more for the intrepid explorer to unveil.
Having largely been classed as a no-go area, Cambodia today boasts a thriving tourist industry, with those travellers who proclaim to look for a 'real' travel experience placing it near the top of their must-see list. But how 'real' will a visit to anywhere of such renown really be?
For the visitor to Cambodia, there is poignancy and horror to match the abundance of glorious natural scenery and welcoming people. This is, after all, a nation that had been torn apart by war and beset by the legacy of the Khmer Rouge, so scars of its former torment are easily discoverable.
But what is surprising is that the nation has no qualms about openly revealing these scars, with some of the most popular attractions associated with the less savoury aspects of humanity. Could this be seen as exploitation of others' misery to boost tourism? I would have to disagree. The recent history of the region has had such an instrumental part to play in shaping the nation we see today that visitors should take the opportunity to witness such destinations.
Certainly the killing fields at Choeung Ek and Toul Sleng prison are a far cry from more standard tourist destinations such as the neon lights of Las Vegas or the vast plains of Africa, but simply viewing these unforgettable sights will prove a humbling experience like no other.
Then, of course, there are the incredibly ornate temples of Angkor that seem a million miles from the horrors of yesteryear. Here you can just savour the sheer glory of the temples and feel far removed from the more moving sights you could see just miles away. But then that is Camodia in a nutshell; a country where tragedy and beauty seldom seem too far apart. The term 'a destination of contrasts' may well be a cliche, but when killing fields and refined temples are set side-by-side, there can be no other description.
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