Rising at the crack of dawn, we journey out to the Mother of all temples, Angkor Wat. Believed to be the world's largest religious building, this temple was built in the 12th century by King Suryavarman II. We stay at Angkor Wat to enjoy a picnic breakfast and venture into Angkor Wat to enjoy its magnificence in peace and quiet.

We continue to the 'Indiana Jones' temple of Ta Prohm. This temple has been abandoned to the elements, after it was ‘discovered’ by French explorer Henri Mouhout in 1860. The tentacle-like tree roots here are slowly strangling the surviving stones, man first conquering nature to create, nature later conquering man to destroy.

Angkor Thom is an immense walled city that was the masterpiece of King Jayavarman VII. After entering through the city gates, we begin our visit at the Terrace of the Leper King and continue along the Terrace of Elephants, originally used as a viewing gallery for the king to preside over parades. At the southern end lies the Baphuon, once of the most beautiful temples at Angkor, dating from the reign of Uditayavarman 1 in the 11th century. It has undergone a massive renovation by the French and is now once again open for viewing.

Our climax is the enigmatic and enchanting temple of the Bayon. At the exact centre of Angkor Thom, this is an eccentric expression of the creative genius and inflated ego of Cambodia’s most celebrated king. Its 54 towers are each topped off with the four faces of Avalokiteshvara (Buddha of Compassion), which bear more than a passing resemblance to the king himself.