The Angkor Wat temple is the biggest Hindu temple in the world. It is counted among the seven modern wonders of the world and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site visited by millions of tourists each year. Until 150 years ago, this whole city was undiscovered, being covered by thick jungles and overgrown trees! This temple is a wonderful example of the Hindu concept of the cosmos. The moat represents the oceans. The temple is the Mount Meru and the galleries, which lead up to the sanctum, are the various continents. The constant upward movement of the building from one gallery to the next represents the spiritual path of a human being. The final destination is the sanctum sanctorum where he/she comes face to face with divinity. Photo Credit: Prabhakar PatilThursday, April 12, 2007
news.sawf.org
The Cambodian Government and locals are reportedly concerned over the over-exposure of its famous Angkor Wat (Sun) temple to tourists.
Sydney, Apr.12 (ANI): The Cambodian Government and locals are reportedly concerned over the over-exposure of its famous Angkor Wat (Sun) temple to tourists.
There is a worry now that the droves of tourists visiting the heritage-listed site could grow from the hundreds at present to thousands.
The Sunday Telegraph quotes Khun Sokha, a tourist guide, as saying, "The ancients built the temples for religious purposes, not for such crowds of tourists to climb on."
"The harm is obvious. We are worried, but the people's livelihood depends on these tourists," he adds.
The Cambodian Government is caught in a Catch 22 situation. On the one hand, the Angkor Wat temple is at the very heart of Cambodia's identity, and on the other, is the fear that this famous landmark could be ruined by the onslaught of the nearly two million tourists that see it annually. The Government is recognizing the need to keep these precious ruins intact.
"The harm to the temples is unavoidable when many people walk in and out of them," says Soeung Kong, deputy director-general of the Apsara Authority, which oversees Angkor's upkeep.
It is also hard to ignore the nearly 1.85 billion dollars in revenue that tourism brought to the impoverished country last year.
"We are trying to keep that harm at a minimal level," Kong says.
The Angkor Wat has been on the UNESCO's World Heritage List since 1993.
Since then, tourist arrivals have risen meteorically, with the Government hoping for three million visitors to Cambodia by 2010.
Sydney, Apr.12 (ANI): The Cambodian Government and locals are reportedly concerned over the over-exposure of its famous Angkor Wat (Sun) temple to tourists.
There is a worry now that the droves of tourists visiting the heritage-listed site could grow from the hundreds at present to thousands.
The Sunday Telegraph quotes Khun Sokha, a tourist guide, as saying, "The ancients built the temples for religious purposes, not for such crowds of tourists to climb on."
"The harm is obvious. We are worried, but the people's livelihood depends on these tourists," he adds.
The Cambodian Government is caught in a Catch 22 situation. On the one hand, the Angkor Wat temple is at the very heart of Cambodia's identity, and on the other, is the fear that this famous landmark could be ruined by the onslaught of the nearly two million tourists that see it annually. The Government is recognizing the need to keep these precious ruins intact.
"The harm to the temples is unavoidable when many people walk in and out of them," says Soeung Kong, deputy director-general of the Apsara Authority, which oversees Angkor's upkeep.
It is also hard to ignore the nearly 1.85 billion dollars in revenue that tourism brought to the impoverished country last year.
"We are trying to keep that harm at a minimal level," Kong says.
The Angkor Wat has been on the UNESCO's World Heritage List since 1993.
Since then, tourist arrivals have risen meteorically, with the Government hoping for three million visitors to Cambodia by 2010.
8 comments:
What so big deal?
We need tourist money!
Built plate for them to walk on and restricted some area that can be harm to the temple!
Make sure the plate form make by real ingeneer and achitec!
Not by the Vietname Homeless!
instead of 7 days. open only six days. leave one day for cleaning and renovation. There are other sites for tourist to see.
Good idea, on the same line of
thought, perhaps we can do the
cleaning and repairing at night
instead.
Furthemore, I think people is
overeacting. The Ankor have lasted
the brutal tropical weather for
about a thousand years. Somehow, I
am skeptical that it could be
easily worn out by tourists.
Human are more destructive than nature!
Only Ah Hun Khvong Khvev Shit See Pii Pee knows how to take care this temple.
because Ah Hun Khvong Khvev is Jayavarman 7.5...
Maybe you right, 3:13, but I think
today shoes is very soft and not
very damaging to the solid stones.
Plus, we are only talking about
the ground. No one is working on
the wall if you know what I mean,
hehehe.
Oh BTW, I think a new floor
job is only about a couple UDS
per square meter, and it is
much safer for tourists too,
hehehe.
Post a Comment