The most memorable vacations do not always involve jet skis and a cruise ship. Often, the unforgettable places we’ve traveled to offered us something a bit more thought-provoking, something that encompassed a powerful and spiritual history for a culture we previously knew little about.

This tends to be the experience for travelers who visit the beautiful temples in Angkor, Cambodia. Every year, thousands of people take in the peaceful yet powerful presence of nearly 100 stone temples, some dating back to the 9th century. The temples stand as astonishing remains of what was once a majestic, religious and social city. With its wooden homes long since decayed and with little preserved historical artifacts, the temples serve as the ultimate sign of Cambodia’s past. It has now become an important national symbol for Cambodia, appearing on the national flag. If you wish to peak into the rich history of a culture typically undervalued in school textbooks, buy a ticket to Cambodia. Then visit a travel doctor for the needed Cambodia travel vaccinations, and you’re set to enjoy this beautiful country and its incredible temples.

Its most famous temple is the Angkor Wat, and for a good reason. At this great site of temples, Angkor Wat is the best preserved and is actually still in use as a religious site for Buddhism. Its enormous structure symbolizes the mythic Mount Meru, or, the house of the gods. Walking in you will notice five rectangular walls, depicting the five peaks of the great mountain. Before the temple began serving a Buddhist community, it was founded in praise of Hinduism. King Suryavaram II had it built in the 12th century to honor the Hindu god, Vishnu, the supreme god of the universe.

The second temple of note is the Ta Prohm, the only structure that holds almost all of its original architecture and material. Without constant manicuring by human hands, over centuries Ta Prohm has become engulfed by the tropical rainforest’s trees. These ancient yet powerful plants have proven their strength against human constructs, having pried their thick roots in between heavy stones, cracking the framework. In the past couple of decades, Ta Prohm’s infrastructure has been repaired to prevent any more damage (including collapsing ceilings). Thus you can feel safe within these walls, or, perhaps we should say, under these trees.

Before you visit Cambodia, however, you need to be wary of the health risks present in this very humid country. Luckily, if you count on only visiting major cities such as Angkor Wat and Phnom Penh, you may not need antimalarial medication, as the Center for Disease Control lists these two cities as the only parts of the country with no cases of malaria. Yet nobody wants to be stuck in the city when there is beautiful countryside to see, so you may want to get some medicine for malaria just in case.…