Photos

The title could go either way on this. It could as easily be "rain forest in the temple"

There are many ancient Khmer temples in the Angkor Wat park at different stages of restoration. Ta Prohm temple is a work in progress, but allowed to become overgrown by the surrounding rain forest much more than some of the other temples, and is in an earlier stage of restoration than most. Removing these trees is a very difficult project because at this point the trees are both supporting the original temple structures and damaging them at the same time. As long as the tree survives, it helps to hold together the stone building, but if the tree either dies or is removed, it will take the building down with it.

To me this is a very promising process, a sign that the environment (nature) can recouperate and rebuild itself, that maybe there is hope afterall.