"Life was short, brutal and miserable"

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Angkor, Tikal, Chitzen-Itza, Machu Picchu - every time I am in one of these hewed stone wonderlands I think of all the toil and suffering it must have taken to build them. ‘Life was short, brutal and miserable” comes to mind, a quote from a world systems theory prof at Hopkins. There aught to be a prominent plaque or sign estimating the number of people it took to construct the site, the estimated time it took and a discussion of the living and dying conditions. Folks walk around amazed but I think the pain and suffering that was required to construct these places is under appreciated. Maybe each site should have a “carry a rock’ portion to the entrance fee... ‘Sorry, you can’t go in until you carry this rock far enough to work up a solid sweat’...

Photos show the current method of construction - nice equipment and even protection gear. The guys packed up and were out of there at 4 o'clock, looking tired but not exactly miserable...

Angkor is truly amazing. It surpasses all other ruins I’ve been to:
1. Angkor Wat itself is huge, and there are hundreds of other ruins in the nearby area. Several of which would stand on there own as world renown sites.
2. There are many, many passageways intact. You have to look at a lot of ruins in Mayaland to get under an original stone roof.
3. There are a lot of intact carvings.

I’ll not repeat the many photos already on the web - this is a very touristy place. Check out these sites for an idea of what it is like here:

Angkor

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