The Temples of Angkor in Cambodia

Even the hordes of tourists can't significantly detract from the awesome (using that word's original definition) experience of Angkor. I know it's not easy to get here from America, but if you have the means, this place is up there with the Grand Canyon and New York City as one of the places to see before you die.

These temples spread out over an area larger than Manhattan. They were built by the Khmer civilization between 1100 and 700 years ago. The Khmer abandoned them in the 14th century to move to a more defensible location. The jungle reclaimed them, and while the Cambodians always knew what lay under the vines, Angkor was "discovered" by a Frenchman in the 19th century. It is now a UN World Heritage site.