Advertisement
Published: January 28th 2012
Cambodia – Phnom Penh – The sad reality of S-21 genocide museum and the killing fields.
Cambodia proved to be very different from what I had imagined, admittedly I visited the two most developed cities but I was expecting to experience considerably more poverty and a stressful time moving around and sorting out reasonable accommodation. This proved not to be the case, it was actually very easy and all the accommodation was brilliant.
Phnom Penh is much more developed than Siem Reap and far bigger, I knew very little about the city before arriving and my knowledge consisted of a very basic understanding about the Killing Fields and S-21 Genocide museum, but what I was about to discover was shocking.
On arrival I headed straight to my hostel called the Mad Monkey, it was another great hostel with such amazing staff that made you feel so welcome. I settled in with a great cup of coffee and a slap up breakfast, as you can tell there was a very Western theme to the hostel’s restaurant but I didn’t mind because it tasted great!
On my second day here I decided to take on the emotional visit to
Phnom Penh - A few bikes for sale
I want the one in the middle pleasethe Killing Fields and S-21. I decided to walk to S-21 because it was very close to the hostel, once there it was very hard hitting, the building itself was once a school before Pol Pot and his army took it over, the building has basically been left completely untouched and the effect is hard hitting. After watching the informative dvd in one of the old holding areas for the prisoners I began to look round with a greater understanding of the inhumane crimes and outright tragedy that took place here only some 35 years ago.
Once the very innocent detainees had been brutally tortured for any information they might know they were then moved on to the Killing Fields for an inevitable end to their misery although they had no idea. The museum undoubtedly makes you realise the extreme nature of the events during Pol Pots Khmer Rouge regime and I have to be honest I had very little idea about it and I had no idea it was so recent. Some of the displays there are very real, such as the torture rooms, the instruments and the methods of torture are still left as they were from
the days when they were found, it’s simply unimaginable how tragic this time was for the Cambodian people.
After visiting S-21 my next stop was the Killing Fields, this is where the poor victims of S-21 would be transferred to once all information had been extracted from them, it was also the place where anyone opposing the Khmer Rouge regime would see their final days. It’s an eerie place, the mass graves are nothing more than big holes in the ground where hundreds of bodies would be thrown into. Because the events are so current bones and teeth, along with items of clothing are still surfacing on a regular basis following heavy rain fall. Without doubt for me the most hard hitting area was the Killing Tree, this is a large tree in the middle of the Field where small children would simply be picked up by their feet and have their head smashed against the tree before being thrown into the pit beside it, on the other side of the tree the mothers would be raped and killed and thrown into another pit. Again events of this nature are so difficult to comprehend and leave you with a
Phnom Penh - The Killing Fields
The sadest tree in the world. This is where the children were killed by simply swinging them by the feet head first into the tree feeling of sickness and bemusement. The visit was very informative and although sad I’m very pleased I went because it has opened my eyes to these tragic events and the impact on the local people.
Unfortunately my Tuk Tuk broke down at the Killing fields and my driver pretty much rebuilt the engine with a screw driver and a make shift hammer which was impressive to say the least. Whilst this was going on I chatted to an English speaking Tuk Tuk driver whose parents were executed here and he was forced to go and work in the rice paddies as a child slave at the age of 11. Listening to his story left me speechless there was nothing I could think of saying during such a detailed account of his past, I just stood open mouthed in horror and disbelieve at what I was hearing, this I guess is the point where it really hit home how hideous and recent the events were. Once my Tuk Tuk was road worthy again I was offered the chance to head to the surrounding fields and hills to fire all manner of different guns and yes I was also offered the
Phnom Penh - Orn and Tina
The Manager and Supervisor at the hostel. chance to fire a rocket launcher at a cow for $250. But after what I had just seen and heard the last thing I wanted to do was fire guns although the rocket launcher did sound interesting if not rather cruel.
During the rest of my stay here I went to the Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda that were both very beautiful, I would like to say a big thank you to Orn (the manager at the hostel) who kindly offered to show me round these two sights on her day off to save me having to pay for a guide, a very kind gesture and yet another example of the level of generosity and friendliness that I’m continually experiencing throughout Asia, it’s difficult not to love it out here.
Along with several hours of people watching on the Riverside’s main square and visiting various markets and bars I just enjoyed soaking up the vibrant atmosphere of Phnom Penh. It’s an easy place to pass time in and relax just chatting to locals or fellow travellers. All in all a great stay and an education into the horrific past during the Khmer Rouge reign.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.108s; Tpl: 0.018s; cc: 12; qc: 57; dbt: 0.0711s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb
