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Published: March 14th 2007
Hello again!
I'm sitting in my hotel in Phuket now, waiting for the bus to take me to the pier, for the ferry to KO PHI PHI!!!
Backing up... last time I wrote, I had just arrived in Phnom Penh.
I met a lady from Amsterdam and we decided to do the Killing Fields and S21 together. We actually lucked out and got set up in a minibus for just the two of us for half the price of sitting on the back of a motorbike for the tour! Much better to be in a bus because of the heat, dust and pollution!!!
First stop was the killing fields. I'm not a historian at all, so please read the following for more information:
Taken from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khmer_Rouge
"The Khmer regime is remembered mainly for the deaths of an estimated 1.5 million people (estimates range from 850,000 to 3 million) under its regime, through execution, starvation and forced labor. Although directly responsible for the death of a large amount of that number, the policies of the Khmer Rouge led many others to die from starvation and displacement. In terms of the number of people killed as a proportion of the population of the country it ruled, it was one of the most lethal regimes of the 20th century. One of their mottos, in reference to the New People, was: "To keep you is no benefit. To destroy you is no loss.
After four years of the brutal rule, the Khmer Rouge regime was removed from power in 1979 as a result of an invasion by Vietnam."
So the Killing Fields (now known as the Cheung Ek genocide museum) are where they dumped thousands of bodies.
Not only did we see the graves, which are basically large holes, we also saw actual bone and clothes visible on the surface of the ground. I asked a guide, and yes, those are the clothes of the victims that are mixed with the ground since they dug up the graves. The bones are also from the victims. They dug up sample holes, so the paths we walked on have not been dug up yet. The area is closed off by a fence along its perimeter. According to a map I saw, it seems they have not investigated the area outside of the fence yet.
In the centre of the field was a large monument, and inside were shelves upon shelves of human skulls.
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The next stop of the tour was S21 prison (aka Tuol Sleng). It used to be a high school, but Pol Pot took it over and turned it into a torture and killing station. Obviously, this was a horrible place, and a horrible feeling to be there. They had "classrooms" with photographs of all of the victims. 14,000 people were held at Tuol Sleng between 1975 and 1979. Less than a dozen survived.
What really hit me was when I noticed the tile under the beaten bodies in the photographs. I was standing on those tiles. The blood is still on the walls and the floors.
Their torture devices are still there, the batteries they used to shock the victims, the shovels to beat them, a bathtub type torture machine...
A young monk asked me, "how do you feel?" Exactly, how is a person supposed to feel?
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In between these stops we got to see a bit of the city. Phnom Penh is somewhat french in some areas. Especially the area near the river. There is a large walkway, old colonial buildings. But mixed in with tuk-tuks and thai food stalls!
My view of Cambodia:
Although it was interesting to see, it is very poor, dirty, and everything is dollars. The Cambodians seem to see tourists as walking $ signs. They are very dirty, and have not yet understood the value of throwing garbage in a bin. In Phnom Penh, I stayed on the riverside, with restaurants on stilts on the water. Beautiful scenery, but the river is GREEN (a chemical shade of green), smells and is full of garbage. During the sunset one evening, I saw a wicker couch float by. When the waiters clean the tables, they just dumb all the garbage straight in the river.
I decided I had seen enough, or maybe it was more the fact that I needed to get to the beaches, so I left Cambodia. No more busses for me though! I booked myself on a flight out of PP to Bangkok. I set it up so that I had a whole day stay in Bangkok, before taking my connection flight to Phuket.
I was able to figure out buses and skytrain and got myself to MBK mall. I was in need of a few more clothes, since my closet is still a bit limited. It is a massive mall. Maybe 6 floors of maze like corridors of shops/stalls. I met a swiss guy, and the two of us had a nice lunch, and then I continued to shop.
Apparently, March 12th is a special day for the King of Thailand. EVERYONE was wearing a yellow tshirt to show their respect to him. Most people were actually wearing an official yellow shirt that says, I HEART the King. At first I though everyone worked at the same company or something, until I asked another tourist. Well, somehow, when I got dressed that morning in Cambodia, I unknowingly had decided to show my support! The yellow tourist... haha
That evening I flew to Phuket in southwestern Thailand. This is the area that the tsunami hit. In case you didn't know, I was here 4 months before the tsunami.
It is definitely strange to be in a place that experienced such tragedy. There is no evidence of it in the part of Phuket I saw. Maybe they have fixed it all, or maybe I was not close enough to the beaches? I decided to stay in the old part of Phuket town since I had read that there are still a few sino-portuguese buildings. By the way - the Portuguese were the first Europeans to come here! But tell a Thai now that you're from Portugal and he'll stare at you with a blank face. They have no idea what that is.
In the morning, I walked around the town and did see some of these buildings. The Portuguese get around! I felt that they were pretty typical portuguese streets. The repair shop/bakery/etc below, and the house part above.
Finally, I took the ferry to Ko Phi Phi. This is THE island... my favorite beaches so far are here.
It was a nice trip over, and as always, Phi Phi is stunning. It has massive, vertical cliffs, and blue water. As I walked off the boat onto the pier, I saw hundreds of small fish in the crystal clear water. I almost jumped in right then! But first had to get a place to stay. NOT AN EASY TASK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! FYI - BOOK AHEAD DURING THE HIGH SEASON. A nice lady from a tour office was helping me. We walked around town. FULL FULL FULL. And if it wasn't full, it was ridiculously expensive!! My option was to wait until a massage shop closed (midnight) and sleep in the massage beds for a cheap price. However, I'd have to check out when they open the shop in the morning! I thought that was a horrible option, but luckily I saw a sign at a dive shop and they had a room! So its not an actual hotel, but its a room. I dumped my bags and rushed down to the beach for a quick dip! finally......... I HAVE ARRIVED!!! Now you all can be worried about whether or not I'm ever returning home! haha
Unfortunately, this island is still partially a construction zone. Tsunami reminders are everywhere. My room is actually facing the middle of the island. It still looks a bit like the images you've all seen. But they have built a lot, and is funcioning like usual. Maybe they didn't have a tsunami evacuation route, like they have now, but otherwise it is basically the same. And tourism is obviously going strong as it is nearly impossible to find a room!
I was very surprised to discover that the second language (First is Thai of course) on this island is Swedish. It is unreal how many swedish people are here! At breakfast, 5 out of 8 tables were speaking swedish. the other one was me, plus 2 that I couldn't hear. Crazy!
Last night I joined a girl who was eating dinner alone. So the two of us ate and chatted. Her name is Aline, from Germany. We ended up having a great night! Dinner, played pool with the thai rastas (they look like Bob's asian cousins), thai massages, party at Carlito's Bar. It was too hot to dance, so we chilled on the beach with some swedish people we met. Such a fun night!
She left the island today though... so I need to make new friends! haha no worries...
Right now I'm actually going to meet a thai friend, Keren. We met last time I was in Thailand, and she lives and works on Phi Phi. She has the day off today, so the two of us are going to my favorite beach on Phi Phi - Long beach.
Tomorrow I think I'm doing a snorkeling trip... and maybe swim with the sharks the day after??
byeeeeeeeeeeeeee....
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Karin
non-member comment
Water
You are on the right place at the right time, maybe to many swedes.... But you will have fun and specially nice time on, in and by the water. I wish we were there with you. The Cambodia part, was very interesting to read, and that shows me similarities with the Carribean $$$ and dirt. Hope that Thailand is better!