Phnom Penh... The return of the dreaded tuk-tuk

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First off, wish we could post some pictures with this post so you don't have do so much reading, but no spare USB slot on the computer....ancient technology!

So a bit of a love/hate relationship with the city. Very busy - essentially no traffic laws (or sidewalks), everyone is selling somethig, and it appears that there is a lot of difficulty reconcilling the difficult past with the present. Also, there are tuk-tuks everywhere here and, even if you walk by 10 in a row and say no, you don't need a tuk-tuk, the 11th guy will always ask: 'Sir, you need tuk-tuk? You go to killing field?' So yeah, a very busy place that revolves around tourism.

We spent 2 full days in Phnom Penh. Our first day we went to the Royal Palace in the AM which was very similar to the Grand Palace in Bangkok. The grounds of the Royal Palace were really interesting because the royal residence is located on the grounds. You can tell when the king is in residence if there is a blue flag flying (it was). And so half the grounds were closed. That afternoon we went to the Russian Market (so-called because it was, surprisingly, started by a group of Russian migrants in the 1980s who lived in the area while the country was under Soviet/Vietnamese control. It was a very large market with lots of interesting things to pick up.

Afterwards we headed over to S-21, a genocide museum. In 1975 when the Khmer Rouge came to power and Pol Pot had the city evacuated, they turned a local high school into a torture facility for interogating anyone they suspected of being against there cause. Thousands of people went through this site while only 7 survived. The rest either died during interogation or were shipped to the killing fields outside of the city. Needless to say it was a very harrowing experience to walk through the old classroooms and see some of the cells and torture devices that were used. (When the Vietnamese entered Phnom Penh in 1979 and the Khmer Rouge fled they found the site and left it untouched so that it would serve as proof for the atrocities that Pol Pot committed.) Throughout the rooms there are photos (headshots) of all the people who were tortured there, along with a few accompanying 'biographies'. The Khmer Rouger were very meticulous and documented everything that happend there, while making inmates write out false confessions for what they had not done against the regime. Needless to say, it was a heavy afternoon.

The next morning we continued where we left off the previous day and hired a tuk-tuk to take us to the killing fields. (Just as a side note, it's worth mentioning that our guest house was very nice - lots of backpackers, decent rooms with ac... However, they were cheap (or clever?) when it came to hiring wait staff for the restaurant. Instead of hiring servers they let some tuk-tuk drivers pose as staff. THey come to your table, bring you menus, take your order, then casually ask where you're going for the day... But they're tuk-tuk drivers, and it's riduculous. You just want to sit, wake up, and enjoy your breakfast, but you have this tuk-tuk guy hovering over you, trying to get you to hire him for the morning...). Anyways, the killing field was about 15 km out of town. We hired a guide to take us around which proved to be a smart move. The centerpiece to the place is a 17 level monument that showcases what has been retrieved from the area (first level clothes that have been found, next 10 levels human skulls, which you can touch). The guide walked us around some of the fields and showed us multiple mass graves (graves where 200 headless corpses were found - presumed to be Khmer Rouge soldiers who were th ought to have questioned the regime; other graves with women and children...). Sadly, most of the graves are yet to be excavated because land mines cover the area and it costs too much to get rid of them. Anyhow, as we walked around the guide would stop and point to a tooth, or piece of cloth, or bone that could be seen coming to the surface of the path. Whenever it rains, the dirt runs away and more stuff comes up to the surface.

THese two experiences were a lot to take in. It is difficult to try and understand how this could happen - especially given that the genocide happend only 30 years ago (two million Cambodians died between 1975 and 1979). What was more frustrating to learn, is how Pol Pot and his Khmer Rouge had a seat at the UN assembly until 1993. Because Pol Pot was backed initially by the US and others and was outsed by the Vietnamese, with help of USSR, (evil communists...), Cambodia struggled to bring the Khmer Rouge to justice. Only now, 30 years later, are four of the top Khmer Rouge leaders on trial for their actions.

Now, something great about Phnom Penh. They have awesome happy hours. Glasses of beer for anywhere from 50 to 60 cents, as well as cheap cocktails. I found one place with 60 cent glasses of beer with an added bonus of buy 3 get one free. Being a big Stan Rogers fan, I could finally understand where he was coming from when he sang, 'I'm sitting with friends, where 45 cents will buy another glass of beer.' (Cheesy I know).

The next day we hopped on a bus to Siem Reap to see the great temples of Angkor. We've been here for 5 days now, and a post for here will come shortly.

Cheers.

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Comments

[Miika]

Hey Guys!
WOW, sounds/looks like you are having an amazing trip! I can't wait to hear some stories. The ruins at Angkor look amazing, and the trees that grow over the temples look very bizarre. Hope to catch you before the end of the summer. All the best, Miika.