Blogs from Phnom Penh, South, Cambodia, Asia - page 221

Today would have to rank amongst the most amazing days of my life. I think I just smiled the entire day, literally from dusk till dawn (and still smiling). I guess you want to know why???? Well..... I think I had mentioned that I had a contact in Phnom Penh by the name of Kirk, who is one of the young Melbournians who runs and funds the Happy School, a small community school in the southern quarters of PP. Kirk showed up last night as we were having our traditional Khmer dinner at the guesthouse, and joined us for a Beer Lao, some curry, chicken and basil, spring rolls and Cambodian fried rice - delicious. He offered to take us on a spin on his moto (which he hires for US$1.50 per day), so we jumped ... read more

It's been a busy few days with lots to take in, bouncing around like Tigger, often literally thanks to the bumpy roads. Much of this blog has been a bit rushedly (is that a word?) written, so it's not the best. Oh - and I should warn you now, this is not a completely happy blog. Welcome to Cambodia, a country impossible to describe in a few words of this blog with an intense history dating back millennia. Coming straight to Siam Reap from the border, my first impression of this is the vast array of temples of Angkor, built over an incredible 900 years ago. It kicks Tikal's proverbial ass too! Many people spend up to a week exploring but I thought I'd go crazy on temple-madness if I did that, so instead I had ... read more

We saw the best of Cambodia at Angkor, now came time to learn about and see the worst. Phnom Penh is a quickly modernizing capital city where markets overflow the streets and at night many people head to the river to play badminton, have dinner, and socialize with other families. Cambodia has surprised us in how different it is from Laos; much more modern. From 1975-1979 the Khmer Rouge was the regime in power in Cambodia. Oppressive would be too soft a word in describing them. It is estimated that near 2 million people died as a result of the Khmer Rouge regime and genocide. Although the Cambodian people did not know when they first came into power, the Khmer Rouge's mission was to render all Cambodians the same. Exterminate personalities, send everyone to work in ... read more

Who knows why the capital of Cambodia gets such a bad name.....we loved it. Yes it's hot, dusty and busy. Yes, extremes of wealth and poverty are part of the daily diet. However, the desperate conditions of Cambodian life for many are the source of their hope for the future. This is a busy city with a great atmosphere and one of the favourites stop offs so far! With Lara being poorly again we decided to ditch the dorms and check into a swanky hotel rather than head into the backpacker district next to the Lake. Swanky for us cost $6 and includes air con, an ensuite and sky TV - no doubt one of the reasons we regard the city so fondly. With a river to rival the Thames and riverside bars and restaurants to ... read more

Well we are still in Phnom Penh, waiting for our washing and planning to leave tomorow. Yesterdday was Valentines day and I wanted to do something romantic and special with Leigh.. The Killing Fields First stop on Jim's Valentine Love Express Tour was the Killing Fields. These are the Fields where there was Killing. Between 1975 and 1980 hundreds of thousands of people were tortured and killed by the Khmyear Rouge for being educated, urban, skilled, ethnic, religious, or enimies of the state. This was one of the sites where they killed and buried people in mass graves...after the regime change they dug up the skulls and built a monument. Inside there are thousands of skulls...10 stories of skulls...and the tour guides like to point out how they died..bullet holes, skull fractures, axe wounds..very romantic...I knew ... read more