Phnom Penh & Sihanoukville


Advertisement
Cambodia's flag
Asia » Cambodia » South » Sihanoukville
February 24th 2012
Published: February 24th 2012
Edit Blog Post

SihanoukvilleSihanoukvilleSihanoukville

A common view from the beach!
Our time in Cambodia started with the same theme of Laos and Vietnam (death and destruction from the Vietnam War), except that in Cambodia the destruction was not from the Vietnam War but at the hands of the Khmer Rouge. Not to say Cambodians are not impacted by the Vietnam War – they are – about 1000 Cambodians a year are hit by an UXO (more than Laos). However our time around Phnom Penh would be focused on learning more about the Khmer Rouge – something I was not knowledgeable about prior to coming to Cambodia.



In the mid to late 70’s Cambodia was the scene of atrocities that are hard to imagine. Under the leadership of Pol Pot three out of every eight Cambodians were killed from 1975 to 1979. If this rate of killing was translated to the United States today it would be equivalent to over 100 million people being killed in the next four years! The killings were somewhat discriminate in that they targeted the educated, a strategy by Pol Pot to eliminate treats to his regime. You can see the results of this four year massacre in Cambodia today by the lack of
ShrineShrineShrine

Shrine to those that were killed at this site - this shrine held 10,000 skulls!
elderly population. The majority of the Cambodians you see on the streets and working seem to be 50 at the oldest.



To learn more about the Khmer Rouge and this time of Cambodian History we went to the “Killing Fields” about 10 kilometers outside of Phnom Penh. At the Killing Fields we took an audio tour of the area that was dedicated to killing Cambodians by Pol Pot’s regime. Walking around the Killing Field it was easy to see evidence of the brutal murders that took place there. There were actually 300 or so Killing Fields in Cambodia, the one we visited is the most popular with a shrine in memory of those killed – during the four years of the Khmer Rouge about 20,000 Cambodians were murdered at this particular site. Articles of clothing, bones, and teeth are still in the ground around the Killing Field, as the earth wears away the brutal history reveals itself to visitors. The clothing was the easiest to spot as you could see it still connected with earth as we walked around learning about the atrocities. In addition, the shrine that stands on the site has over 10,000 skulls that
Sugar Palm BladeSugar Palm BladeSugar Palm Blade

Because bullets cost too much, they would use this serrated edge of a sugar palm to slit the throats of those they killed.
have been unearthed since 1980 – quite a disturbing and emotional area to see. All of this is difficult to see and learn about, but at the same time so interesting and compelling that it can’t be missed.



We also visited prison S-21 in Phnom Penh which was a prison that held Cambodians prior to being sent to the Killing Fields. At the prison, prisoners were tortured and beaten and forced to make up stories about their wrongs to try to appease the guards. The museum at the prison had some survivor’s stories (supposedly 7 people survived the prison) and they were devastating to read what they went through. One contraption they used lifted Cambodians by their tied behind their back hands and flipped them upside down until they passed out. Then their heads were dunked in to stinky rotting water to bring them back to consciousness before the process was repeated. The prison was lined with barb wires so that prisoners would not jump from the balcony committing suicide. The stories are seemingly endless, but one bright side is that in a recent event in 2011 one of the prisoner guards met with one of the
Killing TreeKilling TreeKilling Tree

Tree that was used to kill children, they grabbed them by the feet and struck their heads against the tree. When the site was found there was still blood and remnants of children on the tree.
survivors of the prison and they had a reunion photo of them at the prison – forgiveness is powerful! It seems that our recent travels have focused a lot on war and genocide and although it is interesting to learn about, it sure is not uplifting! From Phnom Penh we went south to the most popular Cambodian beach – Sihanoukville – hoping for a change of pace from our recent somewhat depressing learning experiences of our recent travels.



We had planned on heading down for Sihanoukville for only a couple of days, but on our first day that changed. We immediately were captivated by the beach, weather, and relaxation that we decided to stay for a bit and see what the area had to offer. Our first night in our hotel was awful, the music next door was blasting until the sun came up and we promptly decided it was time to move to a new location. The music was so loud we could easily hear it through our ear plugs! We found a nice little guesthouse directly on the beach and settled in for the next few days.



Outside of Angkor Wat and
EvidenceEvidenceEvidence

Articles of clothing from the Cambodians killed during the Khmer Rouge regime.
maybe Phnom Penh Sihanoukville is probably the most popular tourist destination in Cambodia. I’m not sure when high rise development will hit, but for now it is rather charming with thatched roof bars and restaurants lining the white sand beaches. I can only imagine what the place will look like in another 10-20 years – probably the same as what the great beaches of Vietnam will look like that are just starting to see development. When it happens it will be a shame since a lot of the appeal of the place will disappear.



While watching life in Cambodia I could not help but think to myself how self-sufficient the people are. I found myself thinking how the world would change for people around the world if something cataclysmic happened – maybe oil ceased to exist or really anything that has a profound change in the way we live our “modern-convenient” lives. In Cambodia, and much of the places we have visited recently not much would really change. They would still go out fishing, farming and cooking their dinner over wood fires. They would bike or walk around town and they would rely on family to help
SkullsSkullsSkulls

Notice how many of the teeth except the back two are missing - they pulled teetch for torture at the S-21 prison prior to sending to the killing field to be killed.
them through the days, weeks, months, and years. This stands in stark contrast to the majority of the Western (read developed) world. I can just imagine what Los Angeles or New York would be like in this situation – the chaos that would ensue would be incredible. I like to think that in rural America (where I grew up) we might fare a little better – but still the majority of people probably wouldn’t do too well. It is rather refreshing to see this way of life. A life without Facebook (insert sarcasm: OMG!), the internet, or a house heated by a furnace that automatically kicks on. I guess it would be the way of Walden, a distant memory and reality from where we are today in the States – but exactly how it is in Cambodia. There are advantages and disadvantages to both societies, but seeing the “simple life” up close is awesome!



Once trip that I knew I wanted to go on in Sihanoukville was a fishing trip. Everywhere I asked I was pointed to Brian at the Fisherman’s Den. The Fisherman’s Den was located about 3-4km from our hotel so I was trying to
S-21 Prison TortureS-21 Prison TortureS-21 Prison Torture

The device to lift up prisoners holding them upside down until they passed out and then dunking them in filthy water to wake them up.
get some info from afar, which was not successful. So, I turned to a motorbike for a ride to town to learn more about the trip and ultimately book it. I was to meet at the “Den” at 7:30, we would share a ride to the boat, and promptly leave at 8:00. Leaving at 8:00 is no joke, we left behind two people that were supposed to be at the dock before 8:00 and they called as we left the harbor 6 minutes late – too bad – so it was only 9 of us for the trip. We motored out about 2 hours (15 miles or so) near an island where diving is popular. We dropped our lines in the water and promptly started catching fish (well a few of us). All day the gentlemen next to me and I had great luck – probably catching 25-30 fish each (granted they were all small). The guy to my right caught a total of four fish all day, his wife to the right of him caught seven, and the two guys behind me probably caught 15 between the two of them. Given that the fish were small it was difficult
S-21 PrisonS-21 PrisonS-21 Prison

When the Khmer Rouge fled, they left all their evidence at the prison which included photos of all those sent and killed at the Killing Fields - all their pictures were on display
to catch them – as many fish I caught I probably had twice as many bites. None of the fish were over a foot, but it was fun! While trolling to lunch one of the outriggers tripped and I was the first to leap up and grab the pole. I was reeling the fish for a solid 3-4 minutes, as I went to put the pole in a holder the fish jumped up and spit the Rapala out – he got off. It was the only “big” fish of the day that we had on – too bad I lost it!



Tomorrow we are heading back to Phnom Penh to catch a bus to Siem Reap on Sunday. A twelve hour bus ride directly from Sihanoukville to Siem Reap does not sound appealing given our ride down, and the overnight buses are supposed to be avoided at all costs in Cambodia. Siem Reap is home of Angkor Wat – one of the few can’t miss places on our non-existent itinerary that I knew we wanted to see before we even left the States. I can’t wait!


Additional photos below
Photos: 14, Displayed: 14


Advertisement

FishingFishing
Fishing

Outrigger that I missed a big fish on!
LobsterLobster
Lobster

Enjoying lobster on the beach from one of the several hawkers.
Shrine of SkullsShrine of Skulls
Shrine of Skulls

A close up of the shrine showing the skulls of the murdered at the Killing Field.
SihanoukvilleSihanoukville
Sihanoukville

Another common view from the beach!
FishingFishing
Fishing

Poles at the back of the boat.
TreeTree
Tree

Interesting Tree at the Killing Fields.


Tot: 0.134s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 18; qc: 85; dbt: 0.0993s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1; ; mem: 1.3mb