Phnom Penh

Phnom Penh promised to be one of the most effcious cities from the outset. Cambodia's recent horrific past is within the living memory of many of its inhabitants and it is painfully clear that the economy is still struggling to recover. When we arrived we were instantly struck by the difference in living standards here. The streets are grimy and covered in rubbish in places, everything looks older and more used. But visiting this city felt important, a task that should be done despite some of the painful and shocking truths we were to witness.

On arrival the usual horde of tuktuk drivers were waiting and desperate for our business. We have come to realise that in these Communist dominated countries the strive for Communal wealth and equal status has led to a drive to eradicate difference, and in doing so has created nations of people all offering the same set of services. We spend so much of our day saying "No thank you we've just bought one/ organised it/ eaten..." This was to happen instantly as our friendly driver secured our business for the following day, taking us to the city sights, a service offered by every guy with a motorbike we passed as we walked to the riverfront. However, rather than undercut or insist we reconsider as was oftenn the case in Vietnam, people gave huge smiles and wished us luck.

As we reache the riverfront it was clear the tourist dollars were spent here. The streets were clean and the shops looked-after. Alongside this were groups of grubby looking children selling photocopied guide books or useless souvenirs. One boy followed me a great distance up the road with his huge puppy dog eyes pleading for a sale. Finally he gave up and suggested I buy him an ice cream instead. I refused, but decided to get him something more substantial if he really was hungry, handing him a 40p pot noodle the most nutritious instant meal I could find.

The next day we were up early to visit the horrific Killing Fields of Choeng Ek. After Pol Pot's terrifying and perverse reign ended in 1979 a large number of mass graves were discovered here, locating thousands of the 2,000,000 victims of the brutal regime. Walking around the quiet fields, large holes now covered in grass, the deepest filled with water like small ponds, placards described theior final journey. We learned the disgusting way they were bought here in darkened vans, blindfolded and threatened into silence by electric lashes and horded into blackened sheds to wait. As the regime's paranoia intensified so did the disposal of victims so there were often waiting periods of 24 hours before they were pulled out and disposed of, often by blugeoning with a hoe to save bullets. The piles were then soaked in chemicals to stop the smell and kill those who were buried alive.

Walking around in shocked silence it was sickening to think that human nature can allow such crimes to happen. In the centre of the field stood a large glass stupa, shelves full of recovered skulls from the vistims and a pile of clothing. The shocking memorial exposes the sheer violence of the events in an attempt to prevent a reoccurence.


The tuk tuk driveto Tuol Sleng was in absolute silence as the horros were so fresh in our minds. We were now heading to the school that was converted to a detention centre for many of the victims before prior to their murder. Walking down the corridors of each block, cells were left with a single bed, one or two items of torture or restraint and a single, horrific black and white photograph of a victim on a similar bed. It was not difficult to visualise the suffering that had happened in this exact location.

After walking through the larger cells we walked through the rows of cubicle cells, about the size of a public toilet seperated by brick or wood that were built as the prison filled. They were followed by large open cells with metal rings and chains cemented to the floor every few metres, used for mass detention. In some of the more open rooms were hundreds of passport style photographs of the victims taken by the Khmer Rouge of their victims before their transferal to Choeng Ek. MAny of the faces looked tired, eyes deadened, thugh some of the babies seemed unaware in their innocence. the most haunting were the faces of those who clearly understood their fate, crying or terrified, pleading with the camera for some alternative.

Needless to say, it was an emotionally draining morning. utterly shellshocked we could do little more than head for coffee and let things sink in before continuing. Knowing there was more to Phnom Penh tha the misery fof those four years we headed to the majestic Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda.


When we arrived we were glad we had,our previous mood had led us to contemplate returning to the hotel, but the palace was magnificent. Bold bright colours of gold with red, blue and green accents adorned the ornate and intricate architecture, looking all the more dramatic for the blackened clouds hanging ominously above.

To finish the day on a hgh note we headed out to "Friends", a restaurant run by ex-street children picked up by the charitable organisation and taughtto cook and serve in order to progress to jobs in the blossoming tourist industry. We enjoyed a selection of dishes served like tapas- the most delicious meal out here so far.

Wandering back to our cosy hotel we were once again reminded of the poverty, seeing a mother and a child sleeping on camp beds covered in mosquito nets under a shop canopy and spying the feet of people under plastic sheeting used to protact their roadside stalls during the day. What do they do in a typhoon to keep safe? We wre so glad to have come here to get some perspective on the country as a whole and to experience the extraordinary cheer that eminates from so many of the people. Tomorrow we head for the more opulent Angkor Wat where I expect to see many similar contrasts of historic wealth and current poverty.