Cambodia Day 1

DMK - PNH

So why Cambodia?

• It’s my birthday!
• It’s on my Bucket List
• Best traveled without young children
• Bonus: It’s somewhere my colleague hasn’t been before either – new experience for both of us!

I have thousands of photos over the very short 5 days so each day will have its own post.  This post covers 24 hours in Phnom Penh.  At times it was a very confronting day.

Warning: this post contains some graphic (skulls and excavation sites) however I have not posted any photos containing photos of torture. Please skip to Day 2 if you prefer not to read this. 

Day 1: Phnom Penh

This morning we had an early start (4AM transfer) to catch our flight to Phnom Penh.  We flew from the regional airport which was an experience in itself.  It was pure chaos and the first time arriving late worked to our advantage.  We were rushed through the check-in line and into immigration where we found a scene similar to Lord of the Flies.  There was shouting, screaming, pushing, and queue jumping.  I was too scared I’d lose my arm if I took my phone out to capture this.

Our first glimpse of Cambodia!

With Starbucks in our hands, we were ready to board!  We both caught up on our missed sleep on the short 1 hour 15 minute flight.  On arrival, we grabbed a taxi to our hotel so we could offload our luggage.  The taxi driver was informative and the car had A/C and was clean so we hired him for the rest of the day $50 USD. 

First impressions:

•           It’s hot.
•           There is a lot of road chaos and traffic.  Cars, tuk-tuks, motos… many riders on a moto.  Some of the roads were paved, some weren’t.  There were few road signs and many motos driving on the sidewalk.  It was dusty too. 
•           It’s seriously hot.  Even with the A/C in the car, you can feel the sun searing through.  But it’s also rainy season.  We were told it rained and flooded the night before.  We probably should have taken more note of this (see below).

Choeung Ek Genocidal Centre (The Killing Fields)

Choeung Ek is 17k from Phnom Penh but with the roads as they are, is a 45 minute drive.  It was here that the Khmer Rouge regime executed over a million people between 1975 and 1979.  Mass graves have been excavated uncovering 8,895 bodies. 

The entry fee includes an audio tour of the site which was well done and includes stories from survivors and musical scores.  You go through each ‘stop’ at your own speed.  It’s a haunting place.  It’s difficult to process the horrors that occurred here.  You can still see bone fragments and clothing rags on the grave sites and along the pathways after heavy rain.

Visitors leave friendship bracelets at the excavation sites 

Grave site where rags and  bone fragments can still be seen

The tour concludes in the Memorial Stupa which stacks skulls and bones arranged by gender and age, as high as you can see (62m).  Many of the skulls show blunt force trauma to save bullets.

The Memorial Stupa

Stacks on stacks

We stopped briefly for lunch at Khmer Boom to try the local cuisine.  We didn’t think much of it.  It was very similar to Thai food but lacking the flavour. 

Tuol Sleng Museum (Security Prison 21, also known as S-21)

We finished our sight-seeing day at S-21, another heart-wrenching site.  Once a high school, the 5 buildings were converted into cell blocks in 1975; later, becoming the largest centre of detention and torture in Cambodia.  Between 1975 and 1978 more than 17,000 people were interrogated and imprisoned here.  They were later transported to Choeung Ek to be executed.   S-21 is now a museum, having been preserved as it was left when the Khmer Rouge was driven out in 1979.

From inside S-21

The Security of Regulations

We arrived in front of steel gates and several rows of barbed wire. As with Choeung Ek, entry includes an audio tour.  The audio includes recordings of survivor accounts (only 7 known and 3 currently alive) and from the genocide tribunal.  The tour is confronting. Seats are located outside the cell blocks in the courtyard if at any time you feel upset (and I did). 

The first ‘stop’ is in front of 14 white tombs.  Fresh flowers laid on top of each tomb from the mornings blessings.  We learn that these white tombs are from the last 14 victims found tortured to death as the Vietnamese arm liberated Phnom Penh.  Photographs of their gruesome deaths in the rooms they were found hang in cell block A.

As you move through each of the cell blocks, photographs of the prisoners cover wall after wall, room after room.   Building C holds the once large classrooms divided into small cells for the prisoners, still with shackles cemented into the floor.  Building D holds instruments of torture and other memorabilia.  In addition, some of the floors hold special exhibits.

Wooden cells.  I found it very difficult to walk through the cells,
deeply feeling the oppression and fear still within the walls.

The width of the cells
(I couldn't stretch my arms across)

Special Exhibit: The Sorrow & Struggle of Women -
Forced Marriage during the Khmer Rouge Period

The tour concludes in the center courtyard where a memorial now stands.

Never will we forget the crimes committed during the Democratic Kampachea Regime.

As we were leaving, a survivor, Chum Mey, was signing books.  Chum Mey survived 2 years of torture at S-21 and witnessed the execution of his wife and 4^th newborn son.  His life was spared because he was highly skilled in repairing machines for Pol Pot’s soldiers. 

After being on the go since 3:30AM, we decided to call it a day and head to our hotel for the night.  It was also starting to rain.

If you ever find yourself in Phnom Penh, I highly recommend The White Mansion.  Architecturally it’s beautiful (former American embassy) and amenities were perfect.  They provide you with a local smart phone which is pre-programmed to reach Reception (this came in handy later!)  Our room was spacious with a shared balcony.  We had local fruit awaiting us and mini-bar (non-alcoholic) was included.

The White Mansion

The lobby

Foyer to our room

Lap pool

I had a refreshing swim in the rain while Sue had a cat nap.  For dinner, we decided to go to the FCC (a must in Phnom Penh).  We walked… er, swam the 1.5k there.  We were told it was 800m and a 10 min walk.  No.

Riverfront in the rain

We had a leisurely drink and dinner at the FCC.

Frontline cocktail: chili and Kampot pepper-infused vodka,
passion fruit, lime and vanilla syrup

After dinner, we used the provide phone to check the tuk-tuk costs back to the hotel and crashed after day 1.

Tips:

•           When locals tell you it’s only raining a little, don’t believe them.  It’s really pouring.
•          Remember the not so great roads from this morning, in the rain its worse.  There are no rain gutters which mean it floods.  I mean really floods, hence our “swim”.
•          There are no street lights.  Just take a tuk-tuk.  I have traveled alone extensively, as has Sue, and neither of us felt safe walking the streets at night– rain or not.

Step count: 15,383 (11.94km)