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| Along the Phnom Penh waterfront |
Phnom Penh is a city with a lot going on right now. Construction cranes dot the skyline, especially along the very nice waterfront area. The city, with a population of over 1.5 million people is growing both out and up. Phnom Penh was founded in the 14th century. The site for the city was selected because of its desirable location at the confluence of the Mekong and Tonle Sap Rivers. The parts of the city that we have seen have been exceptionally clean with numerous tree lined parks.
Yesterday we headed out around 8:00 am in the morning, just as the work week was starting for many people. We quickly discovered that although calm, orderly and with far less horn blowing than in the cities of Vietnam, a few more traffic lights would be helpful.
We stopped first at the Monument of King Norodom Sihanouk, who was beloved by many Cambodians who considered him the "Father King". He passed away in 2012 and his son now serves as King. His son is 67 so I assume he still has some good years remaining. However, he never married so there is no one in line to replace him. At the appropriate time there will be an election, not by the general population but by the parliament, which is referred to as the National Assembly of Cambodia.
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| The Independence Monument |
Since we were in the area of the Royal Palace we made that our next stop. It was quite an impressive collection of buildings including the Kings residence. The flag was up in front, meaning he was home. Our local guide for the day was very good but I guess he's not well connected and we were unable to drop in for tea and a quick chat.
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| Inside the Royal Palace Complex |
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| A Buddha Tree and a Buddha Statue (kind of a 2 for 1 picture) |
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| The National Museum |
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| My long lost twin! |
After these interesting stops the day took on a different far more serious tone. In 1975 as the Vietnam war was ending a ruthless regime was emerging in Cambodia. This regime, know as Khmer Rouge was led by a communist revolutionary named Pol Pot. Within three days of seizing power all services such as schools, hospitals, banks and businesses were closed. Families were run out of the city and ordered to work in the fields of small villages throughout the county. Arrests, interrogations, torture and executions became a daily ritual. We visited the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. Before the takeover by the Khmer Rouge it was a high school. The campus had four main buildings. Classrooms occupied at least two of the three story buildings. I'm certain that just by looking at the structure it was a modern school providing an outstanding education to many young people. Unfortunately it was transformed into a notorious prison where many were tortured into making false confessions before being executed.
Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum
We then went to the Choeung Ek Killing Fields. As the name implies this is were over 17,000 men, women and children were brutally executed. There are 126 mass graves in the area. 86 of these graves have been excavated. The largest contained 450 bodies. The excavations have been discontinued because identification of the remains is almost impossible so the government has decided to let the others buried there "rest in peace".
It was difficult to see and hear the stories. Our tour guide shared with us that his grandfather had been taken one night and never seen again. As difficult as it was, I think it was important to help gain an understanding of the country and it's history. It is hard to believe that this occurred relatively recently. Cambodia is to be commended for it's recovery efforts. Not only was the infrastructure of the city destroyed but many of those executed were doctors, lawyers, business and government leaders. It has been a total rebuilding effort. If you come to Phnom Penh I highly recommend you visit these two sites.
After resting for a bit at our hotel (DoubleLeaf Boutique) we enjoyed lunch at a local restaurant called Eleven One Kitchen. We had a new dish that had been recommend called Siem Reap Sour Soup with Beef. It was excellent and for only $5 very filling.
Speaking of $5, after lunch we stopped for a one hour foot massage for the same price as a bowl of soup. My hair was getting a little long (insert laughter here) so I popped in the local barbershop where a young man maticiously trimmed every hair remaining on my head for three bucks!
This morning we finished up our time in Phnom Penh by taking a tuk-tuk down to the waterfront for a nice walk. It's packing time and later today we're off to Siem Reap and hopefully some more soup!
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| Waterfront Area |
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| Tucker, the tuk-tuk driver and his tuk-tuk |
