Phnom Penh
We arrived in Phnom Penh after a 6 hour bus journey on the Mekong express (we’ve found them to be the best service and best value). We were dropped at the city bus station and hopped into a nearby tuk tuk to our hotel near the grand palace ($3). Whilst in the tuk tuk what started as light rain turned into a mini typhoon with the streets turning into rivers and our poor driver getting absolutely drenched! (Suppose it is rainy season after all). After a few wrong turns we finally ended up at our hotel, Prantara Heritage Suits (£16pn) an old colonial mansion at the back of the British ambassadors (massive!) house. The hotel was modern and chic, and the room was spacious and cosy with a comfy bed, hot and powerful shower (hot water is hard to come by in Cambodia) and a decent AC system. We got back quite late and were pretty tired so decided to skip dinner and go straight to sleep!
Riverside and Central Market
The next morning we left the hotel to check out the city, our hotel was at the grand palace end of the river so we headed river side to walk down the Mekong. The riverside is well looked after with a flower market, vendors, boat trip companies and families with picnics filling the path, across the road the pavement is lined with restaurants, guest houses and shops. We walked for maybe an hour and stopped off at a western style cafe bar opposite the river to get some breakfast, the prices are a little more expensive here, especially in the western bars with eggs on toast costing around $5 but you can still get a beer for 70 cents. (Wooo!)
After food we headed to the Central Market (Phsar Thmei) which is an indoor market covered by a large dome. It’s a tad more expensive than other markets around but there are some bargains to be had here if you barter. I managed to get a pair of knock off RayBans for $3 and we got a selfie stick for $1! The centre of the market is mostly gems and jewellery with clothes, electronics and kitchenware surrounding it. We saw mainly locals shopping here too which is always a good sign!
Night Market
We walked around the city some more but to be honest, apart from the main attractions like the palace, the national museum, the war museum/killing fields, there’s not that much to do. We personally weren’t that interested in going to yet another palace, particularly as it wasn’t cheap at $10 each! We found loads of bars and restaurants that are mostly located in or near to the red light district, some are obviously a bit seedy and after our amazing trip in Siem Reap we weren’t overly impressed by the choices on offer. There are also a few rooftop bars where you can watch the sunset, but food and drink is more expensive here. We ate at Frizz restaurant as they do a BBQ for $6.50 each, (similar to a hot pot but you cook the meat on a grill they provide to your table) it was good food and a bit quieter away from the busyness of the red light district towards the grand palace end of town. We found the best place for food was the food court at the Night Market, there are 5 or 6 stalls offering BBQ food such as chicken/beef/squid/shrimp/frog kebabs all deliciously marinated and served with the yummy peppercorn sauce (Cambodia has an abundance of pepper farms), as well as fresh summer rolls, noodle soups, fruit shakes and more, the food here is also much cheaper, we had around 6 kebabs with rice and bread for $5 and there was plenty of food for both of us, the shakes are $1 each but are the best we’ve had in Cambodia so far! You can also get ones with ‘honey bubbles’ if you have an extra sweet tooth. (Cam was particularly impressed with this!)
S-21 and the Killing Fields
The Tuol Sleng genocide museum and the killing fields are probably the main reason tourists come to the city. We booked our visit via our hotel which was a company literally called ‘the killing fields tours’ ($15 for transport). The tour takes you to both the museum (previously a prison) and the killing fiends in half a day and you can choose morning or afternoon, we did an afternoon trip as we’re definitely not morning people! We were picked up from our hotel around 2.30pm by the English speaking guide who we had a great time chatting to. After getting on the mini bus, we were played an audio providing information and educating us on security prison S-21.
Arriving at the prison tickets cost $5 plus $3 per headset, you can also get a guide for $2 per person, we recommend you get the headset otherwise it’s hard to know what you’re looking at. Guided by audio, you are taken around the old high school turned torture chambers and prison, into the different buildings to the cells prisoners were held in by the Khmer Rouge under accusations of being spies, traitors or for just resisting the barbaric ruling of Pol Pot and his regime. It’s hard to believe just how recent the events occurred (The floors are still covered in blood stains) and how brutal humanity can be. Many rooms here include photographs of some of the thousands of inmates, including women and children, of whom all suffered torture until they were sent to be executed, there were only 12 survivors. It’s difficult to walk around this place, the blood stains on for floor, the tiny cells, the photos of innocent people brutally murdered, but nonetheless it’s so important that these events and these people are remembered to ensure this never happens again.
After the prison, we were taken to the Killing Fields, where prisoners were taken to be executed. There are huge numbers of these mass graves all over Cambodia, some of which aren’t possible to get to as they’re so far in the jungle or surrounded by land mines. The one most visited is just outside of Phnom Penh, on our way we were played a documentary about Pol Pot which provided a good level of information about him and his parties rise to power. We were again given a headset on arrival, which we would advise you pay for as it’s definitely worth it, as it not only talks you through the fields it also gives an option to listen to survivor stories which are heartbreaking but important to hear.
The walk around the fields takes about an hour and includes passing mass graves from which fragments of bone and clothes are still rising to the surface, explanations of where prisoners were kept before executions, and what the Khmer Rouge did to children and mothers. All of which is extremely hard to hear. The tour ends with the Choeung Ek Buddhist stupa monument, set up in memory of those lost. You are invited to give an offering and walk around inside, which included the skulls and bones of those found in the mass graves. There is also a museum where you can learn more about the Khmer Rouge and members of its government.
A thirst for knowledge
Cambodia has definitely had a huge impact on us and has left us with a thirst for more knowledge about its history. Although we had some very somber and sometimes upsetting moments during our time in Phnom Penh, we couldn’t help but be so impressed and down right in awe of the positivity, happiness, hopefulness and strength of the people of Cambodia. The world could definitely learn something from the people of this incredible county.