Cambodia
Cambodia left us somewhat shell-shocked. Or maybe just shocked, both bad and good - by everything from the legacy of the Khmer Rouge (poverty, corruption, lack of development, and several killing field sites), to astounding beauty, vitality and history of the land and people. While sometimes depressing, the overall experience was more of a positive eye-opener (plus we got to see some awesome temples).
Festival in Phnom Penh
We arrived in the capital with perfect timing - a three day boat race festival had just begun, and Cambodians take their boat racing seriously. We got to see not only tens of boats paddled by hundreds of athletes, but we got to watch the races first on TV from the comfort of a hammock-filled restaurant, and later that evening from the third floor balcony of the Foreign Correspondents' Club (yes, it is as fancy as it sounds). The highlight was that night's "celebration of illuminated boats", with huge glowing floats and a fireworks show overhead, all centred around the full moon. And check out the crowds!
Tuol Sleng Prison Museum and the Killing Fields of Choeung Ek
A sobering experience. The prison ("S-21") held between 17,000 -20,000 'enemies' of the Khmer Rouge over the years 1975-1979, nearly all of whom were interrogated, tortured, and killed. Mass graves were unearthed at Choeung Ek, where a stupa has been erected in dedication to the victims and holds thousands of skulls. We didn't take any pictures of the killing fields.
Cambodian roads
On a lighter note, I was highly amused by the roads in Cambodia. They are a true example of the good, the bad, and the ugly. The good: the highway from Phnom Penh to Angkor's Siem Reap (6 hours of pure straightaways, good pavement, no nausea). The bad: the unpaved dusty red farm roads just outside Phnom Penh (on our moto ride we covered our faces with sweat rags, bandit-style, and squinted the whole way; I lost a sandal on a bump; and we both arrived with dirt unibrows). The ugly: the road to the Thai border. A good samaritan in Phnom Penh had warned us against this route ("[his] bones ached for days afterwards... if you want to experience hell, take the bus to Thailand"), so we were smart and booked a taxi instead. The roads aren't like the rumours; they're worse. We passed a sign saying "Road Project Ahead" - unfortunately it was only begun this month and is slated to take 5 years. Our driver was great though, and we flew over the bumps and ruts so fast that all we felt was a constant high amplitude vibration, almost comfortable once you relaxed and let your limbs flail around. Bronco (our car), is probably not doing as well and I give his suspension a two-month life expectancy.
Did I mention which side of the road they drive on? Answer: hard to tell. Cambodia is the only country I've seen so far that does not discriminate at all between vehicles with the steering wheel on the left and those with it on the right. I guess a car is a car.
Dinner with Sarah!
A highlight of Cambodia: Meeting up with Sarah (Crookshanks) again, on our totally-unplanned-but-identical route around mainland SE Asia! She also hooked us up with the goods on Angkor over beers and Indian food. It was so nice to see a fun, familiar face and compare stories and impressions.
Kids
The kids in Cambodia are the most talented (or at least most perseverant) beggars and sellers I've ever seen. A lot of the time we got depressed by the level of poverty, lack of opportunity, and desperation of these kids and their unseen families. The first words kids seem to learn in English are "Hello, one dollar?", and they constantly ask for money, pens, and water. Sometimes, however, the only thing you can do is appreciate the energy of these kids or find something to share a laugh about. After giving away bread and extra bottled water, we were cornered by a group who noticed our playtpus nozzles (hydration packs) sticking our of our bags. Since "bite the nozzle and suck out the water" didn't translate so well, we supervised while each kid drank a bit with the help of gravity. A definite hit with the kidlets.
Angkor
Angkor is so much more than the famous Angkor Wat. Check out some pictures (more on the Angkor link on the right) - we'll give you details when we're home!
Festival in Phnom Penh
We arrived in the capital with perfect timing - a three day boat race festival had just begun, and Cambodians take their boat racing seriously. We got to see not only tens of boats paddled by hundreds of athletes, but we got to watch the races first on TV from the comfort of a hammock-filled restaurant, and later that evening from the third floor balcony of the Foreign Correspondents' Club (yes, it is as fancy as it sounds). The highlight was that night's "celebration of illuminated boats", with huge glowing floats and a fireworks show overhead, all centred around the full moon. And check out the crowds!
Tuol Sleng Prison Museum and the Killing Fields of Choeung Ek
A sobering experience. The prison ("S-21") held between 17,000 -20,000 'enemies' of the Khmer Rouge over the years 1975-1979, nearly all of whom were interrogated, tortured, and killed. Mass graves were unearthed at Choeung Ek, where a stupa has been erected in dedication to the victims and holds thousands of skulls. We didn't take any pictures of the killing fields.
Cambodian roads
On a lighter note, I was highly amused by the roads in Cambodia. They are a true example of the good, the bad, and the ugly. The good: the highway from Phnom Penh to Angkor's Siem Reap (6 hours of pure straightaways, good pavement, no nausea). The bad: the unpaved dusty red farm roads just outside Phnom Penh (on our moto ride we covered our faces with sweat rags, bandit-style, and squinted the whole way; I lost a sandal on a bump; and we both arrived with dirt unibrows). The ugly: the road to the Thai border. A good samaritan in Phnom Penh had warned us against this route ("[his] bones ached for days afterwards... if you want to experience hell, take the bus to Thailand"), so we were smart and booked a taxi instead. The roads aren't like the rumours; they're worse. We passed a sign saying "Road Project Ahead" - unfortunately it was only begun this month and is slated to take 5 years. Our driver was great though, and we flew over the bumps and ruts so fast that all we felt was a constant high amplitude vibration, almost comfortable once you relaxed and let your limbs flail around. Bronco (our car), is probably not doing as well and I give his suspension a two-month life expectancy.
Did I mention which side of the road they drive on? Answer: hard to tell. Cambodia is the only country I've seen so far that does not discriminate at all between vehicles with the steering wheel on the left and those with it on the right. I guess a car is a car.
Dinner with Sarah!
A highlight of Cambodia: Meeting up with Sarah (Crookshanks) again, on our totally-unplanned-but-identical route around mainland SE Asia! She also hooked us up with the goods on Angkor over beers and Indian food. It was so nice to see a fun, familiar face and compare stories and impressions.
Kids
The kids in Cambodia are the most talented (or at least most perseverant) beggars and sellers I've ever seen. A lot of the time we got depressed by the level of poverty, lack of opportunity, and desperation of these kids and their unseen families. The first words kids seem to learn in English are "Hello, one dollar?", and they constantly ask for money, pens, and water. Sometimes, however, the only thing you can do is appreciate the energy of these kids or find something to share a laugh about. After giving away bread and extra bottled water, we were cornered by a group who noticed our playtpus nozzles (hydration packs) sticking our of our bags. Since "bite the nozzle and suck out the water" didn't translate so well, we supervised while each kid drank a bit with the help of gravity. A definite hit with the kidlets.
Angkor
Angkor is so much more than the famous Angkor Wat. Check out some pictures (more on the Angkor link on the right) - we'll give you details when we're home!
posted by alyss at 7:02 AM
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