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| 1 000 000 Cambodian Riel |
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| Feeling rich but tired |
Phnom Penh
Prior to arriving in Phnom Penh, we arranged for a hostel that we found on trip advisor called Mad Monkey, that was apparently awesome for backpackers.
Unfortunately, when we got to this hostel our room wasn't ready for check in. After no sleep the night before (thanks to the yappy Malaysian man), we decided to man up and do some exploring since we didn't have a place to rest quite yet.
It was about 10:30AM when we started out towards Chung Ek - otherwise known as the Killing Fields from the Khmer Rouge.
The Khmer Rouge is a political group from the 1970's/80's who were infiltrating Cambodia secretly by deceit and lies. They would seek out any intellectual people in the country whether they were doctors, teachers, could speak another language (even wearing glasses was considered above average), and they would promise these people better work. Only to imprison them, torture them and eventually kill them and their families in the name of Khmer Rouge. This to bring new power to Cambodia where no one thought for themselves or second guessed their government but took orders and slaved mindlessly for grueling hours in the rice fields.
Chung Ek was one of the many "killing fields" in Cambodia - locations where intellectuals and their families were brought unknowingly to be killed inhumanely and buried in massed graves. All of the buildings and most of the tools here have vanished being scavenged after the Khmer Rouge had fled in 1978. What was left were many memorials and descriptions of where and what buildings/sites were formerly there, as well as a museum explaining some of the history.
We were guided around the killing fields using an audio device, listening to the history and stories from survivors along the way.
Here are some of the sites/items that were described in Chung Ek;
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| Truck Stop Location |
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| Detention Centre |
We listened to stories of families being separated upon entry to Chung Ek, unsure of what was happening, and not knowing they would never see each other again. People were blind folded when entering the fields so no one knew where they were, which was all part of keeping this a secret.
They were kept blindfolded in the detention building until it was their turn for execution.
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| Loudspeaker tree |
The loudspeaker tree was centralized in Chung Ek and was home to the loudspeaker from which they would play loud music and sounds to cover up the screams and cries of the executions.
They used shovels, sticks, hammers, garden hoes and knives as murder tools.
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| Killing Tools Storage Room |
This tree was even used to smash the heads of babies of the intellectuals families so that future generations could not seek revenge on the Khmer Rouge or Pol Pot, their leader. Sickening.
Several Mass grave sites were found throughout the property, they were excavated to provide proper burial and preservation.
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| Former Mass Grave Sites |
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| more mass graves, some buried alive |
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| Grave for victims of beheading |
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| Preserved bones and rags from victims |
They built a memorial building at the site which houses many of the deceased skulls which were dated and sexed by professionals.
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| Thousands of human skulls found and preserved |
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| Chung Ek Museum |
Listening to these stories was devastating and mind numbing. The Khmer Rouge were responsible for the death of about a quarter of the Cambodian population. Truly, every single person in Cambodia was affected by this genocide.
We were deeply saddened by the stories and history that we learned at the Chung Ek site but this was not the whole story.
To make things more horrifying, people were only taken to Chung Ek after they had been to S21, which was once a school but was changed to a secret torture prison under Khmer Rouge authority.
Government officials would convince these intellectuals that they were hired for a job as a teacher or something along those lines, and then were brought to this prison.
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| blood stains on the floor |
Some were kept in small cubicles not even large enough to lay down. Or shackled together for easy moving control.
The officials were ordered to gather confessions from the
prisoners, and if the prisoners did not write this just as they wanted, they would be tortured until a proper confession was given.
These torture methods were barbaric and sadistic. One of the many method of torture was hanging people up by their wrists with rope and waiting for them to pass out from pain; once they passed out, their head would be lowered into a bucket of human feces until they woke up (sadly this was not even the most extreme of their methods).
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| wrist hanging posts |
We walked through this whole prison and saw disturbing pictures of these prisoners and tools that were used for torture. The main goal of this prison was dehumanization. There were many cases of people trying to commit suicide because they couldn't handle being treated like they were nothing.
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| tombs of the only 12 survivors from S21 prison |
There were only 12 people who survived the S21 prison of thousands who had entered.
It is hard to believe that for years the Khmer Rouge was recognized by the UN and western civilization without knowing anything about their vicious and brutal customs. Learning about this tragedy gave us a whole new perspective of the Cambodian people. We both felt it was a necessary lesson of the country's history and provided means of understanding and paying our respects for the Cambodian culture. We spoke openly with a couple of locals about their perspective and it was quite easy to see that even later generations are deeply affected by the events that took place during these years.
After hearing about and discussing the killings fields all day, it's safe to say that we were ready for something lighter in the evening.
We arrived back at Mad Monkey late afternoon and were shown to our room.
Much to our surprise we had to go to the 5th floor to spend the night with Fuller in the attic. Luckily he went easy on the soda and didn't wet the bed again.
After fueling up with food and having a much needed 5 hour power nap, we woke up to people chanting and loud music playing at the bar on the floor below us.
So, of course, it seemed necessary to get dressed and get our asses downstairs to see what the commotion was.
FLIP CUP! We didn't hesitate. We grabbed ourselves some beers and joined in. We had a blast and met people from Sweden, Scotland, Holland, Germany, fellow Canadians (from Toronto), and of course Cambodians.
After partying at the hostel we made our way to Club Love where we danced up a STORM. The DJ was hilarious, jumping up on tables and dancing like a mad man.
The next day was a slow start and we didn't get out of bed until 1pm, which was amazing. We went for sushi and then had another nap (sorrynotsorry).
Later on, we booked our trip out of Phnom Penh for the next day and enjoyed a delicious BBQ at our hostel that evening. We got to enjoy some ribs, chicken, beef, AND shrimp skewers, potato salad, coleslaw and garlic bread. YUM. Heading North for Siem Reap in the morning this was just what the doctor ordered.
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| Camouflage Carl |
We said bye to our new found friends including Carl, and jumped in another minibus onward.
Siem Reap and Angkor Temple Town
The trip to Siem Reap was about 6 hours in a mini van, and we lucked out by getting the most spacious spots on this crammed bus. The first night we stayed at Naga Guest House,
and then moved to another Mad Monkey once again.
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| Mad Monkey Siem Reap Hostel |
That night we checked out what the night market had to offer.
And tried our luck with some Happy Herb Pizza - a Cambodian specialty.
We knew we would be visiting the temples, so we booked a one day tour starting at sunset that same evening, and we were joined by a Brazilian girl named Camilla!
The first temple was called Phnom Bakheng (Hindu and Buddhist temple in the form of a temple mountain. Built at the end of the 9th century as King Yasovarman's dedication to Shiva), and we had to hike a fair distance to actually see the temple. Once we got there, it was pure madness.
There were hundreds of people surrounding the temple, and a massive line up just to get onto the temple to watch the sunset. We asked a couple how long they had been in line for and they said 90 minutes!! They were definitely not making it to the top for sunset, and we weren't going to waste our time waiting. So, we basically just walked around and took some pictures, the headed back to the hostel.
The next day we were going to hit Angkor Wat (one of the most famous temples in the area). We were told it is the most beautiful at sunrise. Meaning our Tuk-tuk would depart at 5AM.
This early of a morning meant we would have the beautiful views to ourselves, right??
WRONG!!!!! Extremely wrong!
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| tourists after sunrise at Angkor Wat |
Nevertheless, the view was quite nice despite of the pushing and yelling of all of the anxious tourists.
Angkor Wat (the largest religious monument in the world, 162.6 hectares. . It was built by the Khmer King Suryavarman II in early 12th century originally as Hindu but transforming to Buddhist by the end of the century).
Much to our surprise there was hardly anybody inside, which made for a nice leisurely explore through this massive temple.
The detail and art inside were astounding.
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| Nobody around celebrations |
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| These steep stairs require hands and feet |
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| Finally the sun came up |
The sun finally peaked over the top. Still most of the people were busy taking their selfies out front of the temple with the reflection.
Which meant we were among the first to enter the main tower that day.
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| Steps to the main tower |
After a quick and cheap breakfast we were ready to move to the next temple and escape the crowds.
BUT, of course it wasn't quiiiite that easy...
Motorbikes, tuk-tuks, pedestrians, tourist vans - EVERYWHERE! We were grateful however, for our excellent driver as he would find us quickly and easily through the masses every single time without fail.
We eventually escaped the madness and headed for Angkor Thom ("Great City" was the last and most enduring capital city of the Khmer empire). The largest of all of the temples in the area.
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| One entrance into Angkor Thom |
Inside the walls of Angkor Thom, several temples and ruins were found as well as forests, gardens and many statues.
The most famous building inside was the center of attention called Bayon (built in the late 12th or early 13th century as the official state temple of the Mahayana Buddhist King Jayavarman VII).
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| Wall to enter Bayon |
It was very interesting as it had sculptures of faces in each major tower.
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| Steeeeep climb |
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| How much is that doggie in the window? |
A Very steep climb for a spectacular view of most of the temple. Also not many people up there ;).
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| Tina got to enjoy these views on the daily but had to watch out for many feet |
And of course... the main tower where herds of sheep weaved in between each other trying to get the best selfie.
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| Bayon, Angkor Thom from afar |
After another tourist filled temple, not even close to lunchtime, we were ready for a break from humanity for a while.
We found a nearby ruin called South Kleang, it was unoccupied. We stopped for a rest here and enjoyed the peace and quiet.
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| Watching spiders is much more interesting than tourists |
Now on to our personal favourite, the Tomb Raider Temple or Ta Prohm (originally called Rajavihara, built in Bayon style in the late 12th and early 13th centuries).
This ancient temple is slowly being reclaimed by nature and trees. It was also used in a tomb raider film scene.
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| Jody |
We shared some water with our friend Jody.
Safe to say at this point, in this heat, it was time for a lunch break! We shared a quick Cambodian dish of rice, noodles, vegetables and pork.
Then off to the next few temples, exhausted already.
Banteay Kdei (Citadel of Chambers)
Our temple visits got shorter and shorter. With the goal of getting a good picture with no people in it getting easier and easier and our willingness to explore deteriorating.
Next up - Preah Rup (built as the state temple of Khmer king Rajendravarman and
dedicated in 961/962. It is a temple mountain of combined
brick, laterite and sandstone)
And then - Preah Khan (built in the 12th century for King Jayavarman VII to honor his father)
This completed our temple visits after a hard days work of climbing towers in the intense heat.
There were even some cool sights on the way out of Angkor. We found a very cool travel van.
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| I want this |
And loads of long tailed macaques showing off by the streets.
That night we had to relieve some of our tourist/heat exhaustion, so we took a night on the town.
After a nice street bbq meal with Lukas, our new Brazilian friends from our temple tour joined us at our hostel for a little party on the rooftop bar - which was a sand floor + beach themed - neat-o.
Followed by a stumble to Pub Street for some more drinks and street dancing. Pub street is filled with lights and music from all of the bars competing with each other. A young Cambodian girl was roaming the street dancing her little tushie off and selling bracelets. Naturally, a dance off broke out with this girl, and she kicked everyone's ass with her talented moves. She also sold a few bracelets because of it.
The next day was clearly a relax by the pool kinda day.
Which quickly turned into a beer funnel from the 2nd floor afternoon.
But it didn't get too wild after that. We decided to go for a buffet dinner and traditional dance show.
This buffet was MASSIVE. And the line surrounding the buffet was MASSIVE also. They had so much to offer from sushi, pizza, pasta, soup, spring rolls, different kinds of meats, etc. We piled the food onto our plates and feasted.
We weren't quite sure that the show was over, until the Chinese tourists started running onto the stage for their peace sign selfies with the dancers. Which must have been 1.5milliseconds after the last songs last note.
This completed our stay in Siem Reap and we were headed south in the morning!
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