We came in to Phnom Penh from Vietnam, and the Vietnam/Cambodia crossing was the easiest border we have had. We saw no officials, no one even compared us to our passports… Instead, the bus driver collected everyone’s visa forms and went off for the stamps while we went to a restaurant. He then delivered them back to us, charging us $5 extra for the priviledge. Strange!
One of the first things I noticed upon crossing the border was the frequent ‘Cambodia People Party’ signs along the road-sides. The next day when we visited the military prison and the Killing Fields it became more evident why that was. The prison visit, although extremely informative, was completely harrowing. We met a few people who didn’t last the whole visit after becoming too upset. The prison was used by Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge regime to house suspected criminals (these were basically anyone with glasses or soft hands who could be accused of being an intellectual). They were held there and tortured until they confessed to ‘crimes’ that they hadn’t committed. 20,000 prisoners came through this prison during Pol Pot’s leadership. 7 survived. 2 of them are still alive and visit the prison every day. Seeing them on the way out, after learning about their stories and the absolute horrors they have experienced was just a sad, humbling experience.
After the prison we went on to the so-called Killing Fields. This is one of the sites that the regime used to kill over 1.7 million people. It was where the prisoners from Phnom Penh were sent to be killed. Every Cambodian alive has relatives affected by this regime, which is just so sad. It is incredible and unbelievable that this could have happened and even more so that it is such recent history.
We learnt that during the regime international politicians, journalists and travellers came to Cambodia and denied any wrong-doing was going on. We couldn’t help but think then, of the travellers that we have met who have just come out of Myanmar stating that the global news is mis-reporting what is happening and that ethnic cleansing is not going on. It was at that moment that we realised our decision not to go to Myanmar was right. It’s not about whether it’s safe for us, but morally, would we want to be quoted in ten year’s time and saying “it was fine“, whilst genocide was happening?
Phnom Penh was the strangest capital city we have been to. It was full of low-rise, old, dirty buildings and then a few large modern business structures. The majority of people were ‘normal’ (poor) Cambodians, which is why we still gape at prices of things like Starbucks. Who on earth can afford £5 per coffee in Cambodia? There must be a part of the population that we haven’t seen yet. Either that, or Phnom Penh is preparing for the business influx it is expecting, judging by all the high rises being built.
Cambodia is well known for sex tourism. We knew that before we came but didn’t realise it would be so … obvious. The bars in Phnom Penh are absolutely full of white, single men. Complete misfits. And the majority of this is child sex tourism we are talking about, unfortunately.
Friends had warned me about the child beggars in Cambodia too. There are a huge amount of children asking for money here, simply because there are a lot of desperate people here. The advice is not to give anything to them because it encourages their parents to send them out begging rather than to school. Despite this, I found myself sharing my dinner with one about an hour after we entered the city!
Phnom Penh is an odd place; completely not what we expected. It’s as though there is nothing going on, however, the prison and memorials make it an important stop on your trip. Just prepare yourself for the harrowing experience whilst you are there.
