Into Cambodia and Phnom Penh

Across the border with bags and ourselves back on the bus we headed off... 200meters and then stopped again for lunch. Travel is never quick in this part of the world. On the bus again and 4 more hours and we arrived in Cambodia's capital of Phnom Penh(PP). When reading about coming to PP we often saw that it was not a very spectacular place and were given the advice to only make a stop there on the way to somewhere better but on the way in I saw a place that looked pretty ok. Maybe i'll find out what they mean later. Off the bus we had a bit of a walk around looking for an ATM as we had no local currency (Cambodian Dong). This was a bit of a chore as we had a bad map and our bags on our backs. After a few blocks of navigating slightly crazy traffic we found a bank. Sarah went inside while I negotiated with a tuc-tuc driver over a price to the area we wanted to stay. She came out though with a puzzled look on her face and said that the ATM asked her how many US dollars she wanted to withdraw. We knew from Vietnam that some shops accepted dollars and assumed it would be the same here but from an ATM? Surely the Fed Reserve wouldn't allow this. Confused we walked further up the street to find another ATM. In goes the card, PIN accepted, How many Dollars would you like??? Well, we figured that we'd use the dollars sooner or later and the exchange rate was good so what the heck we'll take dollars. It turns out that the whole of Cambodia lists prices in dollars and they only give you Dong as change for amounts less than a dollar. Cash in hand we found our tuc-tuc and made our way to the lakeside area of town to look for a bed. We found a collection of cheap rooms along the lakeside with many of them built on stilts over the water. Most had restaurants with decks that looked over the still lake that was covered in a layer of floating plant. Suitable room found and bags dropped we had a refreshing coffee shake on the deck to watch the sunset. We then had a quick walk around to stretch our legs, and then cought a tuc-tuc into town on the river front for food. The next morning we had a bit of a lye in as long bus ride tend to take their toll and then set out to see sights. Shopping was an interesting mix of flashy malls to grotty markets selling knock offs and seconds of just about every brand you know. After midday we started to get into the serious side of things. We visited a place calld S.21 which was an old high school converted into a prison. This prison was operated by a group called the Khmer Rouge. Khmer Rouge came into power in 1975 after overthrowing the king and government which had been weakened by US bombing of Cambodia during the Vietnam conflict. If you read about ancient Cambodia you'll find that the natives are called the Khmer and even today their style of cooking is named the same. The Khmer Rouge though were a nasty bunch and imposed some very strict and extreme types of communism on the country. I would liken it to Native Americans suddenly overthrowing the US government but then killing everyone who didn't do a pow-wow dance correctly. Back to S.21, this place was used to jail the intellegent, powerful, rich and anyone else that might pose a threat to a new communist government. They were brought here, photograped, a full biography taked and then kept in brutal conditions. The most horrific I read was prisoners being subject to electric shock if they turned in the night without asking permission. These prisoners were eventually taken to the Killing Fields that you may have heard about and we visited the following day. Also, to keep it secret, when a new batch of gaurds came to the prison the old guards were sent along with the prisioners to the Killing Fields. Sick! If you like to read more check this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuol_Sleng_Genocide_Museum After that harrowing sight we saw one more market and I began my negotiations on a new watch. He started at $35 and when I left was down to $22. Still no sign of a bad PP though. Tired from lots of walking we stayed near our hotel for dinner and met some nice Canadian girls afterwards. We made plans the next day with them to go to the Killing Fieleds by sharing their tuc-tuc and then made our way to bed. Up fairly early we set off and were met by a beautiful memorial. Where S.21 made me sickened by the Khmer Rouge the Killing Fields made you sad for those that perished there.
This is the memorial built for them. -->

And if you look Closer.

Not quite as sad as S.21 because it seemed a peaceful last resting place, at least it was on that day. Another wierd fact that I forgot to say is that while the Khmer Rouge were in power the UN sanctioned them as legitimate??? Back to town and parted ways with the girls it was back to bargain hunting time at the market. Sarah was after a mini hair dryer but after much looking and haggling could not find one at the price she wanted. I though walked out with my "Genuine" Omega Speedmaster Professional for $16. Not bad. It keeps good time and has no battery as it is motion activated so what the heck. Another day of walking and a long bus to Siam Reap the next day had us eating again near our hotel and off to bed early.