The border crossing from Vietnam to Cambodia was breezy compared to some of the stories I've heard, the abject poverty is obvious once you cross the border. While homes in Vietnam are usually made of concrete, the Cambodian houses are shacks made of this and that and many more farm animals are present. I've encountered many child beggars here. While plenty of kids sell trinkets or packs of gum in Vietnam, I never saw any child beggars. I toured S21, the notorious political prison during the Khmer Rouge. People were taken here to be interrogated and tortured into making false confessions, including working fohere CIA. Once a confession was made, the 'criminal' was executed. Only 7 survivors were found when the Vietnamese liberated the city in 1979. Next I went to Cheung Ec, known as the Killing Fields, where S21 prisoners were taken to be executed. An estimated 20,000 people were killed here, including women and babies. Under Pol Pot's regime, the entire family of an accused person was killed so that no one would come back later for revenge. Bones and scraps of clothing are still being discovered today, usually after a heavy rain. A stupa was built to house the bones of the deceased and it stands at 17 levels of bones. The level of genocide is unthinkable.
