A deserving visit. I really like this city, I don't know what it is--the spacious boulevards, the French colonial architecture, the cheap markets, the feel of the place....? There is a certain charm to it, and a certain historical significance that makes me like it more than other Asian big cities--maybe the fact that Cambodians have been through so much and even now, things aren't the best, but they still make the most of it. From the glory days of Angkor Wat, to the days of French occupation, to the civil war, followed by the horrific Khmer Rouge regime, this country (and this city) has seen its fair share of hardship. Economically and aesthetically, it lags somewhat behind Bangkok or Ho Chi Minh city, but it makes up for it in charm and in spirit. The food is good and cheap, people are kind, and there are plenty of kids playing in the park & people taking in the day at the riverside. We arrived at about
1pm from Siem Reap & planned to do the history museum (history of Angkor Wat). We figured it was the perfect way to finish our Angkor experience. The museum housed all of the sculptures and interior objects found inside the Angkor temples, from Buddhist to Hindu statues, to carvings and inscriptions. It was well organized and a pleasant time to explore. We ate at a cute and cheap riverside restaurant, Tom eating a great Cambodian style stir fry. We roamed around the riverside area, admiring temples, the palace,and plenty of cute little restaurants---the architecture and vibe reminded us of the French Riviera. We walked by exercise parks in full use, as well as group volleyball sessions along the promenade --I was debating about jumping in to join the game! Just a pleasant, calm, relaxing vibe ....
I bought a stash of fake ray bans and found a hidden treasure-a book shop- near our hotel. It had all the western and european classics + lots of Cambodian literature + lots of fiction and non-fiction--- anything a Barnes & Noble would carry- all in English and for a fraction of the price! I sat in that place for a while.... I really like this place....
The next day was an important one with a lot of significance. It is what most people that come to Phnom Penh, Cambodia actually come to see: the Tuol Sleng Genocide museum and the Killing Fields (the Cheung Ek Genocide museum). Before making our way back to Ho Chi Minh City, we knew we needed to experience this history too- a STARK contrast to the glorious Angkor Wat days. A little history lesson for those who know nothing about Cambodia and the atrocities that occurred here just over 30 years ago:
The French controlled Cambodia from roughly the 1860s to the 1950s when they finally, reluctantly, gave Cambodia its Independence. The new, free Cambodia plundered into Civil War shortly after and the Khmer Rouge regime ousted the previous government, officially ending the civil war. However, victory was short-lived. Within 48 hours of taking Phnom Penh, Pol Pet (the leader) and the Khmer Rouge regime forced all Cambodians out of the cities and into the countryside to do hard labor all day long. No matter who you were, what you did, how much you didn't and didn't know about agriculture, you were made into a peasant farmer and your freedoms were stripped. The Khmer Rouge were a strict utilitarian communist party ---Rouge=Red= signifies Communism. They wanted Cambodia to return to the good old agriculture days, in addition to a conformed, collective group, leaving the idea of 'the individual' out of it (premise of Communism). However, Pol Pot did this to a COMPLETELY different degree in comparison to Vietnam (its neighbor). The Khmer Rouge regime and their tactics most closely resemble the tactics of Nazi Germany during WWII or Stalin's Russia---mass murder, economic collapse, a tyrannical, psychotic leader, and practically a complete destruction of society. The key difference between The Cambodian situation and the European situation is that the Khmer Rouge killed their own people and eventually decimated
1/3rd of the Cambodian population between 1975-1979---males, females, kids, babies--Everyone and anyone they thought might be a threat to the 'Brotherhood' or the 'Republic' (babies were genetically similar to their parents so they needed to be killed too because there was fear that they would grow up and try to avenge their families deaths)! All in all, it is estimated that 3 million Cambodians (and a few foreigners) died in less than 4 years of the Regimes power! Basically, one of the largest genocides in history (recent or past)! It has only been 34 years since all of this happened & the Cambodian people are still physically & mentally recovering from all of this. In particular, 2 historical sights of importance (in & around Phnom Penh) are the Tuol Sleng Museum and the Killing fields. First about the museum:
It is a former high school that became a secret prison under the Khmer Rouge, known then as 'S21'. Here they detained, interrogated, & tortured regular Cambodian citizens accused of being traitors--usually forced under horrible torture to make fake confessions that they were part of the CIA or KGB. The conditions were horrid, as were the torture tactics (if you want more details google it). The paranoia and twisted nature of the Khmer Rouge (and most notably Pol Pot) got so incredible that they started to torture and kill their own Khmer Rouge soldiers and officials---somehow, over time, everyone seemed to be a traitor! The killing fields/Cheung Ek museum are where these 'traitors' were actually taken and killed, a mass gravesite of about 20000. We did both of these sites and it made for an eventful and emotional day.
We started at the Tuol Sleng museum. We thought it would be easy to get a guide on arrival, but when we got there we realized everyone who had a guide had arranged one before hand. We really knew the value of having a guide for a place like this, so we tried our best to scope one out. Eventually, there was a guide waiting for a scheduled group who offered to take us before that other group came. He was a year younger than me and his whole family (but not him, he was too young) experienced the atrocities of the Khmer Rouge. He was a fantastic historian and a genuinely nice guy. He related to our Polish background and told us that one day he would like to see Auschwitz in order to pay his respects to the atrocities Poland faced during WWII. He walked us around the torture rooms, the pictures of the victims (the Khmer Rouge meticulously documented all of their prisoners and the tortures/interrogation they endured similar to the Nazis), the torture techniques & devices, and the deep history of the place. He also brought us to a small table near one of the buildings where 2 older gentlemen sat and sold books---the last 2 surviving prisoners of S21, barely alive when the Vietnamese liberated Phnom Penh and S21 in 1979. We bought their signed autobiographies because it is for a good cause. Why did they survive you may wonder? Well, they both possessed skills that were useful to the Khmer Rouge at the time---one was an artist who actually painted the famous portrait of Pol Pot, and the other knew how to fix typewriters (vital to the regime and their meticulous documentations).....incredible stories....
Last, we watched a documentary called 'Bophana' that told the love story of a couple that was eventually executed at S21. The stories, pictures, and place was chilling. You could almost hear the screams of the victims as you walked into each room. They have changed very little of the place since it was found in 1979. The feelings it evoked were similar to how I felt when I was visiting Auschwitz (I was around 12 years old at the time).....bone chilling, dark, depressing and such a vital history lesson. I actually started crying a little with the guide at one point. He said he was very happy to take us on a tour because we saw the importance of a history lesson just as much as he did. I gave him a hug & got a picture with him at the end of the tour....
We spent longer than expected at the museum, and were a bit pressed for time at the Killing Fields since we had a bus booked for Ho Chi Minh city that afternoon. It turned out to be just enough time to cover both places properly.
The Killing Fields are located about 15km outside of Phnom Penh. We booked a tuk tuk driver for the whole day so he just waited for us outside of each venue. By the way, the tuk tuks in Cambodia are my favorite--the biggest, most spacious, and usually with cool designs! They are the luxury tuk tuks of Southeast Asia ;)
Anyways, at Cheung Ek, along with the admission ticket you get an audio tour (I assume they do it like this because a talking guide might be slightly innappropriate at a mass grave site). It was a memorable place and the audio guide was fantastic! I learned later that they had actually privatized the museum and a Japanese company owned it (?controversial) & that is probably why the whole thing was so well organized and so informative. The place is basically a big green area with a small lake on the outside. There are no original buildings standing from the 1970's as they were all broken down to be used for firewood. Instead, they have erected a Buddhist Memorial stupa that encases many skulls and bones inside, as well as memorial 'houses/roofs' over certain concentrations of mass graves, as a way to pay respect to the dead. In addition , the audio tour includes lots of personal stories and lots of information that gives you a grasp of the place. My eyes were watery pretty much the entire 2 hours we were there. They would bludgeon people to death, poison people to finish the job, rape and kill women, kill babies by smacking them against a tree (there is actually a baby killing tree where they found the remains), and decapitate former soldiers turned traitors---all at night and in the backdrop of Communist propaganda music to drown out people's screams. The place just gave me goosebumps, knowing I was walking amongst a mass grave. It was a deeply moving experience. The world can be a sick and shocking place sometimes. Unfortunately, genocide is nothing new, and it still happens today (ex. South Sudan). It is hard to believe things like this can happen, but they do, and it goes to show how brainwashed people can become and how easy evil people can have power over others. This is why history is my favourite subject---learning from others and from our own past brings us so many life lessons and guides us into our future...
A little about Pol Pet, the leader of the Khmer Rouge (in case you were wondering):
It is something I want to mention because it brings so much depth to the story. Educated and politically influenced (into Marxist and Communist practices) in France, Pol Pot was an educated man- a, wait for it, HISTORY TEACHER , who eventually dove into politics. His 'revolutionary' thinking came to Cambodia at the right place and time---tormented in civil war, Cambodians wanted out and barely knew who was controlling their country from day to day. Pol Pet seized this opportunity well and due to the instability and uncertainty in the country, was able to control it for as long as he did. However, the international community provided little help and had no idea what was going on in the country, as its borders were sealed off. The international community was so blind (or so ignorant) that even into the late 1980's the Khmer Rouge regime was still serving as the official Cambodian government body in the UN (after the Vietnamese drove them out of the capital, they fled west towards the Thai border where Pol Pot still officially ruled for another 20 years)!!!!!!!!!! Unfortunately, Pol Pet died in house arrest in 1998 & was never even brought to trial for his crimes against humanity. Other high ranking officials are serving time, however, and only 1 of these previously high ranking officials actually admits to the atrocities....!
What a memorable day. What an important day. So much history, so much tragedy. I am writing this as we sit in our bus to Ho Chi Minh city because I wanted the thoughts and memories to be fresh. I want to remember how I felt today and how much impact it has. We were in Cambodia for a short time, but out of all the places we have been in Southeast Asia, this place has definitely evoked the biggest spectrum of emotions--from the magnificence of Angkor Wat, to the horrors of Tuol Sleng museum, it is a portion of our trip I won't allow myself to forget.
