Well it’s been a while since i’ve updated our little blog. Mainly
due to just having too much fun. We have now moved on from Cambodia but I
can’t wait to tell you all about our trip.Neither of us had any clue what to expect from Cambodia. We wouldn’t have even have added it to our travel plans if it hadn’t been for the rave reviews from our friends. We knew we wanted to go to Siem Reap to see the temples of Angkor Wat but other than that we were a bit stumped.
Since we were heading there from Vietnam we decided to start in the capital of Phnom Penh and see what we could find.
What we found was a city on the brink of becoming a big
cosmopolitan and a ‘must visit’ city. The Cambodian people were very
kind and always smiling which made being in the city much easier but
there were a lot of sellers trying to entice you to buy their wears at
every turn. Unfortunately it also seems very popular in Phnom Penh to
use your children to get money. I’m not a fan of this and it upsets me
so much to see little kids being pushed to sell bracelets but PLEASE
don’t buy things from them as you just proving that it pays to take your
kids out of school. I know i’ve banged on about this before so I’ll
stop my blog-rant but try to hold back as much as possible.
The highlights of this city definitely seem to be the palaces and
buildings. Such detail is put into the surrounding architecture. A
normal government building would have me taking pictures for far too
long. Cambodian food is also a highlight. Quite a few people we talked
to had suffered from food poisoning so unfortunately it is better to eat
in restaurants than on the street but hopefully this will change as
the country grows. My personal favourite food was the Amok curry… a
coconut, creamy yellow curry sometimes served in a coconut. mmm I miss
them already.
Surprisingly Cambodia is a lot of expensive for food and drink than
Vietnam. In Vietnam a beer and a meal would cost about 2 dollars where
as here it would be closer to 6 dollars. Still incredible compared to
our home in the UK but its worth noting if you are traveling here
thinking it will be the same as Thailand and Vietnam.
The moments that will stay with me most from our trip to Phnom Penh
will definitely be the time we spent in the war prison. This old
converted school is haunting. The blood still paints the floors and the
eerie feeling of the horrors that took place here still hang in every
room. It is a disturbing place to visit that will pull your day down but
it is something I’d recommend. I’m really glad we got to understand the
country we were in a little more. It is also shocking when you realise
how recent all these events happened in Cambodia and how every person we
met on our trip near our age or older was effected in some way by the
events put into place by Pol Pot and his Communist regime. I didn’t take
any photos , out of respect, while I was there . I couldn’t bring
myself to snap anything in such a place but please take our word for it
that it is a haunting place and one that should be visited.We only spent three days in this city but I really liked it. I am excited to see how it changes and grows over the next few years.
The part of us that use to live in Korea
found this Mr Toilet sign and the placement of these flags very strange
(that’s north Korea by the way who have an embassy in Phnom Penh)
These creatures are called the Khmer and
Cambodians believe that they come from these creatures. They believe
Cambodia was underwater until one of their kind fell in love with a
human and created the race we see today.
Casual street banana trees
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