48 hours in Phonm Phen

I was peeping through the window to get a glimpse of the city that was once called “Pearl of Asia” and was considered as one of the loveliest of French built cities in Indochina. The evening sun gave the perfect lighting to see remnants of peace and war and the confluence of Tonle Sap, Mekong, and Bassac rivers from air was a visual treat. Even at 20,000 feet the history and geography of Phnom Phen was breathtaking!

I said no to fancy hotels, air-conditioned rooms, hot water and towels and instead took the help of the tuk-tuk driver to rent me a shack in the market area. The $5/day shack gave me clean running water and a bed with clean sheets. I did the final due diligence of the toilet before I shook my head. It was slightly bigger than the one in the aircraft, and the basin and commode was stain free. I dumped my baggage and stormed into the market area. The gait in my walk reflected my energy and enthusiasm even after a 3 hour flight from Malaysia. Dressed in shorts, flip flops and the Yankees cap I set out with my camera, Lonely Planet tour guide, and passport around my neck declared my tourist status beyond any doubt. Apart from a lot of glances coming my way, the tourist tag also invited a few surreptitious looking men. They were shamelessly trying to sell me some “Ws”’ (women and white stuff). The market street in was indeed a market in every respect.

The market was no fancy and was just like our Ranganathan street market. Vendors had encroached pedestrian walk area, the same petromax and emergency lamps illuminated the tropical produce. Added to this there was chaos, dust, vehicles honking, bargaining, and heaps of garbage on the street. It was truly tropical, even the mosquitoes came free. It felt like the same artist had painted both cities. It was home away from home in every respect. But there was something different too. Heaps of fried snakes, worms, insects, crickets, scorpions and other crustaceans decorated the market street. I recorded every scene, scent and sound.

From colorful Rambutan, Durian, Lychee, Mango, Mangosteen to the intimidating Dragon fruit I starred at the inviting and colorful spread of tropical fruits on display. I flashed a smile at the shopkeeper and tried broken English to make her feel better and I captured interesting images on my camera and headed to the river side.

December kept both humidity and mercury at bay, and gentle evening breeze made dinner by Tonle Sap River an irresistible idea. I went up and down the river front and finally it was Frank Sinatra’s “Summer Wind” that helped me decide on the restaurant. Not sure what to order I let him get me a sandwich and cup of Irish coffee in the meantime I pulled out the guide book and scribbled my itinerary for the next day. But what do I do tonight? Should I go back to the roaches and bugs in my shack or turn into a metropolitan low life and explore the city. I drowned my apprehension in the river when Mats from Denmark and Hossien from Sweden at the restaurant. They were backpack travelers and on a journey all by themselves to explore South East Asia.

What happened that night was easy, predictable and in three words, free spirited, footloose, and seedy. All through that night Switzerland and Denmark was busy Iiquidating and at times I had to rescue duo from the Khmer candies who eyes were asking “my place or yours”? But finally it was my shack and it was 3 am when I brought them home.

The first night at Phnom Phen turned out to be salacious, strangers ended up as friends and I became their chaperon. Aren’t vacations all about doing things differently, exploring the new place, disrespecting time, trashing discipline and making new friends?
Next morning when we woke up the sun was right above our head and the market was a beehive again. They had no clue where they were, and handed over their passports and wallets. It took a while for them to come terms with the memories from the last night. They were so free spirited and didn’t care to register and recognize. Luckily they remembered me

After a quick shower we headed out for lunch together and then decided to explore the history behind the city. Every city has history and the word muse in museum says it all. It makes you wonder, ponder and may be grow fonder.

We started with Wat Phnom, a small hill crowned by an active wat (pagoda) which marked the legendary founding place of the Phnom Penh. The hill is the site of constant activity, with a steady stream of the faithful trekking to the vihear, shrines and fortune tellers on top and a constellation of vendors, visitors and motodups at the bottom. An interesting activity we engaged in during the visit to the temple was setting bids free. Vendors had cages filled with sparrows and for a dollar you get to release 2 of them. It is believed that setting birds free removes your bondage and bad karma. I held the bird in my hand, closed my eyes and uttered a short prayer and finally released the bird with a big smile on my face.

The distinctive rust-red National Museum displays over 5000 objects including Angkorian era statues, lingas and other artifacts, most notably the legendary statue of the ‘Leper King’. Another striking monument in the museum is the reclining Vishnu, the upper half remains in this museum while the lower half of the statue is in the French Museum. Without passports and travel documents statues make it all the way to France. Surprised? The Museum also has a big lotus pond at the center surrounded by tropical flowering trees make this place a heaven.

So where did the Kings live and how did they live and what did they do? We got curious to explore the Royal Palace and Pagoda. Marking the approach to the Royal Palace along Sothearos Blvd the high yellow crenellated wall and spired Chanchhaya Pavilion stand distinctively against the riverfront skyline. Inside the Palace grounds street sounds are silenced by the high walls and the royal buildings sit like ornate islands rising from the manicured gardens. The Royal Palace serves as the residence of the King, a venue for court ceremony and as a symbol of the Kingdom. Khmer and European elements as well as distinct architectural echoes of the palace in Bangkok are present in the design of the various buildings. Attached to the Palace compound, Wat Preah Keo Morokat (the 'Silver Pagoda') is unique amongst pagodas. So named for its silver tiled floor, it is where the King meets with monks, Royal ceremonies are performed and it houses a collection of priceless Buddhist and historical objects including the 'Emerald Buddha.' And, unlike most pagodas, no monks live at the pagoda.

By 6PM we were out of steam and we wanted to treat ourselves to a nice massage and a royal dinner. Is it the Royal hangover? We wrapped up the evening early since we decided to go out of the city to discover the gory side of Cambodia, Khmer regime and Pol Pot.
Every nation has dark side, a gory past that is recorded in the annals of history. Killing fields and Toul Sleng says more than stories. Those are tales of cruelty and horror. Visting sore spots are not really fun however informative.

The drive to Killing fields was pleasant and our figment of imagination was far away from the horror waiting at the venue. The killing fields were essentially ad hoc places of execution and dumping grounds for dead bodies during the Khmer Rouge regime. Many of the Cambodians who perished under the Khmer Rouge regime ended up dumped in one of the dozens of ‘killing fields’ that can be found scattered across the country. After the Khmer Rouge regime, memorials were set up at many of the sites, some containing the bones and remnants of victims gather from the area. They hung speakers in the tree and played loud music to muffle the cries the cries of children and women while they were beaten to death.

On the way back to the city we stopped by Toul Sleng. Toul Sleng was a high school - a set of classroom buildings in a walled compound. When the Khmer Rouge came to power in 1975 they converted into the S-21 prison and interrogation facility, administered by Kaing Guek Eav, a.k.a. ‘Duch,’ who is currently on trial for his actions at S-21. Inmates at the prison were held in tiny brick cubicles and systematically tortured, sometimes over a period of months, to extract the desired ‘confessions,’ after which the victim was inevitably executed at the killing field of Choeung Ek just outside the city. S-21 processed over 17,000 people, less than a score of whom survived.

Killing fields and Toul Sleng were quite disturbing and are contradictory to the present landscape in the country, but nevertheless it shows the horror endured by Cambodians. There is poverty in the country, and it is quite common to see people who’ve lost legs and arms in the landmines, but they don’t look for free and easy money. Today Phnom Phen is peaceful and people are extremely sweet, kind, caring and very friendly.