Desk cleaning

[seamus]

Hog you have just done a trip that I have dreamed about since I was a child

[Guest]

(seamus @ May 02 2009,01:52)  Hog you have just done a trip that I have dreamed about since I was a child

I did it over a year ago Seamus, just getting round to posting photos, and many were seperated from my hard drive on my desktop. Its not that hard of trip and you can do it on a small budget if you don't mind staying in Guesthouses which I did. Taking a Thai LB doesn't cost you that much more either.

you can take train from BKK to Aranyaprathet for under 100 baht, free for thais. then an 80 baht tuk tuk to the border. 20 USD or 1000 baht for your visa and your in Poipet, which has a bunch of cheap goods and a Casino within a walk. The hard part is the 3 hour taxi ride to Siem Reap on that dirt rode. you can catch a bus, but told its even rougher a ride and slower of course.

Can't say enough about Angkor Wat, its so much more than the 540 meter wide main concourse. Its a good workout, and you can make it as hard as you want to really. I climbed as much stuff as I could, and took as many photos as possible. You'll want to go late morning and you should stay until sunset, because the look is amazing and much better for photos. Plenty of shade and plenty of places to rest or eat.

You can take the boat, but your basically crossing a lake (Tonie Sap) until it turns into a River just North of Phnom Penn. Bus $4 3hours, 5 in dry season, Boat $10-$15 5 hours, private taxi $40-$50.

Phnom Penn, you have to see to believe, more death and guns than i ever care to see, but felt safe the whole time. hard to believe all that shit went down less than 35 years ago, but it did and the memories are still freshly preserved for the tourist.
suggested reading: Off the rails in Phnom Penn - Amit Gaboa

Toul Sleng or S-21 is pretty morbid to most but if your interested in current history its a must visit. It was a total institution set up by the KR as part of there Killing machine in 1975 and didn't get liberated until 1979.
suggeested reading: Cambodia Year Zero.

You can buy a ton of books about Cambodia and the Pol Pot years ($2 each from the kids), and there is a ton of interesting stuff on You -Tube, one a 32 part series, of 7 minute episodes which is really good. Can't recall the name.

Death instruments of S-21

Bullet holes in the walls.

Cambodian guards.

[Guest]

This first place just outside S-21 would have been there during the time although the city was empty when VN liberated it in 79.

[Guest]

forgot to mention your Tuk tuk drivers you can pay by the day, and they will just crash out while your going through a site of interest. Some might want you to buy them a cold drink, since you don't pay them until after its a nice gesture. don't hold the thai drivers against them, they are better from from my experience, much more willing to work and compete for your buisness.

4 on a bike, no worries, no helmuts no worries.

Until a crash but these fellas seemed to laugh it off.

Nalin in Tuk Tuk.

[Guest]

You can buy these birds and turtles to release for good luck. Some Korean guy bought the whole cage of birds and released them all.

[Guest]

While walking to the National Museum this chicken was slaughtered about 2 metres away from me. I heard a yell then the guy broke its neck by the curb. I checked myself for any splatter and got my camera out and took this photo of it, along with a block of Ice and a bucket of frogs. Yum!

the french influence is still very apparent in buildings and cuisine.

[Guest]

Outside the Museum. on the way we went by this Temple that was billowing out black smoke. It smelled, and my Ladyboy knew exactly what it was was, a buddhist funeral burning the body.

[Guest]

On our way to Choeung Ek (killing fields), two bizarre things happened. I hire a Tuk Tuk for the day to take us to the killing fields and he takes us out of the city where the memorial and body pits are located. A few K out before the roads turned to dirt we see these shops on the side of the road. One has shiny aluminum tables out front and people sitting at them, but not eating. i look in expecting to to a resteruant as we pass by, but I see a naked corpse hanging from the ceiling in a net. As I say: WTF my ladyboy says its a wake, and proceeds to tell me it can last three days.

After the road turns to dirt the Tuk Tuk driver ask me if i want to go to this other site before the Killing fields. I clarify that it is on the way, but not sure what the hell it is. We turn off the main dirt road and head down this smaller one. After a K or so we come up to this steel gate that is opened from the inside by this little Cambodian man. We go in and get out and sit at a small table, when I begin to notice all these weapons on a far wall. The menu is soon in my hands and its a total price list ranging from shooting an AK for about $10 all the way to throwing a hand grenade $200. Although the Bazooka looked interesting at $175, I'm pretty much anti-gun and not fascinated by them at all. So not to offend them I ordered two soft drinks and were on our way.

[Guest]

The Memorial itself. Located on the actual Choeung Ek site where thousands were put to death.

[Guest]

These are the body pits. The KR would load the prisoners from S-21 blindfolded and then take them to this location and have them kneel to the ground and a guard would crack them over the head dropping them into the pit on top of other bodies.

[Guest]

Some of the pits where more bodies were found were fenced in and had numbers of skulls found basically.

[Guest]

this first tree was called the killing tree which they used to beat kids on. not sure what the second tree was, can't read the sign, but something similar.

[Guest]

In this glass case is bones from the victoms and in the drinking glass are teeth from some of the victoms.

There were bones and teeth along the ground as well. I guess if you were twisted enough you could take some as a souvineer

[Guest]

This is inside the Memorial itself, which is basically layer after layer of skulls that are encased in glass.

You can pay to have an english tour guide, or just follow behind someone who has. If you don't do either you can get the gist of it, and always buy a book from a cambodian kid.

Must see movie: The Killing Fields

[Guest]

More skulls through the glass casing. Each one has a story each one has a confession they were tortured into making. you could see several cracked skulls which made you wonder if it was from blunt truama when they were killed.

Nalin's a living lb skull.