And a good evening to you from across the globe after another GREAT DAY in the Lion City. After a 10 day layoff, the Bull finally got back onto the pavement for a run, logging 30 minutes (so prob around 3.75 miles) around the Marina. It should be noted that, whilst I've commented often lately about how much cooler it's become since "winter" started (read: 85 degrees and 90% humidity), I'd forgotten how miserable running outside in Singapore is until this evening. When I finished I was 49 shades of red and was covered in sweat. Let me just say how excited I am for some long sleeve running weather...and post run chicken wings...don't forget those.
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| Muffin Puffin at the Grand Palace - this place was fantastic! |
But enough of that, let's return to
the Kingdom of Wonder for a recap of Sunday, another fantastic (if somewhat
disturbing) day in Phnom Penh (and yes, you do pronounce both P's in case
anyone's curious - THIS IS NOT UP FOR DEBATE, BRITISH PEOPLE!!! The Khmer
people say it, so it's good enough for me...).
We were up at a reasonable hour and
down for brekkie ($45 USD a night got us a GREAT room and brekkie included
every morning - score, Muffin Puffin!). We showed up and they handed us the
menu, at which point the Bull (in full vacation mode) asked: "So how many
of these can we order?" The poor, naive, skinny little waiter said,
"Whatever you'd like? Order enough to ensure you're full?" ROOKIE
ERROR.
Ten minutes later, I am sitting with
a full "American" breakfast and pork fried rice, whilst Muffin takes
down some Cambodian style noodles. Add in coffee, water, and OJ (as well as
fruit!), and you've got two cats who just found away to avoid paying $2 USD for
lunch! Hitman, tell me you aren't proud of that one...
We then began our wander for the
day, beginning with 2 separate dudes SITTING ON THE STEPS OF OUR HOTEL waiting
for the ang mo's and saying "Tuk tuk? Sir, ma'am, sir - where you go? I
give you special price?" We shook them off to find another guy IN FRONT OF
US ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE EIGHT FOOT WIDE STREET saying "Sir, ma'am, Tuk
tuk?" NO I DON'T WANT A @#$#ING TUK TUK!!!!! Please don't make me set fire
to your only method of income. Okay, calm again.
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This photo doesn't capture the tout who spotted the 2 Ang Mo's
from a mile off and sprinted to us before trying to sell us the
one day tour of the city...for a "special price"...
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Speaking of calm, stop one was the
Vietnam Friendship Memorial. Let me preface this by saying that, if you aren't
familiar with the last 40 years of Cambodian history, I can assure you that
it's been fairly complicated. Between Vietnam and the Khmer Rouge (and the
extended, if quieter, civil war), there has been tons of blood shed in
Cambodia, and it's home to 2/3's of the world's active landmines. They have a
plan in place to remove them all by 2025, and I'm happy to report that the
project is on schedule. But still, when you consider that means people are
living and farming in these areas for the next 14 years, it's a terrifying
thought. I say all that to tell you that Vietnam has had a rather patchy
history with Cambodia, sometimes fight with them - other times fighting against
them. As I'm forever the historian, I'll be happy to get into this further at
Conference Room C once I'm home (between Ogas' Pai-Gow lessons, of course), but
for now let's just say that Cambodia and Vietnam have now normalized relations.
In fact, as an aside, our guide gave us some interesting perspective
on those relations. His take is that pretty much all governmental jobs go to
either the ruling party (not surprising - the Cambodia's People Party) or to
Vietnamese immigrants. Oddly enough, the person who owns the ticketing system
for Angkor Wat is a Vietnamese businessman, and he gets SEVENTY PERCENT of all
ticket sales by himself. The other 30% goes to the Cambodian government,
meaning that Cambodia loses about $52 million USD per annum that would
otherwise go to the people. Statistics like this were absolutely shocking and
provided all too frequently. Now granted, I'm acknowledge that we were only
getting one side of the story, but if our travels around the country are any
indicator of the accuracy of his statements, I'd say he's spot on with the
wealth distribution.
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Notice the memorial - this is a Khmer style tower - you'll see
lots of similar architecture during the Angkor Wat posts...
|
I'd never heard of this place before Tait came back from
Cambodia and his time in India. However, when I saw his photos, I realized that
this, like Dachau, Auschwitz, and so many others, was a place that I needed to
see. There was obviously another, more famous spot in Cambodia which was
synonymous with genocide - the Killing Fields (l'll talk about that tomorrow).
This particular spot was Pol Pot's torture prison. Essentially, this is where
people were brought to be tortured mercilessly and forced to confess crimes
they didn't commit and inform on people who were innocent before being taken to
the Killing Fields for execution. I have no lie to tell - it was a gruesome
place to visit.
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The
entryway - the guys out front are guides, charging $5 for
the
tour. If you don't go with them (we didn't), the ticket lady
gives
you a pretty snarky look and tries to make you buy the $3
book
of torture. We passed on that as well...obviously...
|
Much like our trip to Dachau back in 2009, the weather was
perfect - blue skies (although the pics don't really show it), puffy clouds,
and even a light breeze. Consequently, it was really impossible to get a sense
of the suffering, horror, and misery that haunts the place. It's been left
exactly as it was found during liberation, complete with the beds that the 7
survivors were chained to at the time the army arrived.
 |
This
is the first room you enter in S-21. They used this bed
for
torture - usually starvation.
|
The images were ghastly. Like the Nazi's, the Khmer Rouge
kept meticulous records of their victims - every single one of them were
photographed. Who were their victims? Well, that's part of the insanity.
Although college educated himself in Paris, Pol Pot believed that all intellectuals
were the enemy. He idealized the farmers, and anyone living in cities was
deported into the countryside to work 12-15 hour days with basically 3-4 bites
of rice and virtually no water. All doctors, lawyers, government officials,
teachers - you name it - were forced into harsh labor and eventually brought to
S-21 to become one of the 20,000 people executed in the Killing Fields (usually
by knives, axes, hatchets, bayonets, or the butts of guns so that the army
wouldn't have to waste bullets). Anyone with glasses or smooth hands was
considered an "enemy of the state," and more often than not brought
here for unspeakable torture. There was an exhibition dedicated to this, and
some of the devices were on display (as well as quite a few skulls). Women. Children.
Elderly. It didn't matter. Everyone was tortured. And Everyone died.
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| These are Pol Pot's "instructions" to the prisoners. I saw this sign in Tait's photos, and it's always haunted me. |
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Not
the chalkboard in the next room - this image still bothers me.
|
Our pensive, reflective spirits
didn't last long, however, as soon we were confronted by a BASQUILLION tuk tuk
drivers DESPERATE to take us the 1 mile to the Royal Palace. When we said no to
the first one, the guy standing RIGHT BESIDE HIM would then ask - rinse repeat
for THIRTY MINUTES. Finally we made it to the Grand Palace, my somber mood
replaced with utter frustration and a desire to punch the next dude for whom
the subtle headshake wasn't enough assurance that I was walking EVERYWHERE in
this city.
As
to the Royal Palace - let me say that I really, really enjoy it - arguably as
much as the elusive Grand Palace in Bangkok (if for no other reason than the
fact that this one is actually OPEN most of the time). We actually got to go
into the throne room (no "funerary practice" this time), and we also
went to the Silver Pagoda, one of the more famous temples (after Angkor, of
course). The views of this place were sweeping and stunning, which meant only
one thing - Jenny Taylor getting CRAZY with the Gorilla.
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| Gorilla in action! |
What, is the Gorilla (accept no substitutes!), do you ask? Well, it is, simply put, the greatest invention since the wheel. Basically, you screw it onto the bottom of your camera, and it will stand up ANYWHERE, regardless of what insane angle you place at on. Seriously, Jenny was like somebody out of Nat Geo with the way she had this thing strung up. My Muffin Puffin is just too cute...
After
that, it was just past 4 PM, which after the day we'd had and the sites we'd
visited, meant only one thing: HAPPY HOUR. Sure enough, we found this AMAZING
place on the second floor of a building along the river front, and so we camped
out for a GREAT evening of just relaxing, taking in the river and the people
below, and thinking about everything that we'd seen. As I went through TEN
beers (don't worry, Mum - 1) they were weak and only 12 oz, and 2) I'm on my
3rd AFD in a row back in Sing Sing; and don't worry, Dad - they were just 50
cents each) and some of the best food in Southeast Asia, I was drawing some
early conclusions about the Khmer people - namely that they were the
friendliest, most service-oriented, and best English speaking (outside SG, of
course) culture we'd met. Everyone (minus the tuk tuk drivers) was very
relaxed, super friendly, eager to help and not demanding anything, and seemed
to be genuinely happy. The food so far had been WAY better than expected (and
cheaper - always a plus), the beer always in a cold mug, and the city had just
enough sites to keep a person busy all day and then have room to tackle the
river for the evening. The pace of life here was just great, and perfect
weather and company were making it even more wonderful. It was early, but
already JT and I were thinking: "this could be up there in the elusive
camp of 'best 1 weeks trips in the world.'"
And how do you cap off such a
wonderful day? You stop in for a $4 foot massage, of course! Oh, man - that
woman had magic hands - I was ready to PASS OUT by the time she was done. My
feet were so refreshed that I almost contemplated that tuk tuk ride for the
half mile home....juuuuuuuuuuust kidding...even with that "special
price."
Well, that's Sunday wrapped -
apologies that I was a bit depressing there, but I feel it's important to try
and convey how depressing that place was and how much of an impression it left
on me. I'll warn you in advance that tomorrow will be worse, as the Killing
Fields really tore me up.
Okay, that's all the news that's fit
to print. Chat tomorrow!
Love,
Sam and (probably about to call it a night after some nice
wine and a home cooked meal in Manly) Jenny
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