Tag: Cambodia

Coconut Express, Phnom Penh

I visited Cambodia’s capital city, Phnom Penh, for the first time recently. With a population of around 1.5 million, Phnom Penh is relatively small compared to other Southeast Asian capitals like Hanoi, Bangkok, and Manila. I walked around and did some tourist stuff, the centerpiece of which was a visit to the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. Formerly a middle school, the Khmer Rouge converted the place into a “security” prison after they entered the Phnom Penh in 1975. Political prisoners and many others who displeased the Khmer Rouge for any reason whatsoever or were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time were brought to the prison where they were tortured and murdered. Or tortured and then sent to rural killing fields where they were murdered. There were a few survivors whose horrifying stories are memorialized at Tuol Sleng. This was a disturbing way to spend a morning, and that is an understatement. I am glad I went; I took no photos. Otherwise, I found Phnom Penh appealing and relatively quiet compared to the bustle and congestion of larger and obviously more prosperous but also appealing Saigon or Hanoi. I might find myself there again, but Phnom Penh is not a place I will make into a destination.

Ta Phrom Temple, Cambodia

Although some restoration work is underway at the site, Ta Phrom temple remains in a state of disrepair. The quiet grandeur of this eight to nine hundred year old temple complex nonetheless shines through the rundown condition of many of the structures. In fact those conditions may actually enhance the grandeur. I remember being astonished by the soft colors and faded beauty of the Temple of the Sun in Beijing when I first visited in 1987. When I returned 25 years later, the site had been “restored” and looked like a gaudy movie set; it was very disappointing. In fairness, restoration work at the Forbidden City has, in my opinion, done an excellent job retaining the feel the place had before work began. Be that as it may, restoration is needed to preserve sites like Angkor Wat and the Forbidden City and to protect them from the damage the millions of tourists who visit each year can do, whether inadvertently or maliciously. Hopefully the work here will proceed with a sensitivity to retaining the sense of ancient power this place has.