Jan 22nd Phnom Penh

 Jan 22^nd –Phnom Penh

Not looking forward to some of todays activities namely; The Killing Fields and S-21, the interrogation centre for the Khmer Rouge. However, we were met by our guide for the day, Sophea. He is a contrast to our previous guide Joe, and I think right for the day. He is informative and knowledgeable and carries a certain amount of reverence about him. We started at the Royal Palace which is now the residence of the current King Norodom Sihamoni. To get in you need to have your shoulders covered and a scarf isn't good enough however, you can buy a T-shirt close by - enterprising!?

The establishment of the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh in 1866 is a comparatively recent event in the history of the Khmer and Cambodia. Previously it had been at Angkor on the Tonle Sap Lake and then Basan, and later Longvek and then Oudong. The reason for some of the moves was either destruction by external forces (Siam in many cases) or its proximity to other warring factions.

The Palace complex is divided by walls into four main compounds, on the south side is the Silver Pagoda, to the north side is the Khemarin Palace and the central compound contains the Throne Hall and to the west is the private sector or the Inner Court, where the current King lives. The buildings of the palace were built gradually overtime, and some were dismantled and rebuilt as late as the 1960s. But some old buildings dates back to the 19th century. The reason that many were rebuilt or replaced was that they were constructed of wood and attacked by termites. One of the most unique surviving structures from this period is the Napoleon iron Pavilion which was a gift from France in 1876 when Cambodia was a Protectorate of France, (it is now closed to the public because of its poor state of conservation).

The Throne Room

The Silver Pagoda is so called as the floor is made of silver tiles. Most of these are now covered by carpet as the tiles are coming loose as the mortar has disintegrated. However, you can see sections uncovered and where the surface is polished you can see intricate designs. It must have been stunning in its day.  Inside it houses many national treasures such as gold and jeweled Buddha statues. Most notable is a small crystal Buddha (the "Emerald Buddha" of Cambodia) — undetermined whether made of Baccarat Crystal in 19th century or of other kind of crystal in 17th century — and a near-life-size, Maitreya Buddha encrusted with 9,584 diamonds dressed in royal regalia.

Some of the paintings surrounding the walls

The Throne Hall is where the king's confidants, generals and royal officials once carried out their duties. It is still in use today as a place for religious and royal ceremonies (such as coronations and royal weddings) as well as a meeting place for guests of the King. The throne itself is only ever used once during the Kings lifetime and that it to crown him. Otherwise he uses a smaller less ornate chair for meetings and events.

Around the walls there is a painting that depicts Khmer life and of the Kings. It has deteriorated over time with neglect and the humid environment. It is now being restored.

The “Moonlight Pavilion", is an open-air pavilion that serves as stage for Khmer classical dance in the past and present. It is one of the most notable buildings of the palace as it easily seen from the outside as it was built alongside a section of the palace walls.

Some of the 8,000 skulls in the monument.

Our next stop was 45 minutes outside the city based in a former Chinese cemetery, the “Killing Fields”. Stepping out of the van I was struck by the fact that this place of such sadness is now a tourist attraction. Somehow that doesn’t seem right. Upon walking in it feel initially like a park with plenty of trees and shade. This is possibly because all the buildings have been taken down, probably eaten by termites and became unstable. Many of the trees have been planted since it was discovered. The larger, older trees were used to support speakers that played martial music loudly so as to disguise the sounds of suffering while the murderers were at work. At the centre is a rectangular monument that houses 8,000 skulls of some of the victims. These have been arranged by sex and age and clearly show the injuries that caused their deaths, with some of the everyday instruments that were used on them – spades, hoes, bamboo sticks, pieces of steel reinforcing rods.....

We wandered around where some of the mass graves had been found and where fresh bits of bone are found after the rains. The ordinariness of the place is quite shocking. Our next stop was where the interrogation took place – S-21.

The holding cells at S-21

Formerly the Chao Ponhea Yat High School, the five buildings of the complex were converted in August 1975, into a prison and interrogation centre. The Khmer Rouge renamed the complex "Security Prison 21" (S-21) and construction began to adapt the prison to the inmates: the buildings were enclosed in electrified barbed wire, the classrooms converted into tiny prison and torture chambers, and all windows were covered with iron bars and barbed wire to prevent escapes.

Some of the cells in S-21

From 1975 to 1979, an estimated 17,000 people were imprisoned at Tuol Sleng, although the real number is unknown. At any one time, the prison held between 1,000–1,500 prisoners. They were repeatedly tortured and coerced into naming family members and close associates, who were in turn arrested, tortured and killed. In the early months of S-21's existence, most of the victims were from the previous Lon Nol regime and included soldiers, government officials, as well as academics, doctors, teachers, students, factory workers, monks, engineers, etc. Later, the party leadership's paranoia turned on its own ranks and purges throughout the country saw thousands of party activists and their families brought to Tuol Sleng and murdered.^[2] Those arrested included some of the highest ranking communist, these men may have been viewed by Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot as potential leaders of a coup against him. Prisoners' families were often brought en masse to be interrogated and later executed at the Choeung Ek extermination centre. All pretty grim and it annoyed me that there was a glib, Facebook age poster that basically came down to “say no to genocide” as if that was enough to write off one the worst cases of mans in humanity to man and that it wouldn’t happen again because someone said "no"!

The Titanic Restaurant

We then had a fantastic lunch and the Titanic Restaurant beside the river. Maybe this shows how far Cambodia has come since those dark days, that you can go from a grim other world experience to an expected delightful one.

After lunch we went to the Wat Penh. This Buddhist shrine was built by Lady Penh in 1373 who found effigies of the Lord Buddha floating in the river and decided to build a temple to house it.  As the area of the then village didn’t have any hills she had a 27m high mound built to protect the building from the floods. When the king moved his court to Phnom Penh he decided to honour Lady Penh and renamed the now city to Phnom Penh. This shrine is at the centre of the city.  The shrine has been rebuilt many times, the last time in 1926. Inside are paintings of scenes from Lord Buddhas life. Next to the Buddhist shrine is a Chinese temple.  This is a recent build and a bit tacky with flashy neon lights that everyone here seems to love.

One of the depictions from Lord Buddhas life