Cambodia pt.I: Culture, Chaos, Khmer Rouge

Firstly, let me just apologize for the discrepancy between the post-date of these blogs and the dates I was actually in those locations. I wish I were giving you real-time updates, but sadly I am just too darn busy. I'll do my best to play catch-up here ...


Cambodia was a dizzying experience, an accost to all five senses. It was a supremely exciting, overwhelming, exhausting and moving experience -- and coming from the laid-back culture of Laos, a bigger culture shock than any I've experienced in SE Asia. A real knock-you-on-your-ass experience if you're at all sensitive to the chaotic noise and haggling and harassment of a tourist-dollar-driven economy.

Days one and two in Cambodia took me on a whirlwind tour of Phnom Penh, where the traffic alone is enough to make your head spin. Grabbing a probably-overpriced cab at the airport, I made my way to OKAY Guest House, a serious backpacker hub near the royal palace. Thankfully the place was more than ok, especially the prices ... a double room for $7, dinner of red curry and rice and a fresh banana shake for $3.50, internet for 75 cents/hour ... you can't beat that.

My sightseeing took me first to the Killing Fields and Tuol Sleng, or S-21. It was a haunting and sobering, if not entirely surreal, experience. Nearly 3 million Cambodians were exterminated by the Khmer Rouge regime under Pol Pot in the late 1970's, and the remnants of this atrocity still exist in the haunting photographs of torture victims at S-21 and the collection of human remains at the Killing Fields. It was a heartwrenching tour at both locations, something akin to visiting Auschwitz I would imagine, and the end of the day left me feeling physically and emotionally drained. Sightseeing on Day 2 was far milder, with a leisurely tour around the Royal Palace grounds and a trip to the National Museum, with frequent stops at the odd cafe or juice bar for some relief from the oppressive heat.

Moral of the story? Not entirely sure what to make of Cambodia and the people here. It is loud, frenetic and exhausting ... nowhere are tourists more like giant walking ATM's than they are in Cambodia (with the exception, I've heard, of Vietnam). The hustling is relentless, as are the pleas of crowds of children trying to sell you everything from pineapple to postcards to bracelets. And yet Cambodia's history is a rich tapestry of Buddhist/Hindu culture and powerful empires, and Cambodians themselves are an extremely resilient people, who are each able to speak an impressive three or four languages.