Tale of two cities

Battambang’s central market

We’re back from our little tour around southern Cambodia. First stop, Battambang. Against Miriam’s wishes, we headed for Cambodia’s second largest city. Although my memory (and the boat tickets) promised a 4 1/2 hour “fast boat” ride, we were apparently on the slow boat. 7 1/2 hours later, after stopping at seemingly every floating village, we arrived at our destination. The whole reason for going was to see a truly Khmer city. Untouched by tourism, this city of 110,000+ people seemed empty. The crumbling French colonial buildings looked the same as when I was last there 5 years ago. Aside from a few new hotels and a posh French restaurant, the development was noticeably slower than anywhere else I’ve seen. Known as the “rice bowl” of Cambodia for all the rice and produce that come out of the region, Battambang is boring. There are officially three places to see. Two Angkor temples and a pagoda. After getting violently ill from some fried noodles (generally a safe bet), we were forced to stay an extra day to see at least a sight or two. After a dusty ride through the rice bowl, we ended up at Phnom Sompeau, a modern pagoda with monks and shrines and glitz and gold. Situated atop a mountain and complete with an anti-aircraft gun (from the war), the monks have a commanding view of the countryside. Phnom Sompeau also served as one of the hundreds of “killing fields” around the Cambodia. Basically a mass grave for the unfortunate during the reign of the Khmer Rouge (1975-1979), Phnom Sompeau’s limestone caves made for great places to drop people to their deaths.

The river through Battambang

Miriam on the river’s bank

Stairway to Phnom Sompeau’s cave/killing field

Ahh, the dust

Accusatory statue?! “What, what did I do?”

Phnom Sompeau

Temple monkey

Next up, Wat Banan, an Angkor period temple. Again, a long climb was needed to reach the small temple, 372 steps to be precise (everyone kept repeating that fact).

Wat Banan

Prayer flags

372 blissfully (blisteringly) hot steps up to Wat Banan, Angkor temple.

The caution sign is at the top

Frangiapani tree

Ok, enough Battambang…now it’s on the big city. Assured of good roads and a quick bus ride, we were put on the slow bus. Another 7 1/2 hour trip and we were in Phnom Penh. The bus stopped multiple times, the last at a car wash so the bus could pull into the capital nice and shiny. Although I’ve experienced it over and over again, the the volume and pure cheesyness of Khmer karaoke videos never ceases to amaze me. With my own music maxed out, I was just barely able to find my “happy place” (a term that has come to symbolize a traveler’s trance on long distance, painful journeys). Nearly deaf and exhausted we checked into the Paragon on Phnom Penh’s river front. The usually peaceful boardwalk has been transformed into a massive public works project, slated for a 2010 completion. Oh well, anything beats Battambang.

Central market in Phnom Penh. I love the French colonial architecture.

As there are three things to do in Battambang, there are four in Phnom Penh. The Killing Fields, S-21 (Khmer Rouge tourture center), shopping, and drinking. Yes yes, there is also the Royal Palace and the National Museum, but both are so uninteresting that they barely qualify.

After a depressing day of visiting S-21 (Toul Sleng) and the Killing Fields, we raised our spirits the only way you can in Phnom Penh. Shopping and beers. Actually it was shopping and coffee, real coffee even, in the middle of the Russian Market, a crowded (I think packed, briming, cramped, or over-filled better describes it) market in the middle of Phnom Penh. Barely able to push our way down the body-width aisles, voices of the sellers burried in their wares tried to direct you to their booth. “Mr., hey Mr., you want t-shirt?”.

Photos of the condemend, S-21 interogation center for the Khmer Rouge

S-21 was a high school before the horrors started on April 15, 1975

A list of rules

A torture room

Choung Ek, The Killing Fields, on the outskirts of Phnom Penh is where the prisoners would be sent to be killed.

The unlucky, or the educated, or the ones who spoke out, or the ones who made a mistake, or the slow, or the ones who wore glasses, or the…

Mass graves at the Killing Fields

S-21

For you photo-types out there, the blurry photos were taken with a Lens-Baby lens. A gimmicky lens, I know, but I think it fits the nightmareish history of Cambodia.

On a lighter note…

I think this earns extra point in the napping competition.

A vegetable seller in the Central Market, Phnom Penh.

The train station in Phnom Penh. It’s freshly painted, looks fantastic, but I think trains only run once a week.

Shoes anyone?

Next up, the southern coast, including the beaches of Sihanoukville, sleepy Kampot and hidden pepper farms near Kep.

David Seaver David Seaver is a Vermont based professional photographer.

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