Phnom Penh. Well unlike the last time where I kinda breezed through the place, we have a couple of days to spare in this city.
We're staying at
Salita Hotel and for US25/night it's actually very decent. It's only a few months old when we got there so it's still clean and fresh. There's no underground parking for the bikes but we're happy enough with the 24hr security provided.
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| Malaysia......you welcome also! |
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| Our security.....good enough. |
One thing about Cambodia is that the people are pretty proficient in English, which is a great relief but it also worked against me in the sense that I didn't bother to pick up basic Khmer other than "Akun" which means thank you. Usually I'd make an effort to at least ask "where is the toilet?"(very important hokayyyy) in the local language, but this time around even this I failed.
We found the city to be quite easy to navigate as it's made up of square blocks with the "happening" riverside to the East as your marker. It is also a flat city, coz just as with the previous hotel I stayed in, the hotel's restaurant is on the top floor, which in Salita's case, is on the 10th. Just look at the pictures and you have an idea of how flat the city is.
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| 10th floor where you get a bird's eyeview of the city |
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| Pretty flat I'd say |
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| You would think Husref is taking my picture right? |
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| Well think again |
Though the hotel is a little bit far from the riverside it is actually near to
Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum or S21. I think it was just 500 metres so we walked there. It's my first time there and after that visit, I can safely say it's my last. The sun was shining and this being a former school it is both open and airy, yet with what transpired here through Cambodia's dark Khmer Rouge rule the place gave out a grisly unnerving chill.
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| What you see on the left is the gallow where prisoners were tortured and hanged |
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| This fella wouldn't last 5 minutes back then. |
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| Chum Mey...1 of the 7 known survivors of S21 |
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| Add caption |
It is disturbing to be looking at rows and rows of photographs of inmates knowing very well that those eyes staring back at you met with a terrible and gruesome end, even kids are not spared. I'm just glad that they did not display pictures of those being tortured. I'm not generally squeamish but I don't think I'll be able to hack it if it is too much in your face. I'm left to my imaginings and in it I softened the blow by conjuring a less painful and traumatic end to the eyes that are looking back at me.
I ask myself, how is it possible for someone to torture and kill their fellow man (woman and child) en masse, just because you don't share the same idelogy, or religion, or ethnic group. It is silly, it is stupid and you would think that places such as S21 serves as a stark reminder of what can happen when you allow emotions and fear to rule. I can't help to be reminded by what is happening in our current political scene where the race card is being played by both sides much to the detriment of the greater good.
I left Toul Sleng feeling empty and drained and not recalling the steps back to the hotel, for all I wanted to do is to wash this feeling off and fully clothed, I stood under the showers.
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