world of cambodia.

this entire part of the world has economies that are unstable and lifestyles that seem outdated by centuries. the people have been through so much and live life trying to survive from day to day. this is even more so the case in cambodia, one of the poorest countries in the world and THE poorest in the region.

but the people here are amazingly friendly and helpful. they have somehow been able to overcome their tragic history, that is surprisingly recent, and work to make the most of their days and their lives. any negative interactions we did have with people were limited to the standard begging or plea to buy something, which was clearly a result of the poverty they are facing.

my days in cambodia were limited and i was only able to see the two main areas of most notable tourist sites. however, in the short time i was there, i saw and learned enough to make me want to go back for at least a month after teaching and volunteer, probably in an orphanage. so it is safe for me to say that my experience with this country is anything but over.

a history lesson in phnom penh.

sorry, no inspirational music on this post. actually, its depressing to the max. cambodia is a country that has been plagued with hardship after hardship. speaking with the people on a daily basis, it is easy to forget this as they are absolutely one of the friendliest people around, but our one full day spent in phnom penh brought the facts of their history back to us, very clearly.

our first stop was choeung ek, one of the most famous of the killing fields in the entire country. basically, these places are sites of mass executions and consequently, many many mass graves of people who were killed by the khmer rouge, a group with a communist mindset run by pol pot, who were charged with killing millions of cambodians who threatened their power and their most brutal time period being between 1975 and 1978.

upon entering the site, it first comes off as quiet and rather peaceful. however, that impression soon vanishes when you come upon the tall, white, stupa which was built to commemorate the victims who were killed at the camp. shelves upon shelves of human skulls are the dominating feature here, and its surreal to see all of these together in one place. it really drives home the facts of how many people were not just killed, but tortured and brutally murdered, by the regime.

a walk around the fields showed us some of the mass graves that had been discovered and exhumed in 1980. a look through the museum gave a concise but decent explanation about who the khmer rouge was and what they wanted. many of the leaders have been, or are in the process, of being tried for their crimes.

from choeung ek, we headed to s21, the most famous of the security prisons that the khmer rouge ran and where prisoners were kept and interrogated before being sent to a killing field. the museum was once a high school, which was taken over an transformed by the khmer rouge and housed over 20,000 victims from 1975-1979. there was an eerie feeling throughout the entire place, which included 4 buildings which had been used as cells and torture rooms and a small graveyard for the last 14 victims killed here and discovered by the liberating forces. the buildings now house testimonies of the few survivors and former khmer rouge members, pictures of the victims, and some of the instruments used for torture.

its so grim, that meghan had to leave before the 3:00 showing of the video, and so i finished the day out on my own.

by the time i got back to the hostel, i was quite depressed. the most haunting thing is how recently in the past this had happened. its crazy to think that it was capable then, and then you start thinking about how similar things are still happening around the world in different areas today.

to get me out of the sad state, i played with these guys for a bit, because, as everyone knows, puppies never EVER fail to make me happy.

the magic of angkor.

before you start reading this post, i want you all to open this in a new window and listen to the song as you do.

ok. so now youre in the proper mindset to experience the magic that is angkor wat. ill start with some pictures to further inspire you:

our first full day in siem reap was spent at the temples.ta phrom, known as the 'tomb raider' temple, was our first stop. this one is well known because it is one of the only ones in which they left the jungle as it was, taking over the structures. the trees are gigantic and roots intertwine with all of the walls and constructions.

much foliage around the temple.

(sorry, ive never seen tomb raider so i couldnt act it out.)

overgrown roots.

next we climbed up the steep steps of a nearby temple of which i have forgotten the name, and got a nice view of the area from 50 meters up.

my big feet make it difficult to climb these tiny steps.

view from the top.

the best part of all of the temples was our next stop, the bayon temple inside of angkor thom, which was the walled city that served as the khmer capitol in the thirteenth century. the reason why this temple was so amazing was that it had hundreds, possibly and probably thousands, of these faces carved into it. apparently it is also interesting because the layout of the temple was an experimental design and so it is different than most others.

close up. of one of the faces.

carved faces at bayon.

for our second day at the temples, we got up early to go watch the sunrise over angkor wat. even though the entire site of all the temples is referred to by that name, the one wat that is most famous is actually called angkor. hundreds of people gather at angkor each day to watch this event, and once you see it, you understand why.

angkor wat at sunrise. picture not doing it justice.

this is one of the largest temples and so we blocked out a few hours here. it was nice because it was still early in the day and while it was still hot and we were still sweaty, it wasnt quite as bad as the day before. we came across one spot that said we could climb up and get a view from the top, but that it didnt open until 8am. it was just after 7 and so we decided to sit back, watch the japanese tourists for a bit (because even here in asia they are very humorous), and wait to be the first ones up. an hour later, as we are standing in line, we are told that what we are wearing (shorts and tank tops) is not appropriate to climb up in. obviously we were quite angry. we debated getting people to let us borrow their shorts to cover our knees, but this was not a likely possibility and so we trekked on to the back of the temple where we found some interesting characters who gave us some great last shots at the temples.

mama and baby sharing a tasty banana!

fascinated by the mirrors on the motorbike.