Phnom Penh

We decided to spend two nights in the capital of Cambodia, Phnom Penh. We wanted to do a Hash run and learn more about the Khmer Rouge revolution. The Hash was quite an adventure. Unfortunately we did not bring our camera…or should I say fortunately…it would have been ruined. We arrived at an abandoned train station and piled into the back of a “livestock” truck. We basically stood in the back of the truck, bouncing over huge potholes and careening through Cambodian traffic for about 45 minutes. About half way there we just about drowned in a torrential thunderstorm, which did not stop for the next few hours. Our destination was a beautiful temple out in the countryside. We ran 6 miles through cow pies, rice paddies, barbed wire fences, herds of cattle, past huts and naked babies…all in mud and water up to our calves. One of those adventures you never forget! (and my running shoes will never smell the same…)

Our favorite place in Phnom Penh….our private soaking pool. Every time we ventured out into the heat we knew our refreshing pool was waiting for us. Our tiny hotel, The 240, was wonderful.

Disclaimer…prepare to be depressed. This is the Tuol Sleng Museum. In 1975 this High School was taken over by Pol Pot’s security forces and turned into a prison known as Security Prison 21 (S-21). This became the largest centre of detention and torture in the country. Between 1975-1978 more than 17,000 people held at S-21 were taken to the killing fields.

Building A was used for detaining cadres who were accused of leading the uprise against Pol Pot. There were torture tools and shackles present. The front of the buildings were covered in a fishnet of barbed wire, preventing prisoners from committing suicide by jumping down.

The Security of Regulation…rules to be followed. Next to this was the pull up bars that had been used by the children of the school for physical education. It was turned into an interrogation and torture machine. I will spare you the details.

The Khmer Rouge leaders were meticulous in keeping records. Each prisoner was photographed, sometimes before and after torture. I could not photograph the “after” pictures…too disturbing. The museum displays include room after room of harrowing black-and-white photo’s…men, women and children that were later killed. It brought tears to our eyes…some looked so terrified.

The individual cells...most with blood stains on the floor and chains still attached to the walls. At the height of the Khmer Rouge revolution they started devouring their own. Generations of torturers and executioners who worked here were in turn killed by those who took their places. When the Vietnamese army liberated Phnom Penh in 1979, there were only seven prisoners alive at S-21. Pol Pot died in 1998...he was never brought to justice.
The Royal Palace....outside the gates you see so much poverty...tuk-tuk drivers, beggers, children selling goods. An interesting contrast. Now on to Thailand! We are giving Bangkok another try....