A few days in Phnom Penh

A July 2003 trip to Phnom Penh by Heydecke

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum (S21)More Photos

A few days spent in the capital of Cambodia, Phnom Penh.

  • 6 reviews
  • 7 photos
For me the highlight of Phnom Penh has to be the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, which provides a chilling insight into the atrocities commited by the Khmer Rouge, but is left out of many of the guides.

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Best Way To Get Around:

Motos are the best and cheapest way to get around, if you're brave enough!
On our first visit to Phnom Penh, we stayed at the Happy Guest House, part of a group of guesthouses in the centre of Phnom Penh. Although the room was extremely cheap, at $4 per night, the room was dirty and the 'en-suite' bathroom was very small, cosisting of only a 'squat pot' and a cold water shower. The lack of a basin was a real problem for washing hands or cleaning teeth. Overall, this was not a very happy guesthouse!
  • Member Rating 1 out of 5 by Heydecke on August 18, 2003

Happy Guest House
Happy Guest House Phnom Penh, Cambodia

This was the second guesthouse we stayed at In Phnom Penh. Situated next to Boeng Lake in the north of the city, the guesthouse is grouped together with a few others, offering similar standards. The rooms were average quality, with the position overlooking the lake, the guesthouse's redeeming feature. Rooms were $4 a night.
  • Member Rating 2 out of 5 by Heydecke on August 18, 2003

Lakeside Guesthouse
Boeng Lake Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Toul Sleng Genocide Museum (S-21)Best of IgoUgo

Attraction | "Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum (S21)"

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum (S21)
Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum provides a chilling insight into the ruthless leadership of the Khmer Rouge. The former prison is housed in the building of a high school was used by the Khmer Rouge to interrogate and torture oponents of the regime. The prison was used between 1975 and 1979 to house and torture some 10000 prisoners, many who met their death at the nearby killing fields.

The museum has preserved the prison exactly as it was found when the Khmer Rouge were ousted in 1979. You are free to walk around many of the cells and torture rooms which provides a chilling insight into the crimes commited here. Other rooms show pictures of the victims and paintings, by a former prisoner, of the torures occuring. Finally there is and excellent film to watch about the prison. This is a must see in Phnom Penh.

  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by Heydecke on August 18, 2003

Toul Sleng Genocide Museum (S-21)
Corner of Street 113 and Street 350 Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Choeng Ek Memorial (Killing Fields)Best of IgoUgo

Attraction | "Choeung Ek - The Killing Fields"

Choeung Ek
When we visited Phnom Penh, the road to the Killing Fields was washed out, so the only was to approach the site was on a moto (motorbike taxi). The ride was hair-razing, weaving first through the chaotic Phnom Penh traffic, and then around puddles and potholes along dirt roads. The final part of the ride was the road that was washed out, which had a series of channels where the floods had completely cut through the road. We navigated these on makeshift bridges, just wide enough for the bike.

The Killing Fields consist of a monument, erected to those who lost their lives at the Killing Fields and an area of holes where the bodies were exhumed in 1980. Ober 9000 people were killed here, but the site does little to bring home the fact the way Tuol Sleng does, especially with the constant begging of scores of small children from the local area. Entry $2.

  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by Heydecke on August 18, 2003

Choeng Ek Memorial (Killing Fields)
15 kilometers south of Phnom Penh Choeng Ek, Cambodia

Royal PalaceBest of IgoUgo

Attraction | "Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda"

Royal Palace
The royal palace and silver pagoda are a fairly ornate group of buildings on the riverside. They are fairly interesting, but do not match the splendor of their inspiration, the Grand Palace in Bangkok. The entrance fee of $3 is reasonable, but the $2 extra for cameras is not worth the money unless you are really into your wats.
  • Member Rating 2 out of 5 by Heydecke on August 18, 2003

Royal Palace
Samdech Sothearos Boulevard Phnom Penh, Cambodia

About the Writer

Heydecke
Heydecke
Stutton, United Kingdom

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