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On Tuesday we left Koh Rong and headed back to the mainland. The sea was incredibly rough which made for an interesting hour on the boat! When we got back to Sihanoukville we jumped onto a bus to Phnom Penh which took just over 5 hours and we arrived in the capital at around 8pm. We'd booked a night in a nice hotel so after finding that we settled down and went straight to bed.
Yesterday we decided that we wanted to visit the killing fields and the tuol sleng prison museum. We'd met 2 girls on Koh Rong who came with us and we hired a tuk tuk for the day and off we went. The killing fields are 15km outside of the city and are where prisoners were taken to be executed during the pol pot regime. No one is really sure of the total number but it is estimated that between 12,000-20,000 people were executed there and buried in mass graves. This was 1 of only 300 such sites that have been discovered since the Vietnamese liberated the country in 1979.
The tour was excellently put together and you followed an audio guide around the site which meant that everyone was deadly silent which really added to the atmosphere of the place. At the centre of the site there is a monument to all who were killed there which contains the skulls and bones of 9,000 people that they had uncovered which was really hard hitting to look at. As well as this, as you walked around the site you could see bones poking up through the ground, you literally have to avoid stepping on them. More harrowing than that were every so often you could see teeth and items of clothing that had been pushed to the surface. These are collected every month by the wardens but there are so many people here that every time it rains more get pushed up. It was a very surreal experience and one that I don't think I will ever forget.
After the killing fields we visited Tuol Sleng prison (S-21). The prison has been left exactly as it was when they found it in 1979 including dried blood on the floors of the cells and all the original fittings. Again the museum was excellently put together and gave you a deep understanding of the horrors that occurred there during the Khmer Rouge Regime.
Yesterday evening we had a few drinks and discussed what we had seen before heading to the local night market which was pretty disappointing although I did get to try my first durian.
Today we have had a lie in and are planning on heading to the central market in a bit before heading to a wine bar Sarah has found!
- comments
Pat Nelson Jonny & Sarah what a day you had at the KillingFields.Really something to remember. It has been lovely speaking and seeing you Jonny. What is a durian?? Hope you have a good day today. Take care both of you. Love Nan/Pat
Nana and Grandad An experience that will and should never be forgotten! Take care xx