There are a number of ways to get from Battambang to Phnom Penh, a journey of about 297 km. All but one of these deposit you at one of the public transport terminals in PP, and from there you need to get a tuk tuk to your hotel. And the problem is?? We have been warned, repeatedly, about thefts from tourists riding in tuk tuks in PP. Warned and strongly cautioned not to resist.
We've probably taken hundreds of tuk tuk rides both in India and on this trip; this is the first time we've heard about this kind of theft. Very sobering. After very little discussion, we decide to hire a private car and driver to take us the whole way - a total splurge for us ($65) but most definitely worth it in terms of (my) peace of mind. Many years ago I was the victim of an audacious and violent robbery while a passenger in a car waiting at a traffic light outside Seville, Spain. Just the idea of something like that happening again . . .
Our driver is just a bit reckless but we arrive in Phnom Penh safely and within steps of our lovely accommodation, the Blue Lime. It is every bit as heavenly as advertised. Our room is on the top floor, with a spacious balcony overlooking the vanishing edge pool. We are safe and happy.
With only one full day here, we decide to go to the Cambodian National Museum and have a walk about the waterfront. PP is situated at the confluence of the Bassac and Mekong Rivers - beautiful setting. The city itself is noisy, crowded and filled with touts and a stunning number of children, many of them under the age of 5 or 6, who have neither shoes nor a full set of clothes. It is heartbreaking. I can't bring myself to photograph them . . . it just doesn't feel right.
I settle for a couple of shots of the Museum and one of the Palace (it was closed).
The Museum has a very impressive collection of statuary and artifacts from this very ancient civilization. Much of what we see rivals anything we've seen in museums worldwide. (Photographs inside were prohibited.)
Interestingly, many of the exhibits are labeled as recently returned from museums around the world as part of the antiquities restoration program. Apparently, many of these priceless pieces had been taken by other countries (or perhaps sold by the Khmer Rouge) and within the last 10-15 years the restoration program has been very active. The Museum has a lovely atrium, complete with fishpond and beautiful plantings.
and one long distance shot of the Palace . . .
Some thoughts on leaving Cambodia . . .
When we planned this trip, we deliberately left Vietnam off the itinerary. Tim felt it would not be 'fun' for him (no big surprise there), and there are so many other wonderful places in this part of the world it wasn't a difficult decision. Thailand is sophisticated, modern, civilized (how can you not love a place that recognizes 5 discrete genders!!) but Cambodia was a whole other matter. Had it not been for Angkor Wat, we would probably not have come here.
From the moment we stepped off the plane in Siem Reap and encountered the chaos of immigration and customs until we got into the airport at Phnom Penh for our flight to Kuala Lumpur, Tim was on alert. Sometimes high alert, sometimes low but on alert. Battambang was the exception - it's smaller, quite laid-back, and has enough art and French influence to defuse any tension. It is a lovely city.
Much of what we learned about the current situation in Cambodia was from conversations with native Cambodians, our hotelier in Siem Reap (a native born German), talking with lots of people along the way, and reading the Phnom Penh Post (the capitol's English language newspaper). In no particular order, here is some of what we learned and/or experienced:
-- there is universal agreement that the current government is corrupt.
-- private property can be seized with no warning and with little or no compensation.
-- the current Minister of Defense hired 4 thugs to assassinate an opponent; the MOD is now in hiding, and the thugs are in jail, after having been tortured to confess. (This was reported in the PP Post.)
-- the public educational system is sorely lacking and only the wealthiest Cambodians have access to quality education (starting from primary school).
-- the police are everywhere and are well 'paid'; they can stop and demand 'payments' for no apparent reason.
-- becoming a policeman costs $5,000 USD (not sure who it's payable to) and does not necessarily involve any real law enforcement or actual training.
-- the king spends a lot of time in China (for 'health reasons') but it's universally acknowledged that his (male) lover is the real draw.
-- the only real opposition to this abysmal state of affairs is coming from the children of the capitol's elite; remarkably they are the most vocal opposition to the rampant corruption.
-- the national currency is the USD; the real (pronounced 'ree-al) is only used to give change and is currently sitting at something like 2,000 to $1.
-- Angkor Wat, the nation's cultural and historic icon, is run by a Vietnamese company. None of the locals we talked to had even been inside.
Yet, remarkably the people get up every day, go to work, care for their families, and try to live decent lives in the midst of this instability and corruption. It is, to put it mildly, humbling. They are friendly, helpful, eager to work, and eager to please. This has been a surprising and at times unsettling visit, but I am in awe of a population that can persevere a little more than a generation away from the horrors of the Khmer Rouge and Pol Pot.
Just a sample of what he was capable of . . .
He was so determined to remake Cambodian society and politics that he declared 1975 'Year Zero' and forced everyone to move to the countryside and become farmers. Everyone. He even took people from hospital beds and force marched them to the fields. And were it not for the movie 'The Killing Fields' we might not have known anything about this horror. Americans were exhausted with Vietnam; this was another 'war' in a country far away . . . so when I find myself feeling critical, I have to stop and appreciate how far they've come since the collapse of the Khmer Rouge regime only 35 years ago.
And there is hope . . . the hope is the young people and the internet, technology, social media, all the same tools available worldwide. It is the young people of privilege who are agitating for change in Cambodia, and I am confident it will come.
