Discover the capital of the Kingdom of Cambodia Phnom Penh on your Asia trip. It is a destination worth the visit. The people of Cambodia are kind, warm and friendly, and will always give you a smile and a helping hand. Phnom Penh is different from many of the other big cities in Asia. It has a distinctive friendly and mellow vibe. You can even go around on foot without fearing for your life.
There is plenty of traffic, sure, but somehow crossing the street seems less dreadful than many other places.
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| Phnom Penh Skyline at sunset from Mekong Towers, PP |
The Mekong River runs through the city, divides the city in multiple parts and creates a spacious area to chill on your days off.
Cambodia might be one of the poorest countries in the world. The majority of people live for less than a dollar per day and the average salary is 100 $ a month. Yet the majority of people you meet are nothing but kind and helpful.
Where to go:
Phenom Penh has a few pearls that you really need to visit while in Cambodia.
A must-see is, of course, the
Choeung ek Genocidal center, also known as the killing fields of The Pol Pot regime.
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| The Killing Fields |
It is a dreadful tour in the fields containing mass graves and slaughter places where the regime killed 20.000 of their own people. One of many located through-out Cambodia. During the regime, more than 3 million people lost their lives. When you go, do yourself the favour of getting the audio tour. It provides a lot of information and it gives you the opportunity of not talking with your fellow travelers while seeing these nightmares.
The location itself is quite peaceful, with beautiful surroundings: a lake, flowers and butterflies. It gives a bit of comfort to know that the survivors can visit this place and hopefully get some sense of peace, however little. This is not a joyful experience but something everyone should see when visiting Cambodia, to understand the sad story of the country and remember that this happened less than 50 years ago.
Tuol Sleng Genocide museum is another monument to the Pol Pot nightmares, also known as prison 21. This place will break your heart into such small pieces they can be passed through the eye of a needle.
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| Picture of the floor in Prison 21 |
If not for the barbed-wire fence, it would look like the school it once was. The stories you will hear here will make you question your faith in humanity and all that is good. After leaving the scene, my tuktuk driver took one look at me, hugged me for a good 2 minutes, and told me I would feel better soon.
- That is one of the things I love about Khmers they are always so good and caring.
Let’s move onto some feel good experiences.
I can recommend a stroll by the waterfront, just wave at the children and enjoy the vibrant lives of the locals you meet. Quite a few Khmers like to say hello, practice their English, and get to know the people visiting their country. It is very easy to make new friends,- or drinking buddies for the night. If you invite your tuktuk driver out for a drink, he will be loyal and take you around everywhere for a fair price for the rest of your stay.
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| Royal Palace |
While walking down the waterfront you will walk by a pagoda and the royal palace. You can enter and visit both of these extremely beautiful locations. Should you feel thirsty there are always at least 20 bars with happy hour deals within reach of a dry mouth. Who can say no to an ice cold beer for less than a dollar?
The
local market is another destination you should put on your list. Here you can find treasures for every age and desire varying from ‘I Cambodia’ t-shirts, to china and cutlery for the house. All you have to do is explore and bargain.
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| The food area of the local market in PP |
Walk around the backside of the market to find the food corner. Here you can eat everything you want. From spiders, chicken, or seafood, to fresh fruit and freshly squeezed sugarcane. Try as much as you can and sit and eat with the locals. They are friendly, and within the blink of an eye you are sitting amongst new friends, hearing stories in languages that your ears don't understand but which your heart comprehends fully.
Living:
Whether you are on a budget or like comfort Phnom Penh can give you what you want. The hostels in the city offer accommodation in dorms from 3$, private rooms for around 10$ a night. No luxury guaranteed, but nice people and very central. Around the center you will find plenty of guest houses. It is often cheaper to just show up, as most of the Khemers would rather make a bargain than lose a customer.
When you want a little more comfort you can find hotels with pools and less noise just outside the city centre for around 20$ per night. We spent a few peaceful days at Mekong View Towers and enjoyed the little island oasis.
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| Picture of everyday life in PP |
Dining:
The cuisine is pretty amazing. I haven't been to a single place in Phnom Penh where I didn't like the local food. We have dined expensively and locally. And I loved everything I ate, so just pick a place with a nice atmosphere and enjoy a lovely meal. For some expensive dining, you can eat at the rooftop restaurant on the 17th floor at the Mekong view Towers. Buy a 6 $ main dish while looking at the Phnom Penh skyline, or grab a 3 $ meal in the local kitchen and enjoy the authentic atmosphere of the alway vibrant city.
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| Relaxing in a hammock down Mekong River street |
A new experience:
While prancing the city, jump in for a massage in the seeing hands massage and support the blind masseuses in making a living. Do be aware, you get what you pay for. So when you choose the cheap places, the quality follows.
Buy a bracelet from a street child and play a cheeky game with them. Grab a cold beer to cool off and enjoy the life that Phenom Penh offers you.
Did you order too much food? Do share it instead of wasting it! We had 3 small boys dining with us one night - they loved the French fries. They were funny and cheeky, and very happy with the free food. And we made some new friends!
Sex-tourism:
A thing that will not take much space but should be mentioned here is that Cambodia has a reputation for sex-tourism. When you visit Cambodia, and Phnom Penh you will soon realise that there is a lot of sex-for-sale. As a male, if you use Tinder you will match with a lot of beautiful ladies and after a little small-talk they will suggest meeting up. The standard price for sex in Cambodia is $50. The price is regardless of whether or not the ladies are standing on the street, picked up in the famous lady-bars or matched with on social dating-sites such as tinder. One big problem is that the average salary for “blue collar”-work pr month is $100. This is what the tuktuk-man on the street makes, the people in the food-stalls and most of the other hard-working khmers. This means that if a lady works two nights a month and earns $50 she has already doubled a family’s income. A lot of women that doesn’t work in the sex-industry still moon-lights on dating-sites and ask for money for favours. It is hard to watch and not easy to solve because of the way Cambodia is working. But traveling around in Cambodia is it an important thing to be aware of.
* All pictures are private taken by me.
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