Singapore & Cambodia

Landing in Singapore, it was really nice to see a familiar face, in the form of Fiona's uncle Tom who put us up for the two nights we were there. Having spent time in quite a few big cities recently, we didn't feel a particular need to rush about and see everything, instead opting for a more laid back insight into Singaporean life. We made good use of Tom's pool (which no-one else in the complex seemed to ever use), meandered through the busy streets of little India, and explored the Marina area including the Gardens by the Bay. Tom had various work commitments, but in-between these he introduced us to the more sophisticated side of Singapore, with afternoon tea at Raffles hotel (think fancy afternoon tea, with some dim sum thrown in for an asian twist) and a drink at a rooftop bar with nighttime views over the marina. This was certainly not the lifestyle we had become accustomed to in the last few months - Ben had to dust off and iron his collared shirt from the bottom of his bag - and it was sure to be a huge contrast to the next day landing in Cambodia. 

Yes - there is a boat balanced on top of 3 skyscrapers!

Arriving at Siem Reap airport in northern Cambodia we first had to obtain visas on arrival. This is a very straightforward process and took no more than 5 minutes, but it is worth mentioning due to the sheer number of Cambodian officials involved in the process. Person 1 took our visa form and passport and we paid person 2. Person 1 then passed our documents to persons 3, 4 and 5 who didn't seem to do very much except glance briefly at them before returning to whatever was more interesting on their smartphones. Person 6 did nothing at all. Person 7 picked up the passport and handed them to person 8 who actually filled in the visa and stuck it in our passports. Person 9 then got very trigger happy with the rubber stamp and stamped the form, the visa and the passport a number of times at very high speed. At this point we were handed back our passports and proceeded to immigration as normal. In addition to these 9 people, there were several more in the background looking very busy doing not much at all. We were picked up from the airport by a tuk-tuk sent by our hotel. We enjoyed the short ride to the hotel; it was fun to be back in the heat, smells and slight chaos of Asia. Asia can also be very cheap - for less than the cost of 2 dormitory bunk beds in Australia or New Zealand we were able to stay in a double room with ensuite in a hotel with a pool and breakfast included. Luxury!

We spent 3 days in staying in Siem Reap visiting and exploring the vast number of Angkor temples. On the first day we visited some of the smaller outlying temples by tuk-tuk.  The detailed carvings at Prasat Kravan were just a taste of what was to come at the larger temples. Other stops included the temple of East Mebon which used to sit on a island in the middle of a huge reservoir and has detailed elephant statues, and the atmospheric Ta Som which has a huge fig tree growing over one of the entrance gates. The temperature and humidity were overpowering and we were dripping with sweat just wandering around the temples let alone had we needed to walk or cycle between them - we were very glad of our tuk-tuk.  After a traditional Khmer dish, Fish Amok, for lunch we spent an hour exploring the huge ruined university at Preah Khan. The rest of the afternoon was spent cooling off in the pool.

Fiona at Prasat Kravan

Ben at Ta Som

We had deliberately avoided the famous Angkor Wat itself until the second day as we wanted to build up to the most impressive temples. We woke up at 04.30am to get to the temple in the dark and watch the sunrise. It was amazing to see the towers of Angkor Wat silhouetted against the orange sky. This huge temple to the Hindu god Vishnu is widely believed to be the largest religious structure in the world. It is spread over 3 levels, has several towers and contains over 2000 square metres of intricate carved stone panels. The most interesting of these depicts the various levels of heaven and hell.

Sunrise over Angkor Wat

The Bayon temple isn't quite as big, but is equally impressive in our opinion. Various improvements and additions by successive kings have resulted in a maze of stairs and passages around a central building with 37 towers and 216 huge carved faces. Throughout the rest of the morning and early afternoon we visited several more temples including one currently undergoing restoration which was interesting to see. Our last stop was the temple of Ta Prohm, which is particularly special because it was left in the condition it was re-discovered in in the 19th century. There are huge fig trees growing all over the temple surrounding gate ways and destroying walls. In some cases huge stones are held in place by the roots which have grown through the wall and will surely fall once the trees eventually die.

The huge faces at Bayon

Fig tree taking over Ta Prohm

The night market and the imaginatively named 'pub street' provide a different side of Cambodian culture to the huge temples. Bright, multi-coloured flashing lights advertise every bar, shop and restaurant. Tuk-tuk drivers tout for business and countless food carts offer various delights, including deep fried cockroaches and scorpions! Yes, it is a bit tacky and aimed squarely at the tourists, but it's lively, noisy and an entertaining way to spend a few hours all the same.

We caught a bus from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh, and arrived on the busy streets of the city in the middle of a rainstorm. Luckily all the motorcycle riders were prepared and quickly donned their ponchos. It is quite impressive what some people manage to balance onto the back of their bikes. We saw ones with whole families on, passengers carrying pushbikes while driving along, 3 dead pigs wrapped up and even a woman breastfeeding her baby! 

The main reason we came to Phnom Penh was to visit the killing fields and this was where we headed on our first full day there. The was an election going on that morning, so the roads were very busy, especially around the polling stations. Once you had voted, your left index finger was dipped in ink so you couldn't go round and vote again, our tuk-tuk driver very proudly showed us his finger when he picked us up saying that he had got up early especially so as to miss the crowds. Mr Lee expertly weaved his way through the hoards of cars and motorcycles, and we only feared for our lives a couple of times, which I put down as a success. 

There wasn't much to see in the way of buildings at the Choeung Ek Killing fields as most of them had been pulled down and destroyed at the end of the Khmer Rouge's reign, but there was a very good audio guide which explained how it used to be, and the atrocities which had taken place there. It was here where the Khmer Rouge brought their prisoners to be executed. Only in power for just under 4 years, from 1975 to 1979, they imposed strong ideological views on the country, forcing everyone into the countryside to work the land, and brutally murdering anyone who tried to oppose them. It is estimated that around a third of the population died during this time. There were several mass graves on the site, and during heavy rain fragments of bones and strips of cloth are still finding their way to the surface 40 years later. In the centre, there is a Memorial Stupa where the remains of some of the victims are preserved and displayed. There were layers and layers of skulls and bones, categorised by gender, age, and the damage giving evidence of the brutality which occurred here. 

From here, we went to the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, also known as S21 which is where prisoners were held and tortured into giving 'confessions' before they were taken to the Killing Fields. Previously a high school, we walked along corridors containing old classrooms which now contained nothing more than metal bed frames and shackles. All of the prisoners who went through this prison were meticulously documented and photographed. As the prison officials had had to leave in a hurry, lots of these have survived and are displayed in the rooms. 

One of the buildings at S21

Whilst it was very harrowing to hear about the horrors humans have inflicted on each other, we were both glad that we made the visit. It is so important to learn about these times, and talk about them with as many people as possible to raise awareness and help to ensure that it never happens again. 

The rest of our time in Phnom Penh we spent walking around the streets getting a feel for the city, visiting temples, the Royal Palace, Silver Pagoda and National Museum. On our final evening we had a very nice drink and dinner at the Foreign Correspondents Club with views out over the river. 

Part of the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh