Mekong Island

After searching for Phnom Penh expat groups I came across one that does mini trips within the city every 3 weeks. The great thing about these groups is that people are eager to chat and make friends. A much different experience than back home where most people try to avoid eye contact. 

This trip was a short ferry across the river to Mekong Island. It's a quiet island of rice paddies, farms and orchards and the absence of most four wheeled traffic makes for a peaceful walk. After a 5K walk we ended the afternoon with piles of fruit and good conversation. 

Floating houses along the river

Cambodia is very flat so our hike was more like a leisurely stroll 

Little shops and food vendors 

Many countryside houses are on stilts and the family sitting area is underneath

I want to eat up all the kids here. More common outside the city, kids get so excited to see you will wave and yell hello until you engage back

Almost every country home has at least 1 guard dog 

Snack of bananas, mangos, dragon fruit and two types of lychee

The boats are packed with commuters bringing their cars, motos,  food and more back and forth between the city and home

An afternoon well spent! 

Market mania

There are a ton of markets in Phnom Penh but two of the largest ones are Central Market and Russian Market.

Central Market is in a colonial-style building in the heart of the city that sells almost anything you can think of. It is the most organized market I have been to with designated sections and fairly wide pathways for electronics, household items, jewelry etc.  

The food sections never fail to surprise me here. Mystery fruit and vegetables to my left and an old woman hacking the head off a live fish the size of my thigh to my right. You could spend hours here if you went to every stand.

The Russian Market is a bit more cramped but no less interesting. This market became the foreigner’s market during the 1980’s when most of the foreigners in Cambodia were Russians. This market has a larger selection of souvenirs, curios and silks. It is also one of the best places to buy fabric and have something made.

Don’t forget to bring your game face because bargaining is a must. Both markets are great but I think the Russian Market will become my go-to for when I want clothing, movies or souvenirs.  

Main dome at Central Market

I should have gotten pictures of the disturbing animal parts and live seafood. Maybe next time. 

Weekend getaway

Kep is the smallest province in Cambodia and about a 4 hour bus ride from Phnom Penh. It is a sleepy beach down fronting the Gulf of Thailand that many people come to for a relaxing retreat away from the city. 

We decided last minute that we would go for the night and get some needed quiet time away from the busy streets and pushy tuk tuk drivers. 

The actual beach was further along the road but our waterfront was filled with a different kind of activity. Fishing. I had a great time walking through the market and had no shame being the tourist snapping pictures of everything. You can buy souvenirs but the best part was the fresh seafood for sale. People would lift their basket out of the water and locals would come over and grab out what they wanted. Doesn't get any fresher than that! 

Enjoying fresh coconut 

My dinner giving me the stare down

Water Festival fun

The Water Festival is a 3 day event that marks the end of the rainy season and the flow reversal of the Tonle Sap River. Some people claim the festival lies in connection with the history of Buddha while others say it represents a thanksgiving to the Gods of Water and Earth for providing the livelihood and welfare for the Cambodian people. People from across the country join in on the festivities but the biggest attraction is the boat racing along the Sisowath Quay   

Over 250 teams from across the country race in waves of 2

The riverfront buzzing with spectators

Light displays set up on boats

They were also used to set off fireworks

Choeung Ek & Tuol Sleng

The Choeung Ek Genocidal Centre

This is where the Khmer Rouge regime, led by Pol Pot, killed thousands of men, women and children between 1975-1979. During the reign of the Khmer Rouge, 2-3 million Cambodians perished, some killed, others dying from disease, malnutrition and mistreatment.

This is one of the many sites known as The Killing Fields where 120 mass graves were found. The victims were killed using various weapons, poison, even sharpened bamboo sticks and tree leaves while the music blared in the background to drown out the screams. 

Today, Choeung Ek is a memorial, marked by a Buddhist stupa in order to remember the spirits of the victims at the site as well as other victims throughout the country.

Mass grave + bracelets left by visitors for the victims

8,000 skulls were found on site

The Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum

This museum was a high school that was converted into the S-21 prison and interrogation facility. Inmates were systematically tortured, sometimes over a period of months, to extract confessions, then executed.

Prisoners were chained to the bed and tortured for a confession

1 of the 4 buildings + the gallows

Rooms filled with photos and of the victims which had me in tears

It was a very somber day and it's hard to wrap your head around what happened here. It is enough to make you sick to your stomach. These museums exist because the Cambodian government wants to keep the memory alive of the atrocities committed and prevent such things from happening again. 

The Night Market

The Night Market is located near the riverside and is filled with everything from clothing and shoes to furniture and ornaments. The Market is open every Friday, Saturday and Sunday from about 5pm to 11pm.

Before heading to the market, I was able to meet up with a dear friend from home that is passing through Phnom Penh on her way to Vietnam. Joyce is an avid traveler and has given me more than a few comforting words of advice before and after my arrival. It is hard to believe that almost a year ago we were discussing how great it would be to try and meet up if I managed to do a big trip like this one. It was so wonderful catching up and hearing about her recent adventures. We are hoping to try and meet up again before I head back home in the new year.   

Once we arrived, we maneuvered our way to the back of the market where we found the food stalls surrounding a large picnic area. Take your pick from a variety of local dishes, find a spot on the mat and enjoy the buzzing atmosphere. We fully enjoyed rice noodles with chicken, fried rice with beef, BBQ ribs, squid stuffed with zucchini and fried seafood balls.

Along the riverside you will also find multiple food vendors offering a variety of insects. It is not uncommon to see a local snacking on a bag of fried insects. As appetizing as fried cockroaches, frogs, tarantulas, frogs, snakes, krill and what looked like duck fetuses looked, I decided to pass. I think I’ll stick to my fried rice for now. Or perhaps start with something that doesn’t have the potential to explode in my mouth.