The Killing Fields

Just like the day before we would be witnessing some uncomfortable sights in the morning, for we were off to Choeung Ek just outside of Phnom Penh, the most well-known of all the killing fields in Cambodia. Before we got there though we needed to arrange our bus tickets to Vietnam, and we would be using the Mekong Express Limousine Bus again as they were pretty good the last time. It would take us directly into Ho Chi Minh city and would cost about $13. The guy on reception at the hotel tried to get us booked with Sapaco (a slightly worse company than Mekong Express) and charge us $15 each. Now I know that it’s only 2 dollars different and we wouldn’t quibble about it if we were in the USA, but we felt that we could do better. So we found a travel agents round the corner who sold us tickets on the Mekong Express for $13 including pick-up from the hotel. Boom! Gray Boys 1, Diamond Palace II reception 0.

We had heard the going rate to get to the killing fields was about $15, as it is located about 17km outside of the city. After haggling with a local tuk-tuk driver we got it down to $13 – again, not a massive discount you would think, but when the price of a beer is only 50 cents……! It was a helluva shaky ride to get there, down bumpy dirt roads and weaving between 4 x 4 Lexus cars and massive articulated lorries, and the motorbikes and scooters of course.

Cheesy in a tuk-tuk

We got there in about 30 minutes and were happy to be getting off the chaotic and dusty roads. We paid our entrance fee and got an audio tour into the bargain. We tooled up with the headphones and electronic player and found our way to Stop #1. Again, I don’t want to go into too much detail as it doesn’t make for happy reading, but it just brought home the terrible acts that went on there. It’s unbelievable to think that those kinds of atrocities were going on less than 40 years ago, and how the rest of the world didn’t know about it as it was all done as secretly as possible. Some of the leaders of the Khmer Rouge are still on trial, or being readied for trial (in Case 002) and I will be watching with interest as and when it begins.

The Stupa

As we neared the end of the tour we found ourselves buy the Stupa, the huge memorial to the dead that were found there after the Khmer Rouge fled. Inside lie the skulls of over 5,000 Cambodians that were executed by Pol Pots regime, and it is leaves you dumbstruck. As we were paying our respects we saw a familiar face taking a photo of the skulls. It was Duncan, the Scottish guy who we met at the train station going from Surat Thani to Bangkok. The guy who went to the toilet on the train in his bare feet. You remember. We exchanged pleasantries and as he was just starting and we were finishing we left it at that and carried on our way. The final part was the museum that housed artefacts and information from the camp, and again it really hammered home just how awful that part of the country’s history was.

Inside the Stupa

After we returned from the killing fields we had a relaxed afternoon – James went out wandering and I went back to sleep for an hour, watched some football and generally just lazed around til we went for dinner. I had ear-marked a place called Karma down by the river, but happy hour had finished by 7:00pm so we went next door to the sister restaurant, Anjali. It was the nicest meal we had had in Cambodia, and a little more expensive than the others, but it still only came to $5 for a large meal and a beer. We were going to be making a night of it too, so we moved on to the next place and grabbed a couple of 70 centers – it was gone 9:00pm and it looked like Happy Hour was ending all over the place.

Hmmmm, the chicken or the fish....?

After two beers at the restaurant on the corner (I forget its name) we wandered round the area trying to find a bar that didn’t look seedy. We had no joy. They all seemed to be catering for the type of guys we aint, so we had a decision to make. Head back to the hotel via an offy, or make our way down to the local collection of bars where we had our first “meal” that was a hefty walk away. We went with Option 2 and began the hike through the now-dark streets of Phnom Penh. It felt relatively safe, but we were always on our guard, just in case.

Back at the “bar collective” we selected the least seedy place going and ordered a jug for $2.50. These were the same jugs that were costing us $10 AUS dollars back in Oz, and we smiled in recollection. There seemed to be quite a few older Westerners lurking around the place, with a number of younger girls keeping them company. We weren’t  too sure of the etiquette or what the scene was but we supped on our Angkors and watched the world around us. We had a few people come up to us and chat whilst they topped up our beers, I think so that we would buy another jug from the bar, along with the occasional seller of flowers, etc. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a middle-aged woman sneak up behind James and begin massaging his shoulders. He seemed to be enjoying it, but that went right out of the window when he turned round and saw who it was. She didn’t say how much a massage would be but we both declined anyway and she went on her way. Later in the night she would give a proper massage to the guy sat across the bar from us (who we called Sick Boy, after the guy in Trainspotting) and he seemed to really enjoy it. And for only a dollar too.

"Sick Boy" getting his massage

After that we ended up chatting with one of the waitresses called Thavy for quite some time. She seemed lovely and wasn’t trying to sell us anything or make us drink our drinks quickly, and seemed genuinely interested in spending time with us. And who can blame her! Our conversation was cut short when it seemed like there was a scuffle brewing behind us. Two young women were squaring up to each other, and it felt like it could get nasty. One of the girls went to pick up the big glass ashtray (presumably to throw at, or defend herself against, the other girl) before it was hauled out of her hand by a security guard. The other girl, who was being restrained by some of her friends, had seen this and was thrashing about. She grabbed a glass from the bar and motioned to throw it right at the opposing girl, but thankfully someone grabbed her wrist and took the drink away. Eventually one of the girls was “removed” from the scene by some guy who picked her up and carried her out under one arm. It settled back down after that and we carried on with our Angkors.

We noticed that all the bars had a pool table each (they all opened out into a big warehouse kind of area) and that it seemed to be old Westerner versus young local girl on all of them. Again, we didn’t know what the deal was, but we enjoyed watching them as the girls seemed to be pretty good at it. Whether they were hustling or not I don’t know, but we never saw any money go on the table. We had also got chatting with another waitress, on her day off, called Bopar. She was the queen of the pool table and took on all challengers. Soon enough she was facing James, after he had dispatched of girl-in-black. It wasn’t long before James had been taken care of and he came back to the bar a little dejected. But he would have chance for revenge a little later on.

Me and Thavy plotting our victory

As I was talking with Thavy again she asked if I fancied a game of pool and I felt pretty sure I would be able to give a good account of myself, even after the numerous Angkors. When it was our turn to rack up the balls Bopar had other ideas. She grabbed James and advised us that we would be playing doubles. Fair enough, I reckoned that we could take them down a peg or two. It turns out we couldn’t. I’m not gonna blame the beers, or the wonky table, or anything like that, but on another day it would have been a win for Tim and Thavy. We had another game, but I was partnered with another girl whose name we did not catch, and we lost again. That Bopar was good!

Us with Thavy (she's the one in the middle)

After the pool we felt it was time to depart so we said our goodbye to Thavy and walked the deserted streets back to the hotel. As it was pushing 2:30am there was nobody about, and when we arrived at the hotel the shutters were down. Oh. But there was a guy sleeping in reception and he let us in no problem. It was a good job as I was just about to wonder where we would catch some sleep in the park opposite.