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Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, is the cultural and
commercial centre of the country. Situated at the convergence
of the country's three rivers, the Mekong, Tonle
Sap and Bassac, this city serves as the gateway
to all that Cambodia has to offer. Normally the first stop
on any travellers visit to the country, it is only a short
hop from here to explore the temples of Angkor in the
north and the beautiful beaches of the southern coast.
Phnom Penh was founded in 1372 by the Khmer noble Lady
Penh. She was said to have been travelling down the river
when she came across four Buddha statues in a tree trunk.
Due to this discovery, she decided to build a tiny monastery
on the nearby hill and as the city built up in the surrounding
area, the town soon became known as Phnom Penh, or Hill
of Penh. This new place took over the capital city honours
when the Khmer nobility fled the incumbent Angkor in order
to escape the invasion of the Siamese in 1434. |
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Monks in the ruins of Angor Wat
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There is no time for boredom as points of interest abound
within the city. The National Museum houses over 5000
Khmer artefacts as well as literally millions of bats!
These nocturnal creatures don't bother the patrons during
the day, except for the occasional guano dropping on the shoulder,
but as the sun starts to set, they make for quite a sight
as they evacuate the museum in waves to feed under the cover
of darkness. Maybe this is where the local restaurants obtain
their feature ingredient for bat
soup?
Other highlights include the Royal Palace and Silver
Pagoda with its exquisite Khmer architecture and a shopping
trip to the art deco building of the Central Market
where you can buy souvenirs, silks and various treasures that
you will wonder why you bought on returning home. Don't forget
your bargaining skills!
A cultural tour of the city would not be complete without
a visit to one of the city's various temples or wats,
including Wat Phnom, the site of the original founding
of the city. Round out your evenings with a traditional dance
performance, an exotic meal or one of the various relaxing
river cruises.
Bokor Hill Station
Bokor Hill Station lies fifteen miles outside the coastal
town of Kampot, hidden away in the Elephant Mountains
of Bokor National Park. Now in complete ruins, the
French originally built this Hill Station in 1922 during their
colonial rule over Cambodia. It served as a casino and summer
retreat for the elite French society in order to escape the
oppressive heat and noise of Phonm Penh. The views from the
hill are absolutely stunning and the lush surroundings boasts
clear streams and cascading waterfalls. Since the 1940's,
the buildings were overrun first by the Vietnamese and then
again by the Khmer Rouge in the 1970s. The site has been a
ghost town ever since and picked clean to the bone of anything
valuable. If you are keen on staying in the National Park,
the rangers have a small dormitory where visitors can sleep
but accommodations must be reserved in advance. Everything
you need should be brought with you since no services of any
kind are available.
Senmonrom
Northeast of Phnom Penh, in the province of Mondolkiri,
lies the provincial capital Senmonorom. This is one
of the most inaccessible parts of the country but holds Cambodia's
most beautiful landscapes. The surrounding jungles are teaming
with wildlife and serve as a good launching point for various
animal safaris and treks.
Tonle Sap
Deep in the heart of Cambodia sits the largest fresh water
lake in Southeast Asia, the Tonle Sap. This ever-changing
lake is the scene of a natural anomaly with the waters changing
their directional flow twice a year and surface area alternating
between 800 and 1800 square miles during the monsoon season.
The lake is surrounded by tiny fishing villages, balancing
on 20ft stilts, where the inhabitants make a living from the
large fish stocks and aquatic life. After the monsoon season,
as the waters start to recede, the surrounding mud banks provide
extremely fertile land for growing crops such as rice and
bamboo.
Tonle Sap lake can be a wonderful place to visit. Be prepared,
however, for the lack of public places to stay but you will
most likely be welcomed to stay in someone's home. This presents
a chance to experience the village way of life, good or bad,
and take a boat ride across the lake or row through the treetops
of the flooded forests.
Angkor Wat
Angkor Wat is one of Angkor's best-preserved remains and stands
defiantly as the main attraction of Angkor. You could spend
all day at this temple alone but it is worth venturing out
to see the other equally impressive temples such as Ta
Prohm and The Bayon. In order not to be completely
wiped out by the end of the day, hire a bike and ride throughout
the luscious landscape, stopping at places that seem interesting
and generally taking in the stunning views. A day pass to
Angkor will set you back $20USD and the best way to avoid
the throngs of tourist buses is to arrive early and find your
way to the side entrance. Note: take a torch with you if you
plan to go for sunrise or sunset. Climbing or descending the
steep, uneven temple steps in the dark can prove to be quite
tricky! Read the full article
on Angkor Wat
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