After a flurry of goodbyes in Thailand and a quick layover in Bangkok, I touched down at Phnom Penh International airport to find a fleet of motos, all of them accompanied by a staff member or student or the organization for which I am working, eagerly awaiting my arrival. After many greetings and introductions, I was swept onto the streets of Phnom Penh on the back of a Honda moto, dust swirling around my face and insane levels of traffic in every direction as far as the eye could see.
Phnom Penh is an assault on the senses; this is the most appropriate way to sum up the sprawling metropolis. Nowhere was this more evident than at the open-air market where some of my students and I browsed for ingredients for dinner on my first morning there. Bright and early at 7:00AM, I found myself perched on a stool and crammed into a stall, huddled over a plate of rice, pork, and eggs, a truly traditional Khmer breakfast. The heat from steaming bowls rice and noodles, the constant din of merchants and patrons bargaining in Khmer, the eternal thwack of a cleaver against the neck of a squawking chicken (accompanied by appropriate levels of blood, of course), the smell of crickets and cockroaches frying in oil before being choked down by customers, and ever-present smell of Asia's treasured durian fruit all bombarded my senses.
During my first few days here, while still getting acclimated and enjoying the luxury of a few days with no work, I made jaunts to many of the tourist hotspots. The Royal Palace, the official residence of the current king, was puncuated by lush gardens, beautiful architecture, and appropriate amounts of gold and silver statures to match. And the National Museum showcased the extraordinary cultural and architectural achievements of Angkor empire.
Then it was on to the more depressing sights. At the Killing Fields, where thousands were taken to be executed and buried during the brutal Khmer Rouge period, I walked among the endless holes in the ground, in which bones and skulls still lay scattered. Once I had thoroughly seen the Killing Fields, I figured that I might as well check all the heavy-hitting Khmer Rouge history off my list, so I motoed back into town to check out Tuol Sleng. Formerly a high school in the heart of Phnom Penh, Tuol Sleng (also referred to as S-21) was turned by Pol Pot's security forces into a center for holding, interrogating, beating, torturing, and executing essentially anyone considered an enemy of the Khmer Rouge. I browsed the sobering prison cells and torture mechanisms, pausing periodically to read accounts of ordinary Cambodians who lost their lives here. The legacy of the Khmer Rouge continues to visibly haunt the country, manifest in the litany of forced marriages and family members lost forever.
On a less somber note (am I allowed to transition like this?), on Monday I began work, teaching some computer skills and conversational English to high school students. I've also begun my primary task of working closely with seven university students who are recipients of a scholarship that recognizes leadership potential and seeks to nurture that potential for Cambodia's emerging leaders. I can't elaborate too much, as I've only just started, but I will be sure to include more about my work with these students in future posts.
Phnom Penh is an assault on the senses; this is the most appropriate way to sum up the sprawling metropolis. Nowhere was this more evident than at the open-air market where some of my students and I browsed for ingredients for dinner on my first morning there. Bright and early at 7:00AM, I found myself perched on a stool and crammed into a stall, huddled over a plate of rice, pork, and eggs, a truly traditional Khmer breakfast. The heat from steaming bowls rice and noodles, the constant din of merchants and patrons bargaining in Khmer, the eternal thwack of a cleaver against the neck of a squawking chicken (accompanied by appropriate levels of blood, of course), the smell of crickets and cockroaches frying in oil before being choked down by customers, and ever-present smell of Asia's treasured durian fruit all bombarded my senses.
During my first few days here, while still getting acclimated and enjoying the luxury of a few days with no work, I made jaunts to many of the tourist hotspots. The Royal Palace, the official residence of the current king, was puncuated by lush gardens, beautiful architecture, and appropriate amounts of gold and silver statures to match. And the National Museum showcased the extraordinary cultural and architectural achievements of Angkor empire.
Then it was on to the more depressing sights. At the Killing Fields, where thousands were taken to be executed and buried during the brutal Khmer Rouge period, I walked among the endless holes in the ground, in which bones and skulls still lay scattered. Once I had thoroughly seen the Killing Fields, I figured that I might as well check all the heavy-hitting Khmer Rouge history off my list, so I motoed back into town to check out Tuol Sleng. Formerly a high school in the heart of Phnom Penh, Tuol Sleng (also referred to as S-21) was turned by Pol Pot's security forces into a center for holding, interrogating, beating, torturing, and executing essentially anyone considered an enemy of the Khmer Rouge. I browsed the sobering prison cells and torture mechanisms, pausing periodically to read accounts of ordinary Cambodians who lost their lives here. The legacy of the Khmer Rouge continues to visibly haunt the country, manifest in the litany of forced marriages and family members lost forever.
On a less somber note (am I allowed to transition like this?), on Monday I began work, teaching some computer skills and conversational English to high school students. I've also begun my primary task of working closely with seven university students who are recipients of a scholarship that recognizes leadership potential and seeks to nurture that potential for Cambodia's emerging leaders. I can't elaborate too much, as I've only just started, but I will be sure to include more about my work with these students in future posts.
Wow, Matt! I had never heard of the Killing Fields before. That's so horrible! What an interesting thing to be able to see, though! Cambodia sounds fascinating...can't wait to see all of your pictures!
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