Phnom Penh - Cambodia

Phnom Penh, the Capital of the Kingdom of Cambodia, It’s a rather small “big” city, with just under 1.5 million people. The Khmer people, is a friendly and helpfull people, even after all their hardship over the last 100 years. and they will make you feel welcome and at home in an instant.

The city its a treat to visit, from the glimmering spikes of the royal palace to the local people getting together at Sisowath Road in the evenings. Theres a lot to do there, from a stroll down Sisowath quay, just watching the life of the khmers go by, to temple jumping, Museum's, Dinner cruises, Casinos, historical sights, cityexploring in a rigshaw, to a trip outside town to visit Udong Monkey Temple, and Killing fields.

Pointers to Visit:
First of all you of cause need to go se Killing Fields of Choeung Ek and Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, (Prison 21) its a part of our recent world history, and should be widely known around the world.

Click the links for other parts of Phnom Penh worth a Visit

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Sisowath Quay

Killing Fields - Choeung Ek

Tuol Sleng (Prison 21)

Wat Phnom

Markeds and Places

Hidden City

Oudong Monkey Temple

Tuol Sleng was up until 1975, Tuol Svay Prey High School, but was, then taken over by Pol Pot’s security forces and turned into a prison known as Security Prison 21. And it soon became the largest torture detention center in the country. A torture stop on the way to the slaughter at Killing Fields
Today it has been turned into the Tuol Sleng museum, which serves as a testament to the crimes of the Khmer Rouge. and if you'r lucky, you will find one of the few survivors sitting there, signing his book about his time at the horror prison.

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From 1975 to 1978 more than 17,000 men, women, children and infants, vere detained and tortured at Prison 21 and then transported to the extermination camp of Choeung Ek. Here they were killed, and dumped into mass graves by Khmer Rouge soldiers. They didn't shoot them cause that were not cost effective, so infants and small children had their heads smashed on the killing tree, and adults got their throat sliced.
Today is a peaceful place, where visitors can learn of the horrors that unfolded decades ago, and se the stupa with more then 8000 sculle devited by gender and age, theres 100. of killing fields around the contry, at this specific one more than 17.000 were killed.

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Sisowath Quay is the main river promenade in Phnom Penh, and its a really great place to take a stroll, walking down along the river, observing Khmer (and tourist) life. and it's the full of nice restaurants, even though it's a bit more expensive than most other arear's in PP, it's still cheap, and worth it! Watching the river after a great dinner. In the daytime lost of street kids are playing there, and in the evening, local families goes there, either to sit at the pier, having a picknick, to exercise, or just to play around.

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Continue your walk down Sisowath Quay, you will get to a small unexciting section, at this section you cant see the river, but do not stop ! continue, first you will pass the night-marked place, nothing to see in the day time, but a nice place to visit in the evenings. a few hundrede meters further, on right hand side, the boat people lives, for around 20-30 Us $ they will take you to pearl island or just sail you around seeing Phnom Penh from the river side, if you do not want Pearl Island, then do atleast the small trip, and do it at sunset, it can be really beautifull !
If you turn left instead of going to the boats, you will get to Wat Phnom, a buddhist temple, (re)build in 1372 , on a 27 meter high hilltop. it costs a dollar ro enter the park, but then the temple is free. The park is a nice place to spend some time, you can walk all the way round, and look up at the temple from all sites, few years back there were a lot of monkeys in the trees, but today there's not many left.

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Beside the night Marked mentioned in previous section, a visit to central marked is a must ! its a round dome kind'a building, with 1000's of small private shops, selling everything from Souvenirs, Sneakers, Electronics, to jewelry , handicraft and food. From certain parts of the marked you can see a tall round building, this is a great shopping mall, with clothes food, and a few fastfood restaurants. In another part of town you can find the "russian" marked, it's also a good marked, but a little more local, with cups and plates, but still with other stuff too.

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Oudong (or Udong) is the former capital of Cambodia, all the way up till 1866, when King Norodom abandoned in favor to Phnom Penh, its located about 30-40 minutes (in Tuk Tuk) outside Phnom Penh.
These days Oudong is a small city, and are mostly known for the mountain with the temple on top. and all around the mountain ancient Stupas are located. You walk up 400+ stairs, and it's a bit though if its hot. so you need to bring a bottle of water or something, but be aware ! There's a lot of naughty monkeys along the way, and they really want your drink or food, so hide it, or they will steal it, and not always in a kinda manor.
It's a great trip, and you can easily spend a few hours walking around on, but my advice is to book the driver for a full day, and make some stops on the way. cause on the way there's some silver "factories" ask your driver before going if he can stop at one, and more important, in the outskirts of Phnom Penh (on the way) there's a Muslim city part with a nice street marked, you really should stop there for 1 or 2 hours just walking around the markeds, and city part, walk down the narrow alleys to the river and get a feeling of the life, we loved it, and will do it again, any time.

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So what is the hidden city,
or graveyard city ?
It's a small city, with inn the city of Phnom Penh, and it's called Doeum Sleng, its located on a Vietnamese graveyard, in order to save taxes, just like floating Village in Siem Reap, the government do not claim land tax on a graveyard, so the real poor people set up a small village there, it's a fascinating sight, and even poor as they are they might invite you for rice. Kids playing around the gravestones, with just a stick or an old outworn ballon, looking like they couldn't be happier.
Not to many tuk tuk drivers know this place so you might have to ask a few, and some might hear the name as Tuol Sleng (the prison) so be carefull you might end up there. anyway its a place to visit, and a great reminder for us all not to complain all the time.

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Cambodia - Phnom Penh

Phnom Penh, and what to do there

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum
(Prison 21)

Killing Fields - Choeung Ek

A Stroll down Sisowath Quay

Wat Phnom and the Boats

Markeds and Misc. Places

Oudong Mountain Temples and Muslim City part

Muslim City part

The Hidden City of
Doeum Sleng

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Strubjerg 40, 9400 Aalborg

FOTOGRAF - BO KORNUM

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Cambodia - Phnom Penh

Phnom Penh, and what to do there

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum(Prison 21)

Killing Fields - Choeung Ek

A Stroll down Sisowath Quay

Wat Phnom and the Boats

Markeds and Misc. Places

Oudong Mountain Temples and Muslim City part

Muslim City part

The Hidden City ofDoeum Sleng

Scroll to top

Strubjerg 40, 9400 Aalborg

FOTOGRAF - BO KORNUM

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum
(Prison 21)

The Hidden City of
Doeum Sleng