Part 2: The Mini-Series Continues.

So.
Since I wrote last, we left the Flamingo Hotel (where the seedy expat's were) and moved closer to the Riverside, to the Paragon Hotel. It is a nice hotel, not as comfortable as the Flamingo, the blanket is small, the aircon loud, and we have no window, but we are saving nearly 30% and it is in a nicer area with not so much of a filthy expat population.

Also, I forgot to mention, that when we checked into flamingos, they had done a pretty shit job cleaning it as there was a whole packet of Valium (que?) in the drawer next to the bed... wierd.

Yesterday we organized with our tuktuk driver Dara to take us to the Big3 tourist attractions... so we headed off first to the Killing Fields.

It is quite an eye opening experience. As you walk around the dirt tracks of the old genocide paddocks, you are walking over clothing that is slowly unearthing everytime someone new trods the path. It is a red tshirt here, blue pants there, and simply knowing you are walking over the clothes that once adorned a Khmer that died in vain under the rule of an insane regime, is somewhat depressing and uneasy.

There is a tree there called the Killing Tree (or something similar) where apparently children were bludgeoned to death and then thrown in a mass grave beside it (this particular grave held 450 bodies when it was dug-up). Next to the tree there remain a pile about a metre high of human bones.

Back to the start of the circuit they have put in, is a large gold pagoda, about 30metres high, filled top to bottom of skulls of people who had died there. At first it just looked like "skulls"and I was totally ok to see it, but when I got closer and you started to see the teeth etc, it made me queazy and I had to run outside.

We left there and headed to S-21, or Tuol Sleung prison, an old primary school that was converted into a prison/torture centre when the Khmer Rouge took over. They managed to turn simple playground equipment into torture tools. We headed upstairs into the old classrooms that had been turned into both cells and torture rooms. As you walk around these rooms , there is a distinct maroon tint to the stains on the floor, some of the bloodstains have never been removed.

From S-21 we headed to one of Daras local places for a good old fashioned Khmer lunch. We had some tucker, and a lime juice, and headed off to the National Museum. The museum charged $3 entry, and as we were pretty touristed out, decided we'd head for a pub and have an ale.
We had a couple of beers and headed back to our new hotel. We decided we’d book our bus up to Siem Reap, so now we’re heading up on Thursday morning. We also saw a pamphlet advertising a volunteer trip to the Phnom Penh rubbish dump, to feed some of the 1200 kids who live on the rubbish dump. So we went to the pub that the guy owns (Bogey and Bacall on St 127) and met up with one of the guys who helps organize the trips. We got there at about 4pm, and drank, read stories, this guy (Richard) told us stories about his 2 years in Cambodia, saw pictures, eventually got smashed and bounced at about 830 to a western restaurant (Cadillac Bar and Grill) as I was really after a cheeseburger (see earlier comment about being smashed). The owner of the bar was really awesome, nice guy, Kenny from Texas. One of the very few Americans I’ve met travelling who isn’t a douche bag.
After dinner we hit the hay as we had to be up somewhat early for todays trip to the market and rubbish dump.
So that’s where we’re at. It’s now 8am, and we’ll be heading off soon. Just going to go grab some breakfast.
Will update soon.

Cooksley, John.