Phnom Penh, Cambodia, SE Asia

A short bus ride (well, 8 hours) took us across the border to Phnom Penh in Cambodia. Before leaving the UK I didn't know too much about the history of Cambodia but knew it was one I wanted to learn about. Immediately entering Cambodia from the border town you could see the poverty surrounding the country, children and adults begging for money, rubbish everywhere and poor roads.

We arrived in Phnom Penh and could feel that this city was in the middle of a transformation, still there were poor people on the streets but there was also some wealth around and new modern buildings already up and some more being built. I read a lot of information about the recent war where the Cambodian people suffered at the hands of the Kymer Rouge regime, but didn't fully understand the extent of the brutallity until I visited Phnom Penh.

The Tuol Sleng Museum and the Killing Fields are the main sights to visit if you want to learn about Cambodia's history, both are harrowing and quite honestly disturbing. Without going into too much detail (I'll leave that up to you) it is difficult to understand how this inhumane government managed to come to power as recent as 30 years ago. I left Phnom Penh with a greater understanding of what even todays people are still trying to battle through, and yet I was humble to see these people still smiling and keen to engage in conversation to learn English even if you did not buy from them. The smile of their faces from just handing over 100 riel (2 pence) was indescribable.

After leaving Phnom Penh, we arrived in Siem Reap, a dusty old town with little charm but home to one of the great wonders of the world - Angkor Wat.