Landed in Phnom Penh, promptly greeted by the standrard array of tuk-tuks
There was a flurry of activity in the streets, despite it being quite early in the morning
On the way to my hotel, caught this monk chillin outside of a cafe
Saw this fantastic monument in the center of the city while in route
After lunch I headed out to the killing fields, first stopping by this high-school, which was converted to a torture house during the terror of the khmer rouge
This was one of the former classrooms where educated citizens were routinely tortured
Mugshot photographs of the many citizens that were killed in this very complex; the rows of shots spanned for as far as you could see
Inside another torture chamber - needless to say, it was hard walking around inside of these walls
After that exhausting experience, I went out to the killing fields - got a photo of this monk posting it on his porch
The first monument I saw here was a tower filled with rows of skulls belonging to the victims
Shot of that same monument above but from a distance
These large divots in the ground are mass graves, often times with up to 70 or 80 bodies inside
There was a chilling feeling in the air here - there's something absolutely terrifying about standing on the very grounds where a recent mass genocide has taken place
After paying my respects out in the fields, I headed back into town to soak in some of the sights of progress and re-building in this amazing place
Ventured into a market area where tons of trading and bargaining were going on
Also rolled over to Wat Phnom, the largest temple in Phnom Penh
I met Sambo here, who's the sole resident elephant living here on the grounds of Wat Phnom
There were also tons of monkeys running around this place
The temple up top of Wat Phnom on a beautiful sunny day
Needless to say, the look and feel of this place was very fascinating to me (similar to Thailand)
Monday, May 26, 2008
Thursday, May 01, 2008
Koh Samui, Thailand
The other spot that expats kept telling me to hit was an island off the coast of Thailand called Koh Samui
As soon as I got there, I was immediately feeling decompressed. The place is gorgeous, and it's less touristy than a lot of the other islands surrounding Thailand.
Did some boating out into the ocean
Landed on a deserted island with absolutely no one else there - was great!
There were some really amazing views out here
Did some snorkling just off the coast of the island, saw so many fish I felt like I was in the middle of Finding Nemo
Also made it out to a remote village for lunch, was cool to chop it up with the locals there
Eventually we had to split from the village and get back to the main island since it was starting to get a little late
Since we were on an island, I knew there had to be great seafood
Dinner was incredible - had an absolute seafood feast
The chef even brought out the shark's head to put on display
The area was nice at night, with bars opening up right on the water and subtly lit
It was nice because tourist season was fairly low, yet there were enough people out to make things lively
Despite being full from the meal earlier, we managed to find an Irish bar on the island, which was so clutch
There were so many Irish folks at this place, for a minute.......I started to feel like I was back living in Dublin again.
And of course, 2 Guinnesses is always better than 1
At the end of the night, we set off a night lantern from the beach. It was a nice ending to a great trip.
As soon as I got there, I was immediately feeling decompressed. The place is gorgeous, and it's less touristy than a lot of the other islands surrounding Thailand.
Did some boating out into the ocean
Landed on a deserted island with absolutely no one else there - was great!
There were some really amazing views out here
Did some snorkling just off the coast of the island, saw so many fish I felt like I was in the middle of Finding Nemo
Also made it out to a remote village for lunch, was cool to chop it up with the locals there
Eventually we had to split from the village and get back to the main island since it was starting to get a little late
Since we were on an island, I knew there had to be great seafood
Dinner was incredible - had an absolute seafood feast
The chef even brought out the shark's head to put on display
The area was nice at night, with bars opening up right on the water and subtly lit
It was nice because tourist season was fairly low, yet there were enough people out to make things lively
Despite being full from the meal earlier, we managed to find an Irish bar on the island, which was so clutch
There were so many Irish folks at this place, for a minute.......I started to feel like I was back living in Dublin again.
And of course, 2 Guinnesses is always better than 1
At the end of the night, we set off a night lantern from the beach. It was a nice ending to a great trip.
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