Phnom Penh – city tour

After an early breakfast and tuk-tuk ride to the boat pier I joined the cuise party. We almost immediately left for a city tour.

We got the Killing Fields site out of the way first and then went on to the torture location in town – what was once a middle school. I feel for the victims and their families and cannot begin to understand how a person can do this to their fellow man.

We had a great lunch with multiple courses including a sour fish soup, a meze of small dishes for mains and mango flavoured creme caramel with fresh fruit for dessert.

Next was the expansive Royal Palace with its gold decoration, silver floor tiles (silver pagoda) and Jade and gold/diamond budda statues. The mind boggles.

The National Museum completed the tour – filled with statues rescued from various sites across the nation. The pond-filled courtyard is peaceful in the mid-afternoon heat.

A harrowing cyclo ride brought us back to the pier. The traffic is quite daunting if your are sitting on the front of a bicycle with nothing between you and the oncoming vehicles. RESPECT!

An interesting lecture on the checkered history of this small country followed. The guest speaker was quite entertaining.

A dance performance by students from the school of fine arts completed a sundeck bbq-buffet.

I am now on my balcony with a cup of coffee. It is lovely with a slight breeze over the water.

The group is very friendly and consists of a group of Canadian Dentists and their partners on a working holiday, some people from the UK and Australia – I’ve chatted to so far. It is their fourth day so they are in the cruise rhythm already.

My ankles are extremely swollen tonight – felt it at the Royal Palace. I think it is the heat and some delayed effect from the flight? I’m always a little behind the times. Definitely feet up for the rest of the night.

That makes typing hard, so I’m signing off for tonight. Also going in to avoid the mozzies.

Tomorrow crafting villages – Silver and pottery.

Catch ya flipside!