Searching high and low for breakfast
We got up quite late today, later than usual anyway. Everyone got ready quite quickly, and then we headed out for breakfast. The problem in Asia, is that once it gets past around 10am, most places stop doing breakfast. This was made even harder for us as we were walking away from the touristic area but towards the S-21 museum, so it wasn’t all bad. We eventually happened upon a Chinese place, of course Julie jumped at it at first glance. To be fair, they had the pasties that we had in Taiyuan, and they are absolutely delicious. It turned out to be a very nice and filling breakfast.
As we had been heading in the direction of the S-21 museum, we were only a short walk away (having walked a couple of miles for breakfast already). It was a very hot and sweltering day, pretty normal for Cambodia and large Asian cities it seemed. Mat and I always take a litre bottle of water with us, wherever we go, just in case we get held up in unexpected circumstances. The museum is on a normal looking street, the walls are plain concrete, and there’s barbed wire around the top. Out of respect for the museum, I did not take any photos.
The museum
We arrived at the entrance of the S-21 museum, and we paid for our tickets and got our English audio headsets (Julie got Chinese). For more info on the S-21 genocide museum, check this out. The leaflet you get has a map of the compound within, and there are numbered dots on it. The audio headset tells you which number they are speaking about so you can be in the right place. Eventually, the 3 of us split off as we went at different speeds.
The experience was quite harrowing, to know what had happened in the very rooms that you stood in. This museum reminded me a little of my experience to Auschwitz, although on a much smaller scale. The atmosphere of the whole place was quite eerie, the rooms were bare and dull, there were photos of hundreds of the prisoners who were brought here, and never left. The conditions they had to live in were animalistic, similar to the concentration camp.
I read every plaque of info there was, and there was quite a lot. This not only included the events that happened, but also people’s life stories and biographies. It’s crazy to know this kind of thing happened less than 50 years ago, and the world didn’t know. There was a lot of information on the plaques and in books, but I thought the least I could do was learn as much as I could about what happened here. It’s crucial we remember these events, so that they are never repeated again. Plus, there’s a good chance I won’t visit again, so I wanted to make the most of it.
Tip!
In museums like this, it’s essential that you are quiet, respectful, and wear clothes that cover your shoulders and down to your knees. At S-21 museum, you will be refused if you’re not wearing the bare minimum of respectful clothes.
Contrasting environments
When I had finished viewing all the info and artwork depictions, I returned to the entrance. I found Mat and Julie waiting here; they had been waiting about 45 minutes for me. We left the S-21 museum and went to a Russian styled market that Julie had found. Since we had no other plans, I didn’t see why not. However, I’m not sure in what way it was Russian, perhaps it’s the layout that makes it Russian. It was a huge maze of random odds and ends, trinkets, and souvenirs. Julie ended up buying a painting that was pretty nice, but I don’t usually come away with anything from these markets.
Afterwards, we took a tuk tuk to the Monument of Independence which seems to be the centre of the city, or at least a major hub. We managed to find some lovely food in a restaurant nearby. It was dark by now, so we decided to head back to base and relax. I called my parents for a catch up chat, my brother and his wife Emma were also there. It’s definitely nice having those catch ups. After a pretty exhausting day, I did my workout and turned in for the night.
