Cambodia
In our recent group trip to Cambodia, my eyes and heart were pretty much torn open by the Tuol Seng Museum and the book "When broken glass floats" by Chanrithy Him. We spent about one week in Prey Veng helping local teachers with English lessons. It was a good week, restful and insightful. Prey Veng itself was a smallish local town with no cause for tourism.We had a good time with the local teachers and friends. Khmer food was good.... pretty much like Chinese Food. Visited the rural villages and a local primary school. We visited a village in need of help. There was help available but there is so much red tape and mindset matters to consider. There are quite a number of NGOs there, many goodwilled people hoping to rebuild Cambodia after the devastation.
Khmer Rouge
Well, I've never bothered much about history especially when I stepped into my supposedly choice of study in University (why did choose Arts??!!). I only bothered if I visited place of significance in the country eg, Auschwitz- where many millions of Jews were killed by the Nazi in Poland etc.... Ok... Khmer Rouge. Khmer actually means Cambodian and Rouge is Red. So Red Cambodia ruled the country under Pol Pot and basically murdered people of all intellect. Watch " The Killing Fields" for more gory, tragic details. Its sad what the people had to go through and it was such a mindless massacre. The torture, the torment and the tragedy was really heart breaking. To me, it was worse than the the Nazi regime simply cos the people in the Khmer Rouge army murdered and tortured each other. As in one moment you were torturing someone and the next, you were the one being tortured by the next person who was going to replace you as executioner or torturer. I cant express how I feel! Can you?!!!
The heart of Prey Veng
This mud/water filled plains. The tide can wash this place out.
Teacher's Training College, Prey Veng
The teachers we were working with. They were introducing themselves.
Local market selling fresh produce in Prey Veng
Planting Rice in a field off Prey Veng
Inside the Tuol Seng Museum. Our guide was explaining how the Khmer Rouge soldier tortured the prisoners. Basically they were left on those iron beds for 6 months without getting up, tortured while on it and 6 months later killed.
More to come after i finish watching the tennis game of a lifetime on Wimbledon. Watch the number 2 beat the number 1. Did i say beat? I mean, whip. No prizes for who I'm rooting for! Go Matador!!!
