Day #2. The Killing Fields. Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

I was out of my hotel at 6:30 this morning to explore the streets of Phnom Penh. Last night I walked around quite a bit but it was rather dark so I didn’t get to see much. Walking around this morning was wonderful- there weren’t really any other tourists up, which always give me a “I’m a good traveler” boost. I walked to the palace in hopes to catch a good glimpse of the grounds but they have really tall gates surrounding it. I was able to see the front and main entrance but that’s about it. I walked around some more, explored the city, and then returned to my hotel at 9:30, already 3 hours into my day.

My next move was taking a tuktuk to the Killing Fields. I know nothing about the Killing Fields is funny, but it is a little comical to hear all the tuktuk drivers say “Killing Fields!?” in such an enthusiastic way whenever I walk by. “I bring you to Killing Fields!?!?” My trip to the Killing Fields was a really, really, interesting and terribly depressing experience. Just to forewarn everyone the following information is really graphic and disturbing. I wasn't really sure if I wanted to include it all but unfortunately it is the truth, this really did happen. Cambodia isn't all temples and elephant rides, there is a really bloody history that is a defining part of the country. So before I go into detail I will just explain that at the entrance to the Killing Fields tourists are given a headset and hand held remote. There are numbered stations all over the grounds and using the remote you type in what number station you are standing at and then you hear a very detailed description of what would happen at this area.  It was really strange because everyone had their headphones on and was just sitting or standing around with a look of disgust on their face. Really it was a very saddening morning.

The Killing Tree.

The Killing Fields are where S-21 prisoners were taken to be executed. In late 1976 to 1977 every couple weeks a few truck loads of 50-70 people would arrive, but by 1978 it was 300 people everyday. The Khmer Rouge soldiers sometimes couldn’t kill all of them in one night so they would hold them in a small building until the next night. They only executed them in the night with only a generator run light and loud Revolution music to hide the screams. The loudspeakers were hung from "The Killing Tree” ironically it is the same species of tree that Siddhartha sat under while reaching enlightenment. This tree has another chilling characteristic– babies were grabbed by their feet and swung into the tree, the soldiers smashing their heads into the tree while their mothers watched, the last thing they saw before their own death. The Vietnamese soldiers found bits of brain, bone, and blood in the bark of the tree. This was what I found most disturbing.

Another extremely unsettling fact is that prisoners weren’t killed by being shot, bullets were “too precious.” They were hacked or beat to death then pushed into a communal grave. DDT was then sprinkled over the bodies finishing the job as well as disguising the stench of decomposing bodies. To kill the prisoners soldiers would use anything, shovels, machetes, bamboo poles, hoes, and even sugar cane branches. They would slit their throats and let them bleed to death. Pol Pot was just a horrible, horrible person. He even killed 300 of his own soldiers because he was so paranoid. He once said, “Better that ten innocent men suffer than one guilty man escape.” I just can't believe a Cambodian would do this to fellow Cambodians. This was a terribly depressing and disturbing experience.

This is a sugarcane tree... they used the sharp edges to slit
prisoner's throats. It's gross and extremely disturbing but
unfortunately it's the truth.

There is more than one case full of skulls.

Later this afternoon I had a big change of pace and went to the National Museum of Cambodia, basically an art museum with a plethora of Khmer sculptures. Some pre-Angkorian period and others right at the height of it. There were so many Buddha, Vishnu, and Shiva statues. I lost focus towards the end. Unfortunately, I have never had a good grasp on Buddhism, Hinduism, etc. so it was difficult for me to follow all the placards and descriptions. Following the museum I walked around a bit and then called it a day and returned to my hotel to shower and relax. By this point it was almost 5:30 so I had really been going since 6:30. I had dinner at my hotel again, tofu kabobs. It was pretty yummy.