⋙Cambodia’s Capital, Phnom Penh, was once considered to be one

of the jewels of all of Southeast Asia. The civil war and Cambodian

Genocide was hard on this city, and it’s still trying to fight it’s way back

to the status it once had. When Stacey and I first arrived we were a bit

surprised by it. It seemed dirty and rough around the edges, not far

from the truth, but we ended up really enjoying our time in this city.

⋙⋘

The Streets of Phnom Penh

The streets of Phnom Penh were so much more hectic than Siem Reap,

which is what we had grown accustomed to, but we learned to play the

risky game, being bold and stepping out in the streets. When you

looked up at buildings from below you could see what was once

beautiful and exciting, but now looked a bit rough and outdated. I am

so excited to come back to this city in the future and I hope for the

best that it regains its former status.

⋙⋘

The Royal Palace

Built in the mid 1800’s the royal palace is new compared to the long

history of Cambodia and its people. We didn’t go inside of the temple or

its grounds, but out in front is this park. People are sitting having

picnics, children were playing soccer & blowing bubbles and Stacey and

I strolled through enjoying its beauty and the sunset.

⋙⋘

Wat Phnom

Wat Phnom quickly became a top site for me. I love Buddhism. I love

the teachings, the rituals, chanting and art that comes with it and make

it so beautiful and unique. Wat Phnom took blew all of my expectations

of these things out of the water. This was a treat for your

senses. I heard music & chanting, I could smell incense, I saw

paintings & statues and I felt the devotion & love. It was truly moving.

Wat Phnom sits atop the one hill in Phnom Penh and has been a holy

site since 1373 when a lady built a hill to place a Buddha figure she

found inside a tree floating down the river. About 60 years later, the

king had a proper Wat built (it has been built several times since). The

king’s ashes are in a stupa on the same hill.

Inside the main Wat is this beautiful room covered in paintings and

murals from top to bottom.

A few dozen figures of the Buddha in differe

nt shapes, positions and sizes sit on the alter area. Devotees leave

offerings of food, flowers, birds and money.

Just a look at some of the worship happening inside the temple.

This holy water, filled with flowers and their petals was drank by

devotees and sprinkled on their heads and arms. It was so beautiful to

watch.

This little shrine is for the woman who first built the little shrine to

Buddha atop this hill.

One of the most interesting offerings I saw being sold was birds. You

had them blessed and then set them free; this was supposed to bring

you good luck.

This beautiful woman with one of the warmest smiles, was seeling

these beautiful flowers to leave as offerings.

This truly ended up being a favorite stop in Cambodia and one of my

favorites of the trip. I loved being able to experience Buddhism in

practice, in Asia, for the first time. It was really beautiful and a moment

I will always remember.

⋙⋘

The National Library

I read somewhere that their national library was worth visiting, and I

thought it might be fun to write there. It was like stepping back in time

with beautiful old cases containing card catalogs and narrow aisles

with books lining the shelves all around you.

⋙⋘

The Central Market

The Central Market looks a bit like a Middle Eastern Bizarre and had

some of the best prices I saw on the entire trip. It was fun to go

through and pick up postcards to send home, I got a funky pair of

shorts and we got to explore the food market which was beautiful and

disgusting all at the same time.

Perfectly ripe fruits and veggies filled stalls…

…. Bowls of still-living squid and fish attacked my nose….

… Dried fish and other meats didn’t smell incredibly appetizing either,

but it was all still so beautiful. I’ve never seen colors together like this

before.

This woman made for one of my favorite photos of this trip. I think she

has such a distant, but strikingly elegant look on her face. Almost of

longing; perhaps she’s day-dreaming.

⋙⋘

The Night Market

Phnom Pehn’s night market wasn’t anything to get super excited about,

but the one thing I loved was right in front of the food stalls were all of

these funky-printed mats where people took their food and sat, picnic-

style, as a family and enjoyed their food. I thought it was super cozy.

⋙⋘

Phnom Penh is a city that ended up surprising me. It’s

unpolished look, busy streets and extreme pollution turned me

off from it at first, but it had a lot to offer. It was interesting to

get to see aspects of the past / the city’s rough history, and

getting to see the direction that the city is going. I hope that it

regains its title as the jewel of Southeast Asia some day.

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