Where and when: April 2023, Koh Rong Island/Phnom Penh, Cambodia
0900: It is time to say goodbye to our mini-break in the sun. After breakfast, we leave the Secret Garden Hotel and take a taxi to Longset beach.
0920: At Longset beach pier, waiting for our boat back to Sihanoukville.
Tip: If you have an open return ticket for the boat, make sure to reserve a place on the particular service you are returning on. Your hotel on Koh Rong can do this for you.
1000: Our boat (GTVC speedboat service) arrives and we board the boat.
Similar to the pier at Sihanoukville, there are many boats from different companies leaving the pier all at the same time. There is no queueing system, so it is a matter of waiting for your boat to turn up and then boarding. It is chaotic, but all seem to work out in the end and everybody with a valid ticket is able to board the boat. The boat stops at Koh Touch on the way to Sihanoukville.
1100: Boat arrives in Sihanoukville. Our driver is there is pick us up and we are soon on our way to Phnom Penh.
Tip: If taking the boat to and from Koh Rong, allow for the boat to be at least half an hour late when making your onward travel plans. Also, if going in the rainy season, allow for bad weather and for boats to be cancelled with little notice.
Our tour company had arranged tickets for us with GTVC speed boats. Other than the chaos of boarding, (see my post from Day 4) the boat service is good. From what I could see, GTVC had the newest and cleanest boats compared to other ferry/boat services to Koh Rong. GTVC services to and from Koh Rong were 30 minutes late, but so were all the others. With GTVC, you can also book tickets online and use an e-ticket on your phone when boarding.
1200: Comfort break at motorway services. The toll road connecting Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville is relatively new, and it means that the distance of 215 km can be covered in about 2.5 hours, whereas the old road takes 5 to 6 hours. However, travelling on the toll road is expensive, and from what I could see, the toll charge is about 25 to 30 USD for the full distance.
1330: Arrive in Phnom Penh. Because of the traffic, it takes one further hour to travel ~12km to the Pavilion hotel on the other side of the city.
1430: We meet our tour guide for Phnom Penh and and start the city tour.
1445: Visit to Toul Sleng genocide museum. Originally a school, this was turned to a prison in the Khmer Rouge era. Known as S-21, this is where prisoners were held, tortured and interrogated before being killed.
The museum tells the story of Khmer Rouge reign of terror from April 1975 to January 1979, 3 years, 8 months and 23 days.
You can see prison cells, torture devices and many pictures and paintings of the atrocities committed during this period.
There are stories of those that survived and many that didn’t. It is a heart breaking place, and still relatively recent history. Any Cambodian over 44 years of age would have been alive at the time of the regime, including our tour guide, who told us how they were used as forced labour in his village when he was only a few years old. The horror is still raw and it makes the warm and welcoming nature of the Cambodians all the more impressive having come through such a dark period in history.
At the museum you can also buy books written by some the survivors. I have shared a few photos here, but many of the photos, painting and stories are too difficult to share on this blog. Read more here.
1545: Next we visit the Russian Market. This was a popular market among the Russian expats during the 1980s when most of the western expats in Phnom Penh were Russian.
This is very much like the old market in Siem Reap and this is where you can buy souvenirs, food and lot of textiles at cut price.
1630: Visit Wat Phnom. This is a Buddhist temple in Phnom Penh, and it’s origin is closely linked to the story of the city of Phnom Penh.
In 1372, a wealthy old lady named “Penh” lived on a small hill near the confluence of four rivers. One day, she saw a floating Koki tree in the river. Lady Penh and the villagers fished out the tree from the river. Inside the tree trunk there were four Buddha statues made of bronze, brass and one made of marble. Penh funded the building of a temple at the top of the hill to house the statues. The temple became known as Wat Phnom, meaning “Mountain Pagoda”. And the city became known as Phnom Penh meaning “the mountain of Penh”.
Locals come to the temple offer prayers to the Buddha and Lady Penh. Inside the shrine, there is a large Buddha status as well as a statue of lady Penh. It is said that applying lipstick to Lady Penh’s statue brings you good luck.
There is also a stupa is which is said to house the original Buddha statues found by Lady Penh and the villagers.
Around the temple, there are many decorations in anticipation of the Khemer new year, which is less that a week’s time.
1800: Quick visit to the giftshop to buy the obligatory mug, and then it is back to the hotel.
Diary of a Tourist 