Phnom Penh Vacations, Phnom Penh Vacation Reviews, Tourism Guide
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Phnom Penh Vacation Guide
Phnom Penh is a city in flux. Once the scrambling, frantic yet intensely tropical centre of a country in turmoil, the world is slowly coming to the Mekong’s shores. Sadly, modernization has also taken away Phnom Penh’s lakeside backpacker heartland, where you could slurp Angkor beer and peer out as the sun goes down.
All is not lost, of course, as modernity has bought about a newly skyscraper pierced skyline and a slightly easier to deal with, less chaotic city. But only slightly. Apart from staring out over the Mekong, the key attraction here is the Silver Pagoda. You’ll find it in the Royal Palace, and it’s named after its impressive selection of five thousand shimmering floor tiles, as well as being home to a life sized Buddha made entirely of gold, an Emerald Buddha and nearly ten thousand glittering diamonds. Not bad for a city centrepiece!
The National Museum’s mighty impressive, too, as home to a seemingly endless selection of Khmer Sculptures, which are housed in their own impressive, tree-lined building. This is the luxury side of Phnom Penh, and it doesn’t stretch far. Elsewhere you’ll find touts relentlessly attempting to drag you to the gruesome nearby Killing Fields (a truly harrowing experience, better seen after a full explanation at the Tuol Sleng Museum), or, if you turn them down, to fire the leftover illegal weaponry somewhere in the countryside (not recommended).
If you want to explore the more typical sides of Cambodia’s capital, though, check out the epic scale of the Psar Thmel market, where you can snap up bargain souvenirs and plenty of provisions, and soak up a taste of the Asia of old that still exists due to Cambodia’s relatively recent exposure to the western world. It’s both poignant and pungent, and you’ll feel a mile from a typical, tourist-filled South East Asian capital.
All is not lost, of course, as modernity has bought about a newly skyscraper pierced skyline and a slightly easier to deal with, less chaotic city. But only slightly. Apart from staring out over the Mekong, the key attraction here is the Silver Pagoda. You’ll find it in the Royal Palace, and it’s named after its impressive selection of five thousand shimmering floor tiles, as well as being home to a life sized Buddha made entirely of gold, an Emerald Buddha and nearly ten thousand glittering diamonds. Not bad for a city centrepiece!
The National Museum’s mighty impressive, too, as home to a seemingly endless selection of Khmer Sculptures, which are housed in their own impressive, tree-lined building. This is the luxury side of Phnom Penh, and it doesn’t stretch far. Elsewhere you’ll find touts relentlessly attempting to drag you to the gruesome nearby Killing Fields (a truly harrowing experience, better seen after a full explanation at the Tuol Sleng Museum), or, if you turn them down, to fire the leftover illegal weaponry somewhere in the countryside (not recommended).
If you want to explore the more typical sides of Cambodia’s capital, though, check out the epic scale of the Psar Thmel market, where you can snap up bargain souvenirs and plenty of provisions, and soak up a taste of the Asia of old that still exists due to Cambodia’s relatively recent exposure to the western world. It’s both poignant and pungent, and you’ll feel a mile from a typical, tourist-filled South East Asian capital.
Popular Hotels in Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh Travel Blogs
Dec 24, 2007 – Jan 06, 2008
San Francisco, California, USA -› Taiwan -› …
Update: Yay! Staples fixed my memory card, I finally got Youtube working, so the video of me shooting the AK47 is now up!
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Everyone in Cambodia thinks I'm Japanese. Nay, are convinced I'm Japanese. I'll walk down the street and they'll be all "Konichiwa!" to which I smile and respond "No,…
May 28, 2008 – Aug 16, 2008
Land Baden Wurttemberg, Germany -› World -› …
Oh good bejeebles loord I almost died (again) today! Jear and I were almost burnt alive! Oh good bejeebles... it was a bit crazy!As we were making our way back to our last stop in our very well planned and researched city tour, our tuk-tuk just suddenly burst into flames after super mega overheatin…
Oct 15, 2008 – Mar 10, 2009
With two hours to wait before my bus to Sihanoukville, I walked over to Wat Phnom to look for the monk who had tied a red cloth bracelet onto my right wrist for good wishes last January.[See 'Going East' of my 'SE Asia for the Winter' blog] The monk's blessing seemed confusing a…
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