Phnom Penh

Phnom Penh is a sprawling capital city that at times looks like old Chinatown in S’pore. This is a city where opulence and poverty are at their peak. Politician and generals sleeps in their 4 storey mansions while the poor built makeshift houses on empty fields and by the roadside. Girls that are obviously underage sell themselves on the streets. Many countryside people came here in search of a dream only to find that reality bites. Crimes are not uncommon. Young boys wander the streets while sniffing glue. The police don’t give a damn as these kids are too poor to pay a bribe when being caught. Traffic likewise is chaotic. Traffic rules are seldom obeyed. If you want to make a turn, all you need to do is inch forward for an oncoming vehicle to stop.

Nevertheless, Phnom Penh has its beauty. From the many colonial time French architectures to the magnificent Royal Palace that houses King Sihanouk. You can also get almost everything a typical S’porean indulges. Cheap shopping, swimming pool, bowling alleys and snookerium, discotheque blasting head banging techno, karaokes, nice hamburgers and pizzas restaurant, and many Caltex Star Marts that sell all the stuffs you pray for in a 7 Eleven back home. I name it all here because most of these can’t be found anywhere else in this country.

Sunset @ the Royal Palace

 index - wish you were here - tonle sap - sihanoukville - temples of angkor - kampong chhnang - child in time