Phnom Penh

Phnom Penh is a beautiful city on a river that would be exquisite if it wasn't for the rampant poverty. The terrifying history of the city would be devastating in any frame of reference, but especially so considering how recent the atrocities. In the early 1970's the Cambodian capital was home to around a half a million people. With fear of American bombs and rural guerrillas driving the countryside into the city, the population swelled to over 2 million. When the Khmer Rouge 'liberated' the capital on April 17, 1975, they forced all its inhabitants out. The civil servants, government employees, educators and military that were asked to stay were killed. From the Vietnamese invasion in 1979 to as recently as 1996, bouts of violence and unrest wreaked havoc on the city and its inhabitants. Corruption, mismanagement and incompetent leadership still leave the people and the city without a firm grasp on progress. The smiling friendly faces that I experienced in these dire conditions made the situation that much more tragic.
Mark, the ever smiling and helpful driver we befriended, who doesn't always make enough to buy his baby formula, brought us to the orphanage pictured above and suggested not a cash donation but a large bag of rice that we were happy to oblige. The orphanage is located INSIDE a shanty town. Rice at every meal and 10-15 kids in every room, and all this within walking distance of the grand palace.

For more on Cambodia, and specifically the role of the 'Vietnam' war on it: I loved ' Sideshow ' by William Shawcross.

A cell at S-21, or Tuol Sleng Prison. This former high school, converted into a prison by the Khmer Rouge, was transformed from a place of learning to a den of intolerance for education where torture and punishment was the name of the game. The detainees eventually ended up in the killing fields.

The Killing Fields where the Khmer Rouge exterminated the Khmer people, including women, children, the elderly and the handicapped. Genocide in the 1970's.