Cambodia is a developing country that has just emerged from a 30-year period of upheaval and civil unrest and is putting increasing emphasis on tourism to improve its economy. During the reign of the Khmer Rouge (1975-79), around 2 million of Cambodia’s then 7 million population were killed, many in the “Killing Fields” later made infamous by the book and film. After the Vietnamese invaded and overthrew the Khmer Rouge, the country was caught in a series of guerrilla wars until a peace accord was negotiated in 1991. In 1998 they held the first real elections which passed off relatively smoothly and the country has been largely stable since then.
Many books have been written on the history of Cambodia from pre-Angkor through that era and the building of the Angkor Wat temples to post Khmer Rouge. They explain in much more detail, and in some cases much more graphically than we could, the history of the country. Below are some books and websites, in no particular order of merit, which we recommend you check out if you want to know more.
A History of Cambodia
(David Chandler)
Angkor: An Introduction to the Temples (Dawn F Rooney)
Ancient Angkor (Michael Freeman, Claude Jacques)
Stay Alive, My Son (Pin Yathay)
A Cambodian Prison Portrait (Vann Nath)
Cambodia 1975-1982 (Michael Vickery)
River of Time (Jon Swain)
Voices from S-21 (David Chandler)
How Pol Pot Came to Power and The Pol Pot Regime (Ben Kiernan)
www.yale.edu/cgp
As with the history of Cambodia there is much to say about the present day and most of it has already been done much better and in more detail than we could do, so what follows is our very rough guide to the country. After this we have again put together a list of books and websites you may wish to consult to fill in the gaps. Obviously, if you have any specific questions, drop us an e-mail and we’ll do our best to answer your queries.
Although most tourists will visit the temples in Siem Reap , the capital Phnom Penh (PP) and the beaches of Sihanoukville (Snooky), people are also increasingly visiting some of the provincial towns attracted by the colonial architecture and friendly people, as well as the islands off the coast which provide good diving, white sand beaches and exclusivity. You can visit any time of year although the best months temperature-wise are from Dec – Feb (dry and not too hot, not too cold ). The official language of Cambodia is Khmer but English is widely spoken and French often spoken by older Khmers. Visas cost US$20 for a tourist visa or US$25 for a business visa for one month (you will need 1 pass photo) and are available at Phnom Penh’s Pochentong airport and the embassies in Thailand and Vietnam, among others. You can get a visa extension in PP or Snooky. To get into the country, you can now either fly to PP or Siem Reap, cross by road from Thailand at Poipet or Koh Kong or from Vietman at Mae Bok or by boat at Chau Doc on the Mekong. The Laos/Cambodia border is an off/on affair best attempted if you have plenty of time.
Cambodia’s official currency is the riel, however US$ are the general currency of choice for everyone. You may get your change in riel, current rates being around 4000r to the US$. You can change travellers cheques (US$ are the most acceptable) at most banks and get cash advances on most major credit cards. We also now have ATM machines in PP, Siem Reap and Snooky.
E-mail access in PP is cheap and fast, but in the rest of the country is very expensive, although getting better. Do it in PP. Likewise with the post – Wat Phnom Post Office in PP is the only reliable post office and has a poste restante service. Local phone calls can be made from the little booths at the side of the road, but for international calls, do it from an internet place, it’s much quicker and cheaper.
As far as getting around goes, there are buses to and from the main cities and towns. Don’t expect too much from the roads, although PP to Snooky and Siam Reap is good. Some towns are also served by a railway – very slow, but cheap. You can also fly between PP and Siem Reap or take a river ferry. Once in town, motodops (motor bike taxis) are the most common although not the safest form of transport or you can usually arrange a private car for daily hire. Around PP tuk-tuks are becoming more popular too.
You can hire a motobike yourself, but don’t do it unless you’re already a confident rider – one ride on a motodop in PP will answer why!
Siem Reap, PP and Snooky all have a mixed range of accommodation, so you can choose depending on your budget – anything from US$2/3 to US$2000 per night. Ditto with eating out – you can pretty much get anything, and we do mean anything, if you’re prepared to pay, with the possible exception of Marmite (Vegemite is available) and liquorice dropjes. Siem Reap and PP tend to be more expensive than elsewhere and for obvious reasons have the widest choice of restaurants and supermarkets. All towns have their own local markets.
That’s it for our brief guide. Check out the sites and books below if you want to know more:
http://talesofasia.com (Gordon Sharpless)
http://www.bayonpearnik.com (Bayon Pearnik)
http://www.canbypublications.com (Canby Cambodia Guides)
http://www.cambodia-web.net/camtourist/index.htm (Cambodia Ministry of Tourism)
http://wwwcamnet.com.kh/cambodia.daily (The Cambodia Daily)
http://www.phnompenhpost.com (Phnom Penh Post)
http://www.lonelyplanet.com (Lonely Planet Guides)
http://www.roughguides.com (Rough Guides)
http://www.cambodia2000.com (The Complete Cambodia Phonebook
Adventure Cambodia (Matt Jacobson, Frank Viskay)
Gecko Tales: A Journey through Cambodia (Carol Livingstone)
Lonely Planet: SE Asia on a Shoestring or
Lonely Planet: Cambodia
Rough Guide: Cambodia