Taxi in Phnom Penh

Travelling around Phnom Penh is pretty easy because there are taxi everywhere. Now you may wonder how taxi in Phnom Penh look like. We have four main different types of taxi in Phnom Penh nowadays and perhaps three of them are pretty unique. Different type of taxi charges differently but it worths to try all of them while you are in the city.


Cyclo - Cee Clo
Cyclos used to be very popular amongst local people but because they are slow to travel around, not many people want to ride a cyclo and now they are disappearing from the city. Cyclo rooted back to the French colonial era in the 1900s and now it's one of the few types of traditional taxi remains today. Cyclos are perfect if you want visit the city in a group or just to do some sightseeing around the city. Perhaps best thing about cyclos is that they are cheap.

Motor Taxi - Motor Dup
A motor can also be a taxi. In local language, a motor taxi is called a Motor Dup. There is no fixed price so it depends on the negotiation between the driver and the customer as well as the goal of the destination. Generally, it's not quite expensive and due to the traffic, it's the fastest way to move around the city especially when you are in a hurry. However, safety is a concern because some drive very fast. But don't worry, you can tell the driver to drive slowly.

Tuk Tuk

Tuk Tuk is becoming very popular amongst local people and foreigners nowadays. However, it's a bit costly and may not travel as fast as Motor Dup. Tuk Tuk is locally made and it is a very modern type of taxi as it has appeared for the past decade. It's really fun to be on a Tuk Tuk. Oh there is no fixed price, and again you need to have a good bargaining skill.

Taxi
 Believe it or not, taxi is the newest type of taxi in Phnom Penh and it has been introduced to the city for the past few years. We call it taxi meter and there is fixed price inside the taxi. Taxi is a bit expensive and very slow during rush hours but it's a very good choice during rainy season and for long distance of travel.

3years 8months 20days

3 years 8 months 20 days is the most memorable number in the heart of the Cambodian citizens. It refers to the period in which Cambodia was under the genocide regime - Khmer Rouge. Almost 3 millions Cambodians were massacre through torture, inhuman, cruel treatment, starvation and mass killing. The whole country became the prison - the biggest and the most cruel prison in the world. It's the regime that created the "prison without walls".

The regime started on the 17 April 1975 and ended on the 07 January 1979. Phnom Penh, used to be known as the "Pearl of Asia", became the ghost city. Zero traffic, Zero electricity, Zero water supply, Zero citizens (excepts the regime leaders), and Zero activity - all were found were abandoned houses, empty streets but bodies.

Perhaps the most populated area in the city was the Toul Sleng Prison located in the heart of the city and once was a high school. Now it is known as Toul Sleng Genocide Museum. Prisoners are those who were thought to be against the regime and they were subject to all forms of torture, cruel and inhuman treatment. After the collapse of the regime, only 12 were known to survive amongst the 17,000 prisoners.

Toul Sleng high school was converted into Toul Sleng Prison with all form of tortures, cruel and inhumane treatment. It was the torturing center of those who were thought to be against the regime and those who were brought there never came back.

Cambodian map of human skulls. Perhaps Toul Sleng Genocide Museum was the most known to have torture, cruel and inhuman treatment upon prisoners. However, similar forms of tortures happened almost everywhere in the country during the regime. Hundreds or even thousands of people died everyday.

Photos of Toul Sleng prisoners. Each prisoner was taken a photo as a proof of identity before taking into a cell. Thousands of innocent lives including children and babies were ended in this prison. 

These are the paintings of prisoners in the Toul Sleng Genocide Museum. They described how the prisoners were inhumanely treated and tortured. Even innocent children and babies of the prisoners were also subject to starvation and killing. 

A Toul Sleng survivor. He is one of the 12 survivors amongst the 17,000 prisoners in Toul Sleng Prison. Because of his artistic skills, he was kept to do some paintings for the prison. For him and the rest of the Cambodian people, the end of the genocide regime was the start of a new life. 

Duch - The boss of the Toul Sleng Prison. He used to be a high ranking official of the regime and responsible for the Toul Sleng Prison. The lives of thousands of innocent prisoners rested in his hands - whether they were subject to torture or inhumane treatment, he had the power to do so. He was caught and imprisoned after the collapse of the regime. In 2012, he was sentenced to life imprisonment for his crimes against humanity by the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), established under the cooperation of the UN and the Cambodian government to prosecute those who have the highest responsibility for the crimes against humanity during the genocide regime. 

National Museum

Welcome to the National Museum in Cambodia. It is the oldest and the biggest museum of the country and situated right next to the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh. You will find all the sculptures inside the National Museum relating to two main religions - Hinduism and Buddhism. This is because Cambodia used to widely practice Hinduism until the 13th century and since then Buddhism has gained the popularity amongst the Cambodian people. The National Museum does not only reveal religious practice through time in this country but also the changes of the Cambodian society, the kings and the life of Cambodian people. Some statutes are very fascinating but yet the architectural design of the Museum itself is probably the most inspiring of all.



The Architectural Design

The Museum was constructed on 15 August 1912 and renovations have been made since then. It was first intended to used as the Cambodian School of Art  (École des Arts Cambogiens in French) but later on was known to be the Museum of Cambodia. The Museum itself is a combination of concret and wooden structures styled in Cambodian traditional architectures.

The original structure has been kept and below is the National Museum that you can see today.


The Present National Museum

Garden inside the National Museum

There are small little ponds where lotus grow, flower used for religious purposes. 
There are also fishes in the ponds and you can find fish food near by to feed them. It's fun!!!

This is the first view you will see when you arrive.

Inside the National Museum
There are many statutes and sculptures of different styles in the Cambodian history - ranging from the pre-christ year to the modern day. Although Cambodia was influenced greatly by Indian culture during the first few centuries, it formed it own crafting styles unique to the region. You will find some statutes of gods that look similarly to those in India because Hinduism was the State's religion back to before the 13th century. However, in later centuries especially in the modern day, Buddism has become veyr popular and therefore most sculptures are mainly associated to Buddhism.

A bronze statute of Visnu - a god in Hinduism. He is known to be the god of protection and he has many arms (usually six). The Angkor Wat, the most popular temple of the country, was built to dedicate to this god in the early 13th century. 

Kenes - also a god in Hinduism.
He has a human body and an elephant head. 

Brahma - a god in Hinduism. He has four heads facing
 the four directions (east, west, south,  north) and many arms.

Nor Reay - a god in Hinduism.
He has many arms and each holds different weapons in wars.

Jayavarman VII - The greatest Cambodian Emperor. He was known for his kindness and care for his people and many big projects and infrastructures were built during his time. He was the first Cambodian king to transform Buddhism into the State's religion.

Krot - He is a very powerful bird in Cambodian history. He has a human body but has wings to fly around. He is known to be the carrier of the Visnu God, meaning when the god wants to travel around, he sits on the back of the bird.

Lingas. In Hinduism, the people believed that Lingas are very powerful and they provide prosperity to people and the nation. The Lingas were used only for religious purposes.

Linga and Yoni. In Hinduism, people believed that Linga and Yoni are together.
 They were used for religious purposes only to bring prosperity to those who pray and to the nation.

Buddhist Sculptures 
Since the sculptures lated to Hinduism were crafted a very long time ago, only sculptures made from stones and bronze remained to the present day. Wars and the abandonment of the sculptures in the nature made further destruction to the very few found in the National Museum. However, in the modern days buddhism has become the State's religion and many forms of Buddhas have been maintained. Not just in stone and bronze, you will find Buddhas crafted in woods, gold, silver and other precious metals in the National Museum. Buddhas have also been crafted in different postures and moods.

A collection of Buddhas

If you have a chance to visit Phnom Penh, the National Museum is a very good place to find out more about Cambodian culture. The Museum is not quite big in size and around 2 hours should bring you an insight into the country's history and traditions around the Museum. Phnom Penh Day hopes that you enjoy reading this page and your comments are highly appreciated.

Inside the Royal Palace

You may wonder what it is like inside the Cambodian Royal Palace. Of course, the Palace is home to the Royal Family but it is not just only home, there are also guest rooms, restaurants, religious temples and offices. For the purpose of this page, we will show you only important buildings that are frequently visited by and open to tourists.

The original buildings within the palace complex were built by luxury woods. This is a picture of the Throne of Hall taken in 1826 before the French colony. Nowadays, wooden buildings are replaced by concret structures with pure Cambodian architectural designs. 

This is the concret Throne of Hall that you will see when you enter the palace complex. The building faces the east so it is best for photograph in the mornings. The Throne of Hall is home to golden statutes of the Cambodian former kings, the golden throne and the crown. All the decoration inside this building is made mostly from gold as you will see in the next picture.

The Throne of Hall is used for coronation, diplomatic, official meetings and religious purposes. It is probably the most luxurious building within the palace complex. The picture here features the meeting between His Majesty and the UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon. 

The Moonlight Pavilion - This is the building that is on the complex gate so it is visible as you walk or drive along the complex. The building serves as a venue for the Royal Dancers, for the king to address the crowds and to hold state and Royal banquets. 

The Napoleon Pavilion - It's the only western-style building within the palace complex. It was constructed entirely of iron for the Empress Eugenie of France, wife of Napoleon III in 1869 for the use in the inauguration of the Suez Canal. Then in 1876, the building was shipped to the palace complex as a gift. Now it is used to store royal memorabilia and photographs.

The Silver Pagoda - a buddhist temple used for religious purposes. Many major buddhist ceremonies are held here and it is the second most luxurious building within the palace complex. It is called Silver Pagoda because the floor was made of 5,329 silver tiles, each weighted 1.125kg. It is also a place for cultural and religious treasures that houses more than 1,650 precious objects. The most two precious Buddha statues are the Emerald Buddha made of emerald or baccarat crystal and the Buddha Maitreya made of 90kg of gold and encrusted with 2,086 diamonds plus a 25-caret diamond in the crown and a 20-caret diamond in the chess. 

There are many Stupas around the Silver Pagoda. Stupas are used to store ashes of the former kings and royal families who passed away. There are different styles of Stupas but the one in the picture is the most common.

Finally, the Royal Palace at sunset is beautiful. You can have a walk outside the palace complex and have all amazing views surrounding.

If you have a chance to visit Phnom Penh, the Royal Palace is the first place you should be heading to. You should seek information in advance about the ticket and the schedule because the Palace is open at certain time while some days it is closed. Phnom Penh Day hopes you enjoy visiting this page.