Today we said goodbye to Siem Reap and travelled to the capital of Cambodia, Phnom Penh. We spent most of the seven hour journey relaxing, sleeping and reflecting on the experience so far. The journey was broken up by a stopover for lunch and even more memorably, a visit to a market that sold a variety of cooked insects. As the photos below show, some students also made some new friends.
Upon our arrival at the hotel in Phnom Penh, we were given one hour to acclimatise to the new surroundings. People used this time to visit the hotel pool, play cards, or just chill out in their rooms. At 7pm the group disembarked the hotel for a delicious dinner on the water front. Following dinner, we cruised Phnom Penh in a colourful convoy of tuk tuks. Compared with Siem Reap, the city was more noticeably vibrant and pulsing with energy at night. The array of bright lights and new developments was reflective of a city that is in the rapid stages of growth, buzzing with a new found confidence associated with economic transformation.
As we returned to the hotel our day was at an end. Tomorrow we will be learning about the history of Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge. It promises to be a profoundly moving day that many are looking forward to experiencing.
