No Tuk Tuk Today

Mandy:

I was very excited to visit the Russian Market because I read on blogs that a lot of original brand named clothing that are made in Cambodia are sold at a fraction of the price since they have minor flaws. Of course when we got there the market is super crammed and hot and I couldn't really tell what was fake or real. Good thing we went first thing in the morning. The afternoon weather must be unbearable. We didn't end up getting any discount name brand clothes. However we did find some souvenirs that are made in Cambodia such as silk scarves and sea shell/bamboo items. I had to practice my bargaining skills. I basically got everything for half of the original selling price... But I probably could've talked it down even more. All in all the market is very interesting. We were planning to eat there for lunch but we weren't hungry. Also it was too chaotic for me to order food. There were meat and fish stands right beside clothing stands...

After that we took a Tuk Tuk to the Toul Sleng Musuem which is the Khmer Rouge genocide museum. It was a prison where the city folk and intellectuals were tortured in the mid 1970's. It's a very sad place to visit but the sunshine made it less gloomy. One of the reasons why I chose to come to Phnom Penh is to visit and learn more about the genocide. It's crazy to know that it happened not so long ago. My parents were in their early 20's and in a country not too far away from Cambodia. Hard to tell what Cambodia would be like today if the genocide didn't take place. It's difficult to rebuild a nation when all of the educated were murdered :(

Graves of the 12 victims found alive

After a very educational visit we went to the central market for shopping round 2. Unfortunately this market did not have anything we were looking for. I was also starving and lost all energy so we grabbed a snack at KFC (sad I know). Shopping in Vietnam and Cambodia makes me really miss the shopping in Thailand. If only I could go back to Platinum Mall in Bangkok =(

Central Market

Since the Royal Palace was closed yesterday we went back again today. I made sure I covered my knees and shoulders but that meant I was covered in sweat in the smoldering heat. The Royal Palace reminded me of Thailand, I'm not sure why. But it was very serene and that's why we spent a long time there taking pictures.

Royal Palace

(Korean girls know how to take pictures)

Took forever to get this shot right -_-

Since we had a full day of walking out and about we got foot massages. Actually we're getting them right now as I am typing. (Side note: massages in Vietnam are the worse. Thailand and Cambodia have much better massages.) We are nearing the end of our 3 week trip and I am exhausted! I think this is the most tiring trip I've had to date. The flights and always waking up at 530 or 630 for our day tours were extremely draining. Can't wait to go home! Although from what I hear, the weather is terrible in Toronto and I think my parents place hasn't had power for over 24 hours :S

Happy hour round 3

Dessert time!