Guide to Cambodia
Must See Cambodia
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Cambodia's capital retains an undeniable charm despite its tumultuous and often violent past. The crumbling colonial architecture makes an attractive backdrop to bustling streetside cafes and the redeveloped riverfront precinct - a particularly lively part of town on Friday and Saturday nights.
The city has several impressive wats (temple-monasteries), including Wat Ounalom, Wat Phnom and Wat Moha Montrei. Pride of place goes to the spectacular Silver Pagoda, one of the few places in Cambodia where artefacts embodying the richness of Khmer culture were preserved by the Khmer Rouge.
The Killing Fields of Choeung Ek are a grisly reminder of the atrocities committed by the Khmer Rouge. Some 17,000 people were killed here and more than 8000 skulls, arranged by sex and age, are visible behind the glass panel of the Memorial Stupa, which was erected in 1988. The Tuol Sleng Museum serves as testament to the crimes of the Khmer Rouge, and few details of each victim's torture and death are left to the imagination.