Cambodia - Part 1

My trip to Cambodia started with a face palm moment. I walked up the immigration official in Hyderabad airport. I handed my passport and my boarding pass and informed him I was going to Phnom Penh. He drew a blank face and asked me where I was going. I changed my answer to Cambodia. He still drew a blank face. I "informed" him that it was a country south of Thailand with on-arrival visa for Indian Citizens. He said why are you going there? Business? When I said for a tourist visit, he asked what's even there to see. He was one of the many who asked me this question. 

The first thing you notice about Cambodia is the heat. You cannot ignore it. The sun pierces and stings you even when you aren't in its direct sight. I regretted my jeans jacket which I wore to wade of the plane air-conditioning, and my jeans and my attire in general. It is shorts season throughout the year in Cambodia. There are many things which are alluring about Cambodia. It is dirty, dusty, it rains without warning, Remork, or more popularly known as tuk-tuk drivers chase you the moment they see you - But, the people are the best thing about Cambodia. 

Visa System in Cambodia at least in Phnom Penh airport is so darn weird but not inefficient. Like many Asian countries, it had its own set of rules which you will be totally unaware thanks to an ever-present gap in communication. While I found it extremely easy to get a visa in the airport, I did hear horror stories from fellow travellers about the process at Thai and Vietnam Borders. As a general rule, go for e-visa instead of an on-arrival if you are crossing borders at these places.

Once you successfully make it out of the airport and get used to the heat, you will start to notice too many things at once. Cambodia is an assault to your senses. The sights, smells, sounds and sensations overpower you. You wish that you had 3 more sets of eyes just so you get 360 degrees view. In short, it is as vibrant and colourful as India.

As an Indian, I couldn’t help but draw comparisons between the two nations. After all, Cambodians believe that they are descendants of Indians. It is believed to formed through the marriage of an Indian Brahman named Kaundinya to a Naga princess whose father ruled the sunken lands of Kambuja. True to their origins, Nagas are ever present even till date in most of the buildings and are a very big part of anything Khmer.

Angkor is nation pride here in Cambodia. It is also their bread and butter. Angkor and it’s surrounding temples see about an average of 2-3 million per year. It is the biggest industry in Siem Reap region, giving employment to most of the local people. The government takes unabashed advantage of this and promotes till you get tired of it. From Beer to Flag, you cannot ignore the magnificent Angkor.

But, Cambodia is so much more than Angkor. I met a lot of travellers who are just in Cambodia for it and scram to neighbouring Thailand or Vietnam. Cambodia is probably the most ignored destinations after Laos in the South- East Asian countries. No wonder the immigration official was totally unaware of its existence. Thailand and Vietnam always manage to steal the thunder in the region. I was really tempted when one of my friends whose backpacking in the region wanted me to leave to Cambodia to travel to Vietnam cause he was insisting it is definitely a better place than Cambodia, or so he heard from others.

As a person, personal preferences usually take precedent, but as a traveller, it is important to have an open mind about few things. Yes, probably sunrise over Machu Pichu might not equal that of one near my house in New York, but both evoke different emotions. If one is of grandeur, the other is a sense of belonging. I feel the same about countries, we might have personal preferences of what we like and dislike but, each country has its own charm and beauty waiting to be discovered and explored.

The natural and man-made diversity in Cambodia is quite extraordinary. One side you have the Angkor, its transcendence humbles you and the other end you have these endless white sand beaches which are isolated and gives you enough space for private thoughts and contemplation.

Cambodia is also plagued by its past. It wears its scars proudly and shows them to the world so that we learn from it. In span of 4 years, from 1975 to 1979, it had lost about 25% of its population. About 1-3 million men, women, and worst of all children (Numbers are still shaky cause evidence is still being uncovered) perished in hands of Khmer Rouge. Educated elite, teachers, doctors, lawyers, artists – pretty much everyone needed to make the country a better place killed in the haze of a mad man, POL POT. Imagine an entire parents generation more so specifically educated generation didn’t survive, what kind of world would you be living in?

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