ATTRACTIONS IN THE CITY

ROYAL PALACE

The Royal Palace is a complex of buildings which serves as the royal residence of the King of Cambodia. The Cambodian monarchs have occupied it since it was built in the 1860s, with a period of absence when the country came into turmoil during and after the reign of the Khmer Rouge.

The palace was constructed between 1866 and 1870, after King Norodom relocated the royal capital from Oudong to Phnom Penh. It was built atop an old citadel called Banteay Keo. It faces approximately East and is situated at the Western bank of the cross division of the Tonle Sap River and the Mekong River called Chaktomuk (an allusion to Brahma).

The museum houses one of the world’s largest collections of Khmer art, including sculptural, Khmer ceramics, bronzes, and ethnographic objects. Its collection includes over 14,000 items, from prehistoric times to periods before, during and after the Khmer Empire, which at its height stretched from Thailand, across present-day Cambodia, to southern Vietnam. The National Museum of Cambodia is located on Street 13 in central Phnom Penh, to the north of the Royal Palace and on the west side of Veal Preah Man square. The visitors’ entrance to the compound is at the corner of Streets 13 and 178. 

The Independence Monument in Phnom Penh, capital of Cambodia, was built in 1958 to memorialise Cambodia’s independence from France in 1953. It stands on the intersection of Norodom Boulevard and Sihanouk Boulevard in the centre of the city. It is in the form of a lotus-shaped stupa, of the style seen at the Khmer temple at Banteay Srei and other Khmer historical sites. The Independence Monument was designed by the Cambodian architect Vann Molyvann, who was “personally selected and instructed” by Prince Norodom Sihanouk on how it should look like, combining “the religious and the secular. It stands 37 metres tall.

During national celebrations, The Independence Monument is the center of activity. A ceremonial flame on the interior pedestal is often lit by a royal or high official on these occasions, and floral tributes line the stairs. Every year, The Independence Monument is visited by foreign tourists and locals alike. Behind the monument is the Norodom Sihanouk Memorial, constructed in 2013.

Between 1975 and 1978,aabout 17,000 men, women, children and infants (including nine westerners), detained and tortured at S-21 prison (now Tuol Sleng Museum), were transported to the extermination to death to avoid wasting precious bullets.The remains of 8985 people, many of whom were bound and blindfolded, were exhumed in 1980 from mass graves in this one-time long an orchard; 43 of the 129 communal graves here have been left untouched. Fragment of Human bone and bits of cloth are scattered around the disinterred pits. Over 8000 skulls, arranged by sex, are visible behind the clear glass panels of the Memoral Stupa, which was erected in 1988.The Killing Fields of Choeung Ek are 15 km from Central Phnom Penh. To get there, take Monireth Blvd south-westward out of the city from the Dang Kor Market bus depot. The site is 8.5 km from the bridge near 271 St. A memorial ceremony is held annually at Choeung Ek on 9 May.

The Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum “Hill of the Poisonous Trees” or “Strychnine Hill”) is a museum chronicling the Cambodian genocide. Located in Phnom Penh, the site is a former secondary school which was used as Security Prison 21 (S-21) by the Khmer Rouge regime from 1975 until its fall in 1979. From 1976 to 1979, an estimated 20,000 people were imprisoned at Tuol Sleng and it was one of between 150 and 196 torture and execution centers established by the Khmer Rouge. On 26 July 2010, the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia convicted the prison’s chief, Kang Kek Iew, for crimes against humanity and grave breaches of the 1949 Geneva Conventions. He died on 2 September 2020 while serving a life sentence.

History created Phnom Penh: In 1372, a wealthy old lady named “Doun Penh” lived on a small hill near the bank of the confluence of the four rivers. One day, when it was raining, Doun Penh went down to the port to take a bath and saw a floating Koki tree in the river and she call the village to fished it from the water. She and the villagers took a piece of wood to scrape off the mud and in the hole of the Koki tree, there were four Buddha statues made of bronze and brass and one made of marble. Another statue was in the form of Vishnu with the hands holding a staff, a chain, a snail, and a lotus flower. Doun Penh ask the villagers to help retrieve the Koki tree and receive the four treasures. Later, Doun Penh assigned the villagers to build a artificial hill and build a small wooden temple on top of the hill to house the statue. She invited monks to pray for the statues and the monks named the hermitage “Wat Phnom” which is known to this day.

Phnom Penh city is one of the best tourist attraction in Cambodia. People like to visit and have fun before the sun go down like walking, feeding pigeons, eat some foods, take some photos, sitting, relaxing. It’s windy and beautiful view of the river and nearly a hundred of national flags of the world. I’m walking along Preah Sisowath Quay and the riverside park like I’m exercise walking. It’s fun to walk.

So-named because of the prevalence of items from the Eastern Bloc in past times, the Toul Tom Poung Market today is a treasure trove for tourists. Particular items worth seeking out include CDs, fabrics, jewelry, carved handicrafts and ceramics. There are also a large number of clothing outlets and on site tailors and seamstresses

The dark-yellow Art Deco Phsa Thmei (New Market) is also referred to as the Central Market, a reference to its location and size. It was constructed in 1935 37. The Art deco building is shaped in the form of a cross with a nice central dome. And has four wings filled with shops selling gold and silver jewelry, antique coins, fake.

ATTRACTIONS OUTSIDE THE CITY

TA MAO ZOO

Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Centre (PTWRC) is a wildlife centre located roughly 25 miles (40 km) by road south of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The centre was established in 1995 and with an area of over 6,000 acres of protected regenerating forest, this is the largest zoo in Cambodia. Since 2001, PTWRC has been run by the government institution of Cambodian Forestry Administration in partnership with an environmental non-profit organization called Wildlife Alliance. Wildlife Alliance animal husbandry specialists, veterinarians, and care takers assist in the feeding and care of animals and operations. PTWRC currently houses over 1,200 rescued animals from 102 species including endangered Asian elephants, tigers, Pileated gibbon, Siamese crocodile, Malayan sun bears, among many others. Many of the species are listed as Endangered or Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Tonle Bati  is a small lake about 30 km south of Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. It is a popular weekend destination for the local population. It is also a popular fishing spot for both tourists and people who live locally.

Close to the lake, there is the Ta Prohm of Bati, one of several shelters built in Cambodia and Thailand during the reign of Jayavarman VII to house the Jayabuddhamahanatha statues. It is located off the highway to Takéo Province.

The word Jayabuddhamahanatha means “Victory-Buddha-Great Saviour” and may be have been referred to the defeat of the Chams by the king Jayavarman VII. A similar sculpture was found at the Vihar Prampil Lvengo on the Avenue of Victory at Angkor Thom.  20 minutes south of the lake there is another temple called Phnom Chisor. It is situated on a mountain top which requires a visitor to climb 461 steps.

There is an ancient Khmer temple, Prasat Phnom Chisor (or Phnom Chisor Temple, sometimes referred to just Phnom Chisor) located on top of the hill. The temple was built in the 11th century of laterite and bricks with carved sandstone lintels by the Khmer Empire king Suryavarman I,  who practiced Brahmanism. It was dedicated to the Hindu divinities Shiva and Vishnu. The original name of the temple was Sri Suryaparvata (Khmer: សុរ្យបវ៌ត), or The Mountain of Surya[varman] (The mountain of the Sun).

On the east edge of the mountain, at the back of the temple, there is a prime spot for view and pictures where you can see a vast plain of surrounding rice fields and countryside. From there, looking down to the east can see an avenue that forms a straight line connecting three main features including two outer gates (temples) of cruciform ground plan and a baray:

Kirirom National Park (Outtyeancheat Preah Suramarit-Kossamak Kirirom) is a national park in Cambodia. It is located mostly in Phnom Sruoch District, Kampong Speu Province, while a smaller section is in neighboring Koh Kong Province. The meaning of “Kirirom” is “Happy Mountain”. This name was given to the area by King Monivong in the 1930s. The ancient name of the place was Phnom Vorvong Sorvong for the main two hills there were connected with the Cambodian popular legend about two heroic princely brothers, Vorvong and Sorvong. 

TUMNOB SLA RESORT (PHNOM SRONG-KONG PISEY)

Tumnob Sla Resort or it’s often called Tumnob Sla is located in Srang Commune, Kong Pisey District, Kampong Speu province and far about ~20km away from Kompong Speu Independent Monument. Tumnob Sla Resort is in the category of the lake or pond. Things to do, as well as the attractions of Tumnob Sla Resort for tourists such as Seeing mountain view, Swimming, Viewing sunset, Taking boat, Seeing farm site, Fishing, Kayaking, Having picnic, Visiting flower garden, Cafe, Taking duck boat and more. For the trip to the location of Tumnob Sla Resort, it is easy because it is not necessary to walk and cross the river or take a boat. For parking, tourists can park directly at the location.
For a relaxing seating area, Tumnob Sla Resort has a seating area for tourists, and there is also order food directly from there. Besides Tumnob Sla Resort has no food ordering or food station, canteen, and restaurant.

Two thousand golden Buddhas flank the 199-steps to the 10-metre statue towering over those below, at the Putkiri pagoda – one of the Kingdom’s newest religious sites – while thousands of other Buddhas sit in meditation.

Located in Takeo province’s Trapaing Kro Nhoung commune, the site was founded almost a year ago by four monks led by venerable Serey Keo Kakda.

Their goal was to create a place for both worship and tourism that would eventually be the home of 84,000 Buddha statues, even as their numbers increase by the day.

Construction on the 30-metre hill and the road leading to it were supported in part by Oknha Lok Chumteav.

Asked how he came up with the goal of 84,000 statues, Keo Kakda said three of the main Buddhist texts had a total of 84,000 passages of dharma.

“Other countries have not built 84,000 Buddhist statues. There are only 5,000 statues in Myanmar . . . representing what the Buddha predicted before he died, that his religion would last for only 5,000 years. And now it has been 2,562 years.”