So we spent only one day in Phnom Penh and wow we learned so much. We both only knew about Cambodias recent history from another freind that had been travelling there a few years ago and by reading the book 'first they killed my father' which we only read about a month ago.

In 1975 the Khmer Rouge led by Pol Pot took over the country, I don't want to write about the history because don't want to get any facts wrong.

We visited the killing fields of Choeung Ek which are just outside Phhom Penh where about 17 thousand people were executed over three years, when we arrived there we saw a glass tower piled with hundreds of skulls which had been extracted from the mass graves. We both couldn't believe these were human skulls. Some of them had visible holes and cracks in them where they had been bludgeoned to death by hoes and other blunt instruments. We walked around and visible in the ground were human teeth, more bones and clothing- just lying there, we stared in disbelief. There are signs explaining different areas. One was a tree called the magic tree where a loudspeaker was hung and music played to drown out the sounds of people being executed. There was one mass grave where women were slung in naked because they were usually raped first. There was a tree that was used to bash babies to death against, chemicals were poured onto the mass graves to try and stop the smell of the corpses and to kill anyone that had been buried alive. People were kept in pitch black rooms before they were executed. We were completely shocked at this place, when we were looking around the sun was shining and we could hear kids playing and laughing in the distance, 30 years ago you can't imagine what this place would have been like.......

Next we went to Tuol Sleng museum which was a normal everyday school before the Khmer Rouge turned it into S-21, a high security interrogation / torture centre. We walked into the 'A' block, there were eerily empty old classrooms with an iron frame bed standing there in the middle. On one wall there was a gruesome black and white picture taken there. Thats all you needed to know about what happened in that room, we walked outside and saw some gallows where people were hung upside down on them until they passed out, there were big pots of rancid water that the victims head was dunked into to make them come round again so they could be further interrogated. We then went into another room where there were hundreds of pictures of the people that were held here. It was completely chilling to look at all these faces and to think about what was going through their minds at that time and that they knew they would eventually be executed. The looks on peoples faces are of sheer terror and bewilderment. The people were made to sit on a wierd chair with a strange contraption to make sure they sat up straight when they had their picture taken. There was one picture that we think we will never forget of a lady holding a tiny baby, you can see a tear rolling down her cheek-her face so sad. Some of the pictures were of toddlers sitting there so innocent. All those faces were haunting. We saw tiny brick cells where people were shackled in , and we read rules that prisoners had to abide by including one not to cry when they were recieveing torture.

Whilest walking around the museum and for some time after we were both too choked and shocked to talk to eachother. We can't believe that this happened so recently, and for what? How could this have happened? How could people kill others in this barbaric and medievil way?

In the evening we met up with some freinds in a bar. There was a girl happily singing away and we looked out the window and saw people going about their daily business. You wonder how people have had to rebuild their lives and how every family must have their own tales of terror and heartbreak, it all seemed quite surreal to be thinking of this with happy singing in the background!

When we went to bed we both lie there awake thinking about it all, I don't understand why we aren't told this at school, we know so much about Hitler!? We think everyone should be made aware of this, if anything to make sure it never happens again.

So a completely haunting and chilling experience and one we dont want to or think we will forget.