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Guide to Phnom Penh, Cambodia-Kampuchea
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Click to go to Flight Prices for Phnom Penh
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Phnom PenhDespite Cambodia's beautiful countryside and it's lifestyles that evoke passion, warmth, and family, the nation hasn't quite measured up to be a safe place for visitors, or even natives. In recent years, particularly the last two or three decades, controversial power struggles have gripped the land, and Phnom Penh, the capital, has been unofficially off-limits to tourists. Since the 80's, thing in Cambodia have calmed considerably, but if you're planning on making a trip, take the added security and benefit of a guide to lead you around any trouble that you might otherwise come across. Filmmakers and writers have descended upon Phnom Penh in record numbers since the first outbreaks of civil strife, but as a result of the major redevelopment that has taken place, the camera crews have been replaced by average joes coming to catch a few glimpses of a city taken from calamity to recreation.Keeping in mind that traveling to Phnom Penh is no walk in the park is a good mindset to follow, but daily protests are no longer held, so you can stroll through the markets and focus on the produce rather than looking over your shoulder every few seconds.Phnom Penh is a fantastic city to experience if it is done with the appropriate precautions, so book the flight, arrange for a guide, and see the fruits of a land that gone far too unnoticed.
When to go:
Cambodia's place in Southeast Asia allows it some fantastic weather, but only for a brief period each year. Most travelers are aware of this magical two-month stint, but Phnom Penh is better off as a busy center than as a simple capital whose era of peacefulness has only recently begun. Between December and January, Phnom Penh is transformed into a great community of locals and outsiders (though the outsiders are made to feel so welcome that the term is somewhat contrary to the truth), in which tips and favors are the main communicative method of the social circle.
Getting there and around:
There are so many connections between Phnom Penh and Bangkok that the number seems to surpass that of domestic flights in Cambodia altogether. If only that were true of its relationship with Europe - the UK in particular. The airport itself is one of the most striking, modern, and beautiful creations to arise in Phnom Penh, and it's location allows some civility to the skies above the capital without requiring much patience for ground travel on the part of tourists and other visitors. Along with transit to/from the airport, it's greatly advised that you utilize taxis to make your way around town. They are the safes, most secure mode of travel within Phnom Penh, and if you happen to speak the driver's dialect you can obtain some valuable information in terms of the best places to go - and what to avoid.
Attractions:
Colonial architecture is in abundance in Phnom Penh, but interestingly enough, it is not so much in the form of majestic cityscape accents as crumbling and deteriorating relics of the past. Upkeep was abandoned on many structures around the city as a result of the constant civil struggle, but make your way to the riverfront district and the backdrop of the city's history is not so much sad as it is extraordinary. Temples and museums of all affiliation are numerous, and include: the Wat Ounalom, the Wat Phnom, and the Wat Moha Montrei. The city's Silver Pagoda is where many of the region's artifacts are displayed.
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