Friday 24th November

After getting up for a beautiful sunrise (see the post right after Nov 21st for picture) we began the day by revisiting Cambodia's dark past at the Killing Fields of Cheung Ek. This was where the prisoners in S-21 (see October 22nd) were brought to be killed and buried in mass graves. Many of the graves were excavated after the Vietnamese liberation in 1979, others remain undisturbed.

A tower (stupsa) has been built containing many skulls and other exhumed remains while the field behind was the site of the graves. Some of the pits lie open while in other areas remnants of cloth and bone poke up through the soil. There are still a few pieces of headstone to remind you that this was once a Chinese graveyard while several of the trees were put to use for beating infants against or held loudspeakers playing music to drown out the screams. It all serves to remind you of the magnitude of the crimes perpetrated here, and the relatively recent time it took place.

More soon...