Other sights in Cambodia
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Wat Preah Inkosei
Many modern pagodas were consecrated on the sacred ground of ancient temples. Wat Preah Inkosei is built on the site of an early Angkorian brick temple north of town; the older structure still stands at the rear of the compound.
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Gecko Centre
Visitors should check out Gecko Centre, an informative place located in the floating village of Chong Kneas. It has displays on flora and fauna of the area, as well as information on communities living around the lake.
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A
Wat Thmei
Wat Thmei is a modern pagoda concealing a dark past, with a memorial stupa containing the bones of victims of the Khmer Rouge. There are plenty of young monks keen to practise their English here. It’s located on the left fork of the road to Angkor Wat.
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Choeung Ek
Between 1975 and 1978 about 17,000 men, women, children and infants who had been detained and tortured at S-21 were transported to the extermination camp of Choeung Ek. They were often bludgeoned to death to avoid wasting precious bullets.
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National Centre of the Khmer Ceramics Revival
Dedicated to reviving the Khmer tradition of pottery, the centre has re-created an ancient Khmer kiln, which is helping to breathe new life into this old art. It’s possible to try your hand at the potters wheel, and there are plenty of elegant items on sale. It’s located near the airport.
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Wat Ounalom
This wat is the headquarters of Cambodian Buddhism. It was founded in 1443 and comprises 44 structures. It received a battering during the Pol Pot era, but today the wat has come back to life. The head of the country’s Buddhist brotherhood lives here, along with a large number of monks.
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Olympic Stadium
Known collectively as the National Sports Complex, the Olympic Stadium is a striking example of 1960s Khmer architecture and includes a sports arena and facilities for boxing, gymnastics, volleyball and other sports. Turn up after 5pm to see countless football matches, pétanque duels or badminton games.
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Cambodian Cultural Village
It may be kitsch, it may be kooky, but it is very popular with Cambodians and provides a diversion for families travelling with children. The visit begins with a wax museum and includes traditional homes of ethnic groups and miniature replicas of landmark Cambodian buildings. There are also dance shows and performances throughout the day.
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National Library
The National Library is in a graceful old building constructed in 1924, near Wat Phnom. During its rule, the Khmer Rouge turned the building into a stable and destroyed most of the books. Many were thrown out into the streets, where they were picked up by people, some of whom donated them back to the library after 1979; others used them as food wrappings.
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Wat Moha Montrei
Situated close to the Olympic Stadium, Wat Moha Montrei was named in honour of one of King Monivong’s ministers, Chakrue Ponn, who initiated the founding of the pagoda (moha montrei means ‘the great minister’). The cement vihara, topped with a 35m-high tower, was completed in 1970. Between 1975 and 1979, it was used by the Khmer Rouge to store rice and corn.
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G
French Embassy
Located at the northern end of Monivong Blvd, the French embassy played a significant role in the dramas that unfolded after the fall of Phnom Penh on 17 April 1975. About 800 foreigners and 600 Cambodians took refuge in the embassy. Within 48 hours, the Khmer Rouge informed the French vice-consul that the new government did not recognise diplomatic privileges and that if all the Cambodians in the compound were not handed over, the lives of the foreigners inside would also be forfeited. Cambodian women married to foreigners could stay; Cambodian men married to foreign women could not. Foreigners wept as servants, colleagues, friends, lovers and husbands were escorted out…
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Rovieng Ranger Station
Another impressive collection of seatless cars and ox carts loaded with illegal wood fills the yard at Rovieng, but the most valuable contraband here is aromatic moras preuv oil, extracted from the roots of the endangered Disoxylon loureiri tree and kept in scores of plastic jerry cans. It has a delightful, sandalwood-like scent and keeps away both mossies and rats but interests smugglers because it can be used to make the drug ecstasy.
Other impounded objects stored here include chainsaws, snares (including some specially designed to catch pangolins) and guns.Bulletin-board photos show clandestine sawmills, stills used to make moras preuv oil, confiscated bush meat and…
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Wat Athvea
Wat Athvea is a pretty pagoda set on the site of an ancient sandstone temple that sees far fewer visitors than Angkor. It‘s south of the city centre, on the road to Tonlé Sap lake.
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