Travel Times

Visiting the Killing Fields was without a doubt one of the hardest experiences on the trip. I absolutely had to go because I knew it was important that  I get an understanding of Cambodia's history and the horrendous events it has overcome, but the Killing Fields is just one of those things you can never prepare for.

The Killing Fields is basically one of the many sites where Cambodian people of all ages were murdered and tortured in the most awful ways, and then thrown into mass graves.

When visiting, you are given a personal audio tour - you are able to walk around listening to the audio with headphones. It leaves for deadly silence at the Killing Fields, with tear filled and grim faced tourists walking among the graves still surfacing bones and clothing fragments as the weather changes and the soil shifts.

One of the bizarre things was that even though you knew the atrocities that had occurred on the very place you were walking, you couldn't help but notice how peaceful and beautiful it was. It was just not right...

At the end you stand by a stupa (shown below) filled to the top with skulls, ranging from babies to 90 year old men.

If you ever visit Cambodia, this is an experience that I consider to be the most important thing to do. It is shocking, you will be disgusted by what you hear, it will make you angry and feel hopeless, but it is so important to be educated and have an understanding of how incredible the country is for having overcome it.

Bones that had resurfaced due to rains and shifting soil over the years

Stupa full of skulls