Post: #1
25/12/2019, 03:53 PM
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Just wondered if during the Discover Vietnam with Cambodia tour visits any of the sites associated with "The Killing Fields" ?
Post: #2
14/01/2020, 04:01 PM
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Hi landtoftlad,
Please accept my apologies in the delay of this response.
I have been advised that on this trip we do not visit Tuong Sleng or the Killing Fields.
Kindest regards,
Julia
Post: #3
23/01/2020, 02:45 PM
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Joined: Feb 2011
Thanks for the disappointing reply - but I guess tours can't go everywhere.
Post: #4
20/02/2020, 12:44 AM
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(14/01/2020, 04:01 PM)Julia Wrote: Hi landtoftlad,
Please accept my apologies in the delay of this response.
I have been advised that on this trip we do not visit Tuong Sleng or the Killing Fields.
Kindest regards,
Julia
Sorry to be a bit of a dog with a bone - but was wondering if there is any "at leisure" time in Phnom Penh when an independent trip to Tuol Sleng [or even Choeung Ek as it's only 15km] might be taken?
Or even to opt out of one of the included elements - such as Wat Phnom or the Central/Russian market [which I'm not too bothered about TBH]?
Just seems a shame to be so close and miss out on one of the most significant parts of Cambodia's recent [living memory] history.
Cheers
Post: #5
25/02/2020, 01:05 PM
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Hi Langtoftlad,
It is possible to squeeze in an independent visit to Tuol Sleng. The current timings on this trip have you arriving in Phnom Penh in the early afternoon, with the rest of the day at leisure.
Obviously, the timings may change die to unforeseen circumstances - but it looks like there is time for you to make this visit.
Kindest regards,
Julia
Post: #6
25/02/2020, 02:53 PM
Posts: 27
Threads: 12
Joined: Feb 2011
(25/02/2020, 01:05 PM)Julia Wrote: Hi Langtoftlad,
It is possible to squeeze in an independent visit to Tuol Sleng. The current timings on this trip have you arriving in Phnom Penh in the early afternoon, with the rest of the day at leisure.
Obviously, the timings may change die to unforeseen circumstances - but it looks like there is time for you to make this visit.
Kindest regards,
Julia
Thank you - appreciate things change [I worked for an airline so I know all about delays & schedule changes
] - I'll discuss my options nearer the time with my Tour Manager.
Post: #7
25/02/2020, 06:30 PM
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Joined: Sep 2010
Hi I did this tour in 2013 and a visit to Tuol Sleng (also known as S21) was included. Has it been dropped since? To be honest, I found it extremely harrowing and many of the group found it very upsetting. There is a tangible sense of evil in the place. In retrospect, I'm glad I went to learn more about the horrors of the Khmer Rouge and the impact it has had on the lovely people of Cambodia. We were not given the option of visiting the Killing Fields, as there wasn't time. Along with a visit to the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City, these two experiences brought home to me the reality of both wars and, in the case of Vietnam, a reminder that there are two sides to every story.
All the best,
Bob
Post: #8
25/02/2020, 08:29 PM
Posts: 243
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Joined: Jun 2014
Hi,
I was on one of the early Untold Cambodia & Laos trips. There is a review on the review page.
I had been to Cambodia previously but only as a few days after touring Vietnam much as you are doing. On the earlier trip a visit to Tuol Sleng had been included so I had been before so knew what to expect. I had not been to the Killing Fields and to further understand the history of this lovely country wanted to go there but it was not (then) included in the itinerary. I mentioned this to the TM with a view to ducking out of something and getting a tuk tuk to go there on my own. However, the TM did a straw poll and of the party all bar 2 wanted to go. As a result we got the visit using the tour bus and it is now an included part of that tour.
I don't know what your timings are but if you mention your interests to the TM it might be possible to fit something in. Time permitting Tuol Sleng is fairly central and you should be able to do this in a tuk tuk but the Killing Fields are a short distance out of town. Getting there was quite easy but we hit the local rush hour on the way back and the journey back to the hotel took ages.
As Bob says both are harrowing but do give a very strong understanding of the troubled past of this lovely country. The War Remnants museum is also very interesting as this gives a different perspective to the conflict to that usually seen by western eyes.
Cambodia is a beautiful country and whatever you do/don't fit in you will have a great time.
Best, Ian
Post: #9
25/02/2020, 09:41 PM
Posts: 27
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Joined: Feb 2011
Very interesting Bob - perhaps it was dropped as being too downbeat for a 'holiday excursion' and indeed the feedback might have been negative...
However, it is Cambodia's significant recent past and I feel it's appropriate, even if not "enjoyable" to visit.
Lest we forget
Post: #10
26/02/2020, 10:58 AM
Posts: 1,017
Threads: 79
Joined: Mar 2014
I visited both of these sites (included), on the Laos and Cambodia tour. Deeply moving, and yes, upsetting. But, as has been said, part of Cambodia’s recent history. As Bob says, both places reek of evil, but are also memorials to the tens of thousands lost.
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