There’s no question that the capital city of Phnom Penh is quintessentially Asian in all its facets, a city where rumbling mopeds carry whole families and whole stores through tight-knit alleyways that steam with the earthy smells of the orient, where sparkling temple stupas pierce the skyline and where sprawling shanty towns cluster around the new and shiny manifestations of global big business.
Today Phnom Penh bears the gruesome scars of its Khmer days at the Cheung Ek Fields nearby, while the downtown Tuol Sleng Museum does well to reconcile the devastation of Cambodia’s past genocides with the city’s new, forward-thinking thrust. Most Phnom Penh tour guides will direct visitors to the iconic golden-roofed Royal Palace complex, which houses along with the King’s official residence the spectacular Silver Pagoda. Phsar Thmei, the central market is usually a popular stop, overwhelming travellers as it is with the variety of its merchandise. What’s more, amidst the ubiquitous street stalls and noodle sellers of central Phnom Penh, there’s now a smattering of high-class fine-dining joints that have grown up hand-in-hand with the citywide commercial boom of the noughties.