Exploring Phnom Penh's Royal Palace and River Front

Phnom Penh is both the capital and largest city of Cambodia. Considered by many the most elegant city in French Indochina, Phnom Penh was established in its present form during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and was strongly influenced by French colonial architecture as a result. It's also the site of the 19th century Royal Palace, official residence of King Sihanouk and repository of some of the finest art treasures in the country.

During the 'Zero Years' of Khmer Rouge power between 1975 and 1979, Phnom Penh was emptied of its population and survived as a ghost city, with only a skeleton administration to serve the needs of the communist leadership. As a consequence of this bizarre policy, coupled with many years of warfare and destruction between 1973 and 1993, the city fell into terrible disrepair. Fortunately, it is today fast being restored and has once again become a thriving commercial, artistic and indeed culinary hub.

Along The Quay by the Sap and Mekong Rivers: The Cambodian capital is an attractive riverside city of broad boulevards with numerous sights to please the visitor. It's still rather shabby and run down from the long years of warfare and abandonment, but improvements are well underway. All of the more important attractions are located beside, or within walking distance of the riverside, an area which also has many of the best restaurants and cafés in town.

Wat Phnom, built on a small mound in the north of the city not far from the banks of the Sap River, is a good place to begin a tour of the waterfront. It is perhaps the most important temple in the capital, and from it the capital takes its name. According to legend, around six centuries ago a Cambodian lady called Penh found some Buddha figures washed up by the bank of the Sap River. Being both rich and pious, she had a temple constructed to house them on top of a nearby hill--in fact a mound just 27m (88ft) high, but for all that the highest natural point in the vicinity--hence 'Phnom Penh' or 'the hill of Penh'. Wat Phnom, the temple built to house the figures, is entered from the east via a short stairway with naga (serpent) balustrades. The main vihara, or temple sanctuary, has been rebuilt several times, most recently in 1926. There are some interesting murals from the Vessantara Jataka or Buddha life-cycle stories, and in a small pavilion to the south is a statue of Penh, the temple's founder. Wat Phnom is eclectic to say the least. Although dedicated to Theravada Buddhism, it also houses (to the north of the vihara) a shrine to Preah Chau, who is especially revered by the Vietnamese community, whilst on the table in front are representations of Confucius and two Chinese sages. Finally to the left of the central altar--in case anyone feels left out--is an eight-armed statue of the Hindu deity Vishnu. The large stupa to the west of the vihara contains the ashes of King Ponhea Yat (1405-1467). You may like to take a short elephant ride around the mound on which the temple sits; there are numerous cold drink vendors in the vicinity.

To the north of Wat Phnom, along 47th Street (also known as Vithei France) lie many dilapidated old colonial buildings, increasing numbers of which are being renovated. This is the old French Quarter. To explore it, walk north along 47th Street to the roundabout, turn south down Monivong Boulevard past the French Embassy (on the right) and the British Embassy (on the left), before turning east by the Railway Station along 106th Street. If, on the other hand, this diversion seems too strenuous an addition to the tour, leave Wat Phnom by the main eastern stairway and walk due east to the Sap River, noting en route the colonial-style Post Office building, generally resplendent with large portraits of King Sihanouk and Queen Monique.

At the river turn right (south) along Sisowath Quay. This is a delightful area of small riverside cafés and restaurants where it is possible to savour the French influence in Cambodia's cultural make-up--a good place, indeed, to stop for a breakfast of coffee and croissants, or a baguette with paté. Alternatively, if the time for lunch is approaching, the nearby Foreign Correspondents Club of Cambodia is open to all comers, has a good bookshop on the first floor, and offers unsurpassed views across the Sap and Mekong Rivers from its well-appointed second floor restaurant.

Just behind the FCCC stands Wat Ounalom, the headquarters of the Cambodian sangha, or Buddhist order. Founded in 1443, this extensive temple suffered badly at the hands of the iconoclastic Khmer Rouge, but is fast recovering. Unfortunately the once extensive library of the Buddhist Institute, which is also housed here, will take many years to replace. To the west of the main temple stands a stupa said to contain an eyebrow hair of the Buddha. Within the temple are several archaic Buddha figures smashed to pieces by the Khmer Rouge but since reassembled. Also on display is a statue of Samdech Huot Tat, head of the Cambodian sangha when Pol Pot came to power and subsequently killed by the Khmer Rouge, which was recovered from the nearby Mekong and reinstalled after the collapse of Democratic Kampuchea.

David Henley / CPA

National Museum, Phnom Penh.

Continuing southwards, you will soon come to a small (and rather unkempt) public garden which lies in front of the Cambodian National Museum (Tuesday to Sunday 8-12am, 2-5pm; closed Monday). The museum, housed in a red pavilion built in 1918, holds a really wonderful collection of Khmer art including some of the finest pieces in existence. It is also home to an estimated two million bats, which explains the sharp, acrid smell and the constant, day-long squeaking and twittering from above the specially-strengthened ceiling. It's a good idea to purchase a copy of the museum guidebook, Khmer Art in Stone, for US$3 at the entrance desk.

The Royal Palace: Immediately south of the museum lie the extensive grounds of the Royal Palace (daily 7.30-11.30am, 2.30-5pm), built in Khmer-style with French assistance in 1866. The palace functions as the official residence of King Norodom Sihanouk since his return to the capital in 1992--though the king still spends much of his time in Beijing, which seems to have become his second home. The entrance for visitors is opposite the attractive, colonial-style Renakse Hotel, to the east of the palace grounds. Certain areas within the palace including, reasonably enough, the king's residential quarters, are off limits to the general public, but much of the complex is accessible. A sign at the gate--doubtless soon to be removed as security improves--informs the visitor that guns and explosives are not to be taken within!

David Henley / CPA

The Chan Chaya Pavilion, front of Royal Palace, Phnom Penh.

Just beyond the entrance gate stands the Chan Chaya Pavilion, formerly used by Cambodian monarchs to review parades and to give performances of classical Khmer dancing. Nowadays performances of the latter are regularly given at the nearby Cambodiana Hotel--to witness this beautiful spectacle you should inquire at your hotel reception desk.

Dominating the centre of the larger, northern section of the royal compound is the Royal Throne Hall. This was built as recently as 1917, the architect self-consciously borrowing extensively from the Bayon style at Angkor. Inside, the walls are painted with murals from the Reamker, the Khmer version of the Ramayana. Apart from coronations, the Throne Hall is used for important constitutional events and, on occasion, for the acceptance of ambassadorial credentials. To the right (north-west) of the Throne Hall stands the restricted Royal Residence Compound of King Sihanouk, whilst to the left (south) are several structures of interest, including the Royal Treasury, the Royal Banqueting Hall, and the Napoleon III Pavilion. This latter building, which has recently been renovated by French volunteers, was originally given by the Emperor Napoleon III to his wife the Empress Eugenie, who in turn had it dismantled and sent to Phnom Penh as a gift for King Norodom in the 1870s.

Exiting the main northern compound by a clearly marked gateway in the southeastern corner, the visitor should then proceed along a narrow south-westerly route which leads to the North Gate of the celebrated Silver Pagoda compound. This structure, so named because its floor is lined with more than 5,000 silver tiles weighing more than 1kg each, or 5 tons in total, is also known as Wat Preah Keo, or 'Temple of the Emerald Buddha'. Like its famous namesake in Bangkok, it is considered to house the palladium of the nation, and--again, as in Bangkok--photography within the building is forbidden. The Silver Pagoda was built by King Norodom in 1892, and extensively rebuilt by King Sihanouk in 1962. It houses two priceless Buddha figures, one of which--the Emerald Buddha, from which the temple gets its name--dates from the 17th century and is made of crystal. The other is a much larger affair, being made of 90kg of pure gold, encrusted with 9,584 diamonds, the largest of which is 25 carats.

Leaving the palace and proceeding south along Sothearos Boulevard, the visitor will pass an extensive park on the right (west). In the centre of this park stands a statue in heroic Socialist-Realist style depicting two soldiers--one Vietnamese, the other Cambodian--protecting a Cambodian woman and child. This is the Cambodia-Vietnam Monument, dedicated to the supposedly unbreakable friendship that links the two peoples. Unfortunately not all Cambodians agree with this sentiment, and the monument has been attacked and even set on fire with petrol at times of political tension. Signs of damage are clearly visible to the head of one of the soldiers, though no-one seems to be really sure which soldier is Vietnamese and which Cambodian!

By continuing to the southern end of the park and turning west along Sihanouk Boulevard, you will reach the pineapple-shaped Independence Monument--in fact, it represents a lotus--built to celebrate Cambodia's independence from France in 1953. Immediately to the south of this monolith is Wat Lang Ka, the second Phnom Penh temple (after Wat Ounalom) to have been restored after the overthrow of the Khmer Rouge regime. Today the temple is a flourishing example of the revival of Buddhism in Cambodia. Saffron-robed monks abound, whilst newly painted murals from the jataka (Buddha life cycles) fairly gleam from the restored vihara walls.

You should next turn your attention to the confluence of great waterways which make Phnom Penh a natural communications centre. Whilst the riverside tour offers wonderful views over the junction of the Sap and Mekong Rivers, to really understand the unique confluence of waters at Phnom Penh you should also visit the Bassac River. The best way to do this is by boat--you can either arrange this by speaking to a boatman at one of the landing points on Sisowath Quay or by asking your hotel to make the arrangements.

The confluence of the four rivers, known in Khmer as Chatomuk or 'four faces', and in French as Quatres Bras or 'four arms', is remarkable for a unique phenomenon, the reversal of the Sap River. From May to October, during the annual rainy season, the hugely increased volume of the Mekong forces the Sap River to back up, and finally reverse its course, flowing northwards to flood the Tonlé Sap with vast quantities of fresh water and rich sediment. During this period the Tonlé Sap more than doubles in size, from 3,000 sq km (1,886 sq miles) to as much as 8,000 sq km (5,031 sq miles). Then, in mid-October, as the level of the Mekong diminishes, the flow of the Sap is again reversed, carrying the surplus waters of the Tonlé Sap southwards to the Mekong and Bassac deltas. The time of the October reversal of the waters is celebrated as Bon Om Tuk, one of Cambodia's most important festivals. The annual flooding of the Tonlé Sap makes the lake an incredibly rich source of fish, whilst the farmland around the lakes benefits from an annual deluge of rich sediment.

Get your boatman to drop you back at Sisowath Quay towards dusk--which falls early in the tropics--and have a long, cool drink at the Foreign Correspondents Club; the views across the Mekong are spectacular, and there are generally interesting photographic exhibitions, often by well-known photographers.

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