Cambodia 2010 : Siem Reap - Cambodia Land Mine Museum and Relief Facility

We finally reached Siem Reap the next day and without further ado, we hired a tuk-tuk to get us to the Cambodia Land Mine Museum and Relief Facility.

Cambodia is probably one of the countries that are inflicted by the woes of landmines. There are many sad stories about landmine casualties and often, you would find some of the victims employed by these non-profit organisation to man the museums and to educate people about the landmine woes. 

There were many artifacts of the artillery and rockets found, as well as photos of how the mines were defused.

There is also a backyard where some of the war transport were shown, many of them rusty and in rundown condition. You would often find signs to be wary of landmine and watch where you step. I remember the trepidation treading along the area not knowing whether all the landmines in the area have been successfully cleared. 

The location of the landmine museum is not too far from a school. We saw many school children leaving the area after school. 

These are some of the available war transports in the backyard.

Sometimes, we would also come across these round things. There was a guide with us at that time, who happened to be a victim of landmine explosion. He lost several fingers in the unfortunate episode but because he was not very well-versed in English, it makes communication difficult for him to explain the artifacts to us. 

On our way back, we saw a motorcyclist with all his items for sale heading towards the town center. According to the tuk-tuk rider, many of these items were handsewn by the villagers.

By the time we got back to the town area, we were still rather early for the Angkor Night Market.

So we headed to a nearby massage parlour to have a taste of Khmer massage.

This was one of the many massage parlours near the night market area. Khmer massage turns out to be similar to Balinese massage, without the use of oil. It was a lot gentler than Thai massage. 

The Angkor Night Market is another tourist attraction. Most of the visitors to the market area are tourists. 

The market sells a host of souvenirs, be it t-shirts or accessories, and you could also find some eateries and pubs in it. There are also shops for you to have your pedicure and manicure done. 

If all those are not what you were looking for, why not pay USD1 or 2 for a time of fish massage? There is a rather huge pond in the middle of the market where you could get the little fishes to nibble away your dead skin. There was no time limit when I was there and I was even treated to a can of soft drinks. 

You would also find paintings, watches and sunglasses on sale. So if you're looking for souvenirs, this may be your to-go place in Siem Reap!