Raffles Hotel le Royal - Phnom Penh

Raffles Hotel Le Royal is not just a place to spend a night, but a unique and luxurious hotel with rare attributes of history and style. Opened in 1929 in buildings that are an inspired blend of Khmer, Art Deco and French Colonial architecture, the restoration has fulfilled all the requirements of a modern world-class hotel in facilities and amenities. It is the perfect choice for both the holiday maker and business traveller.

Raffles Hotel Le Royal is the premier hotel in Phnom Penh, a hotel with those rare attributes of history and style. It was first established in 1929, and in its early heyday enjoyed an international clientele comprising globetrotters and adventurers, writers and journalists, royalty and dignitaries.

Reopened in 1997, after a careful restoration and refurbishment programme by Raffles International, the grand historic hotel fulfils all the requirements of a modern world-class hotel with its facilities and amenities, but imparts an old-world charm through its style and decor, which is elegant yet comfortable, classic yet casual.

The Location of Raffles Hotel Le Royal in Phnom Penh is in close proximity to the Pochentong International Airport. It is near a number of local attractions. The hotel is frequented both for leisure as well as for business.

It is an inspired blend of khmer, art deco and French colonial architecture, the hotel has been restored by the raffles hotel group of Singapore in the spirit of a tropical palatial residence creating a historical grand hotel.Hotel has beautiful outdoor swimming pool, spa, business center, children club, high-class tailor and souvenir shop. This is traditional luxury property in the heart of the city.

National Library

The National Library of Cambodia was inaugurated by the French colonial administration on 24 December 1924, with an initial collection of just 2,879 books, mainly in French. Thereafter it was successively managed by French staff until the appointment of the first Khmer Director, Mr Pach Chhoeun, in 1951.

After independence in 1954 there was a steady growth in Cambodian publishing, which was reflected in the increased number of Khmer language books in the National Library. Closed down during the Khmer Rouge era, the National Library was used for several years as accommodation by members of the Pol Pot regime, who destroyed many of the books.

Since 1980 the National Library has been re-established with the assistance of various overseas governments and agencies. Today the National Library of Cambodia holds some 103,635 copies in various languages (Khmer, French, English, German); special collections comprise 8,327 national documents, including documents published in French between 1925 and 1970, plus some books and documents published in the Khmer language dating from the years 1955-1975.

There is also a special collection of 305 sastra or palm leaf manuscripts, which are available on microfilm. An exhibition of book plates has been created from the library's collection of colonial-era periodicals, magazines and books; this is permanently on view in the Library’s periodicals room. Managed by the Directorate of Cultural Publications and Reading of the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, the National Library is currently staffed by 30 people.

Royal University of Fine Arts (RUFA)

The Royal University of Fine Arts in Phnom Penh traces its origins back to the École des Arts Cambodgiens, established in Phnom Penh in 1918 under the directorship of George Groslier and originally incorporating faculties of traditional drawing, sculptural modelling, bronzecasting, silversmithing, furniture making and weaving. In 1965 this institution was merged with the National Theatre School to form the Royal University of Fine Arts. Thereafter its programmes of study also embraced archaeology, architecture and urban planning and design, plus a range of new performing arts subjects including traditional Khmer and western music, Khmer classical dance, folkloric dance and theatre and modern drama. Prior to 1975 all of the University’s teaching took place on the original campus in the centre of the city. From 1975 to 1980 all teaching ceased and staff were evacuated to the countryside by the Khmer Rouge; many academics lost their lives in the devastation of this period. The institution re-opened in 1980 as the School of Fine Arts. In the same year a second campus was established at the site of an old army barracks in the north of Phnom Penh to house the teaching of performing arts subjects. The teaching of circus arts was added to the curriculum in 1989. University status was restored in 1989, and the suffix 'Royal' was once more added in 1993 following the restoration of the monarchy. The Royal University currently has five faculties – Archaeology, Architecture and Urbanism and Plastic Arts may be found at the original central campus behind the National Museum in Street 184, central Phnom Penh, whilst Choreographic Arts and Music are now based at the second campus in Russey Keo District, several kilometres from the city. The University's Secondary School of Fine Arts is also based here. Current student enrolment stands at just over 1,600, with 357 teaching staff.
The Royal University of Fine Arts is a partner in the Mekong Art and Culture Project, a two-year collaborative project spanning six activities, four countries and eight art institutes across the Greater Mekong Subregion.

Cambodia-Vietnam Friendship Monument

The Cambodia-Vietnam Friend_

ship Monument in Phnom Penh, capital of Cambodia, is a large concrete monument commemor_

ating the former alliance between Vietnam and Cambodia. It was built in the late 1970s by the communist regime that took power after the Cambodian-Vietnamese War, which overthrew the Khmer Rouge regime.

The monument is located in the centre of Phnom Penh not far from the Royal Palace. It features heroic statues of Vietnamese and Cambodian soldiers in the "Socialist realist" style developed in the Soviet Union in the 1930s, together with images of a woman and baby representing Cambodian civilians. With the end of the Vietnamese presence in Cambodia and fading memories of the conflicts of the 1970s, the memorial is neglected and little used by the Cambodians on a day-to-day basis.

The monument has occasionally become a political focal point. On August 30, 1998, during post-electoral protests, several people climbed onto the monument with hammers, poured gasoline on it and set it on fire. This damage was repaired two months later by the authorities. On July 29, 2007, a bomb exploded at the base of the monument, causing little damage.

Tuk tuk, Phnom Penh

Before I start this tip, I would like to say that I don't want any mails or comments from self-righteous people telling me I should appreciate the local customs etc. - I do. The standard modes of transport in Phnom Penh are the tuk-tuk, ubiqiotous throughout Southeast Asia, and the motodop. The latter is effectively anyone with a scooter that will transport you round the place for a relatively small amount. There are tuk-tuks and motodops literally everywhere and they are so easy to find. This is where my opening line comes in.

From the minute you leave your hotel in the morning until you return at night you wil be constantly assailed by drivers shouting at you, slowing up beside you, sounding their horn at you, waving at you to attract custom. Yes, I know it is a small thing and it really should not irritagte me as much as it dies. I always try to be polite, but the three or four hundredth (literally) repitition of "No, thank you" really gets on my nerves. For those of you that are going to play the "adopt the local customs" card, I would suggest that I never see a driver shouting at a local person. If a local wants a driver they approach the driver, it is only the traveller that is hassled this way.

Actually, I usually walk everywhere anyway but if you do need to get around, especially to a less frequented area at night, both options are safe, relatively inexpensive and, as discussed, frequent to the point of unavoidability.

A word of warning though, agree the price before you start. I have heard some horror stories of drunk travellers being ripped off for a fortune. As a general rule, at time of writing in early 2010 no journey round the centre should be more than a couple of $US although the price rises slightly at night.

Cambodian Train

Toll Royal Railway is planning to spend up to US$81 million to import new trains as part of the multi-million-dollar railway upgrade of the Kingdom’s major freight routes, according to the Ministry of Public Works and Transportation.

“The company has already set a plan to buy 11 engine carriages, 500 freight carriages and some other train materials for their operation by the end of this year or next,” the ministry’s Secretary of State Touch Chankosal said yesterday.

He said that Toll Royal Railway was preparing the paperwork to apply to the Council for Development of Cambodia requesting permission to import the locomotives; however, he said he could not confirm where the trains would be purchased from.

He said that refurbishment of Cambodia’s existing trains would continue, but that the expectation was that they would not suffice.

“In fact, we still have many carriage heads and carriages which can be mended, but they do not completely run well, so we need to import the new ones,” he said.

Peter Brimble, Asian Development Bank senior country economist for Cambodia, said the main rationale for the railway upgrade, partly funded by the ADB, was to develop a more cost-effective freight system.

“The logistics cost of carrying agricultural produce is critical and if you don’t have an effective way of doing it then it’s difficult to get the product out. I think the idea behind this is that it’s one option that’s relatively cost-effective,” he said.

Touch Chankosal said it was also the first step to ease the amount of heavy transportation damaging roads.

The ADB and AusAID are providing $141 million in funding for Toll to upgrade the 254-kilometre line from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville town, a 388-kilometre line from Phnom Penh to Poipet and a 48-kilometre line from Poipet to Sisophon.

Brimble said there were no plans for the ADB to fund future railroad projects in the Kingdom, but that he understood a “spur” would be added to the rail line in Sihanoukville to link it to the nearby port.

Toll Chief Executive David Kerr declined to comment, and ADB senior transport economist Peter Broch said he could not confirm the figures provided by the ministry.

Toll is jointly owned 55 percent by Australia’s largest trucking and freight company, Toll Holdings, and 45 percent by Kit Meng’s Royal Group. The duo teamed up last year to secure a 30-year concession to operate the network.

Phnom Penh Bus

As Cambodia’s road system has improved, buses have quickly become the preferred form of inter-provincial transportation. Several bus companies offer comfortable a/c buses from  Phnom Penh to all of the most popular provincial destinations including Siem Reap, Sihanoukville and many other provincial capitals and other towns along the National Routes. There are also a limited number of bus routes between provincial cities (for example Sihanoukville/Kampot, Kampong Cham/Siem Reap, etc.) And there are now direct buses running internationally between Phnom Penh and Ho Chi Minh City. All of the major bus companies use comparatively good quality, a/c buses, and some companies offer deluxe buses - slightly more expensive, usually newer and with tour guide, snacks, on-board toilet and other amenities. Generally speaking, it is easiest to buy bus tickets through your guesthouse or travel agency, though you can buy it directly from the bus company office as well. 

Bus Companies and Bus Stations

There is no centralized bus station in Phnom Penh. Buses from different companies depart from different stations. Some buses depart/arrive from the bus company office, others from remote bus stands such as market parking lots. One of the largest bus stations in Phnom Penh - Phnom Penh Sorya Transport - is next to Phsar Thmey (Central Market), near the GST bus station and major taxi stands. Several bus company offices are also concentrated near Street 104 and Sisowath Quay on the riverfront. The rest are scattered around town. In most provincial cities, including Siem Reap and Sihanoukville, there is a centralized bus station from which all buses arrive and depart. The following list is not comprehensive but does include most of the major bus companies.