The problem with this tourist location — as with most tourist locations — is tourists themselves. While trying to comprehend the gravitas of the situation, some children ran up to me and posed for a photo. And they have coconuts, lots and lots of coconuts. Take a moment to realise as to why these people were considered enemies of the regime and murdered here. They also have coconuts — lots and lots of coconuts. It is surprising that Indians are not aware of its existence and importance, as it is an ancient Vishnu temple that later turned into a Buddhist one.

I obliged and immediately after taking the photo, they starting begging by repeatedly chanting ‘Gimme some money’. So, I bought them some coconut water. It dawned on me — as it dawned — that Angkor Wat wasn’t the only temple in the area. It appears across the country as much as Che Guevara’s face does in Kerala. Then it was off to The Killing Fields.Shrine at China Aluminum Frying Pan for sale The Killing FieldsPhnom PenhWhen we talk of dictators, we talk of Hitler, followed by Stalin and then jump a few decades to Saddam or Gaddafi. For once, I was proud to be an Indian and told the waiter I could ‘handle it’ and to ‘bring it on’.

And most of these people were executed in a place known as The Killing Fields. What we call a ‘share auto’ (or big auto if you’re not into nuances) is called a tuk-tuk in Cambodia (or any other South east Asian country). Only much later I would find out about how the Chola Kings conquered most of the Southeast Asian countries with their superior navy, thus putting an end to the myth that India has never invaded a country in the past. The whole temple complex is about five km from the modern town of Siem Riep, which is famous as a tourist haven and for having a weekly night market. 

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