Battambang - A pleasant, sleepy town


The second largest city in Cambodia, Battambang (pronounced, and sometimes written, as Battambong) is a quiet but very pleasant place. In the centre, as in other Cambodian cities, there are a French-designed central market and other colonial buildings mixed with modern architecture and fancy shops, while the outskirts feature traditional Khmer homes. As everywhere in Cambodia, there is a Muslim minority, as well as some Christians and Chinese. As it was the end of the year, there was a very festive atmosphere everywhere and it is also the "wedding season". There aren't too many attractions in Battambang, but among them is a memorial to the country's sad Khmer Rouge period, and on the happier side, the unique "bamboo train".

Random shots of the city.









The Central Market and Downtown area.
























The festive season - wedding tents all over the city, as well as Christmas and New Year decorations, street stalls, fairs.














The hanging bridge and Kampong Pil Pagoda.

















The Well of Shadows and Torture Museum at the Battambang killing fields, and Wat Samrong Knong with drying rice.


















The real Bamboo Train - it is today only used by tourists, but the track and the make-shift trains, unlike the one at Banan, are original.
















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