{"id":3128,"date":"2024-03-10T15:16:20","date_gmt":"2024-03-10T14:16:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ilnodoonlus.org\/?p=3128"},"modified":"2025-08-05T05:54:26","modified_gmt":"2025-08-05T03:54:26","slug":"cambogia-testimonianza-antonia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ilnodoonlus.org\/en\/cambogia-testimonianza-antonia\/","title":{"rendered":"Cambodia, Antonia's review"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The wonder of Angkor.<\/strong>
\nA perfect fusion of architectural ambition and spiritual devotion. The enchanting Apsaras<\/em> celestial nymphs \u2014 dance gracefully along its walls, while 800 meters of bas-reliefs at Angkor Wat accompany visitors through the most iconic temple-mountain, a miniature representation of the universe, surrounded by the \u201coceans\u201d of its moat reflecting its sublime beauty. Then there\u2019s Ta Prohm, left at the mercy of the jungle, its walls embraced by a maze of roots \u2014 the setting of Tomb Raider with Angelina Jolie, alias Lara Croft; the small but exquisite Banteay Srei, the \u201cCitadel of Women\u201d; and the serene Bayon, with its towers of four giant faces gazing upon visitors from every direction.\n\nThis is Cambodia\u2019s calling card \u2014 a country that overwhelms you with its contrasts: the beauty of its temples surrounded by lush, fertile nature and people who continue to smile gently despite everything; and on the other side, the brutality of its tragic past, and the corruption of its present. A traumatized nation \u2014 one that still carries its wounds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Traveling with Il Nodo makes all the difference.<\/strong>
\nBecause it compels you to leave the well-trodden paths and reach the rural villages where the NGO distributes water filters. There is no drinking water, no electricity. Even rainwater, poorly stored in jars outside the stilt houses, can lead to disease and infection. Beyond providing filters, Il Nodo also works to promote education and awareness on sustainable use of resources.\n\nLife in the countryside is hard. The most affected are young people and children \u2014 especially girls \u2014 often kept from school or withdrawn too early, for what in Cambodia is known as \u201cthe milk debt.\u201d Tradition dictates the \u201csacrifice\u201d of children, who instead of studying and building their future, are forced to devote their energy to ensuring the survival of parents and grandparents.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the journey\u2019s most emotional stops was at the Kompong Thom Institute<\/strong>, where a deep bond has formed between Luciana, Martina, and the children supported through Il Nodo\u2019s sponsorship program. Considered a \u201cmodel\u201d orphanage, the institute has invested heavily in sports and outdoor activities, with football and basketball fields. Sadly, the large football field built thanks to Il Nodo\u2019s support was later seized by the government for so-called \u201cpublic utility constructions.\u201d About three years ago, a wall was built to separate it from the rest of the courtyard \u2014 the field now lies abandoned and overgrown, at least for now.

\nLooking at that deserted field, surrounded by the joyful shouts of the children playing nearby, one can\u2019t help but reflect on the strange destiny of this people \u2014 left entirely on their own, without services, support, or infrastructure. And yet, they are a creative, resourceful people, whose smiles light even the poorest faces; a people whose incredible craftsmanship lives on in their woodwork, jewelry, and the sumptuous silk woven with Ikat patterns, in the refinement of Khmer cuisine, and in the vibrant atmosphere of local markets. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Phnom Penh embodies Cambodia\u2019s contradictions.<\/strong>
\nA whirlwind of sights and sensations: motorbikes racing at full speed past the shimmering spires of the Royal Palace; elegant caf\u00e9s and the pungent smells of street food stalls; the city\u2019s stunning position at the confluence of the Mekong \u2014 with its blue waters \u2014 and the muddier Tonle Sap River.\n\nA metropolis of over two million inhabitants that, despite widespread poverty, aspires toward modernity, its bridges and skyscrapers reaching for Singapore\u2019s skyline. From the top of the Vattanak Tower <\/strong>, the city\u2019snaga<\/em>, shaped skyscraper (the mythical serpent of Angkorian architecture), you admire Phnom Penh from a terrace rivaling the luxury designs of its wealthy neighbor. Yet, descending to street level, you quickly encounter another reality: crumbling houses, narrow alleys, and families living in precarious conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thanks to a cyclo tour <\/strong> organized by young architects, one can still glimpse traces of the city\u2019s colonial past \u2014 fragments of beauty in old French buildings now occupied by poor families, each living in a single room of what was once a prestigious hotel. They share a common kitchen; the smell is overpowering; ceilings and staircases are collapsing. Meanwhile, vast Chinese investments have fueled the construction of low-quality, half-empty skyscrapers \u2014 unaffordable for most Cambodians. The once-booming influx of Chinese tourists has plummeted since COVID, deflating the real estate bubble that once sustained it.\n\nCyclo drivers pedal through crowded streets under tangled webs of electrical wires; crumbling buildings alternate with villas protected by high walls topped with coils of barbed wire \u2014 homes of the wealthy few.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Barbed wire appears again at the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum (S-21) <\/strong>\u2014 a former high school turned into Pol Pot\u2019s main detention and torture center. The visit to the Killing Fields<\/strong> is equally chilling: an apparently peaceful park that was once a place of mass extermination. The wounds of 1975\u20131979 remain open. Every family still bears their marks \u2014 through memories of forced marriages, the haunting coexistence of victims and perpetrators, and the silence of parents unable to share that pain with their children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the face of all this, the country\u2019s ruling class and government remain largely absent \u2014 distinguished only by corruption. No one quite understands why much of Cambodia\u2019s rice land has been sold to the Chinese (China being one of its main buyers), nor why Chinese investments have pushed for the construction of a new airport <\/strong>, designed by Foster + Partners, 20 kilometers from the city. \u201cWe already have one less than nine kilometers from the center that has always worked perfectly,\u201d locals say. \u201cThere was no real need for another massive project \u2014 one that will only raise the cost of air travel.\u201d\n\nThat\u2019s business, as they say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Antonia Jacchia<\/strong><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The wonder of Angkor.\nA perfect fusion of architectural ambition and spiritual devotion. The enchanting Apsaras \u2014 celestial nymphs \u2014 dance gracefully along its walls, while 800 meters of bas-reliefs at Angkor Wat accompany visitors through the most iconic temple-mountain, a miniature representation of the universe, surrounded by the \u201coceans\u201d of its moat reflecting its sublime beauty. [...]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":4022,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3128","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-testimonianze"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ilnodoonlus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3128","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ilnodoonlus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ilnodoonlus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ilnodoonlus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/84"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ilnodoonlus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3128"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.ilnodoonlus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3128\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4024,"href":"https:\/\/www.ilnodoonlus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3128\/revisions\/4024"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ilnodoonlus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4022"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ilnodoonlus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3128"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ilnodoonlus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3128"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ilnodoonlus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3128"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}