SOURCE:Adam Ferguson for The New York Times
UNDER an electric blue sky, with the morning sun already beating down, Som
Sangva Sak stood on a narrow, two-lane bridge over the Sangker
River and surveyed his hometown,
Battambang, in northwestern Cambodia
“When we talk about heritage conservation in Cambodia,
people only think about
Angkor Wat. But we also have something special here, something we
need to preserve,” said Mr. Sak, 41, gesturing toward the river’s banks, which
are lined with a stunning variety of historic structures: French colonial shop
houses with arched windows and ornate iron balconies; grand, century-old villas
with burgundy-tiled roofs; imposing pagodas with intricate bas-reliefs.
Chattering schoolchildren in navy blue-and-white uniforms cycled across the
bridge, while fishermen in rickety wooden boats occasionally floated by. “These
buildings recall the evolution of Khmer civilization — they connect the past to
the present,” he continued. “They symbolize our culture and need to be kept for
younger generations.”
For the last seven years, Mr. Sak, an adviser to Battambang’s urban planning
team and a part-time tour guide, has acted as a liaison between the German
government and the local municipality to build awareness of Battambang’s
architectural treasures. (
Germany has offered the city
assistance and expertise in creating new infrastructure, while protecting its
old
architecture.) Mr. Sak’s task is particularly relevant in today’s
climate, as mass development, largely driven by
Chinese
investment and wealthy officials, transforms Cambodia’s towns, roads and
landscapes.
In Battambang, the local government has taken matters into its own hands,
with measures like an educational campaign that focuses on cultural heritage.
Meanwhile, private financing is responsible for most building restoration, with
the goals of attracting tourism and preserving this gem of a town.
With a population of 140,000, Battambang is the country’s second-largest
city, though few tourists make it here. Those who do are rewarded with one of
the country’s greatest collections of historic structures, from decaying
Angkorean temples surrounded by lotus ponds to modernist cinemas built during
the country’s 1960s construction boom. They also gain access to one of the
country’s richest artistic communities: Battambang has produced generations of
artists, a legacy that residents are busy building on.
“People are starting to feel proud of their city again,” said Mr. Sak.
I first visited Battambang in 2006 and fell in love with its crumbling charm
and lush, picturesque countryside. Its dark, potholed streets and seedy
guesthouses, though, weren’t so lovable. But when I heard that a preservation
movement was under way, which included new boutique hotels, art galleries and
restaurants, many housed in historic buildings, I decided to go back.
The
floods that hit Cambodia in the
early fall delayed my plans. Though Battambang was mostly spared, several
streets in the city were underwater, as were sections of the 180-mile route
from
Phnom Penh, the capital.
(Conditions have since improved.) When I finally arrived in November, I spent
my first night swathed in Old World charm at
La Villa, a seven-room boutique hotel in a stunning two-story home
built by a wealthy local tradesman in the 1930s and restored in 2005. Antique
armoires, four-poster beds, richly patterned floor tiles and vintage ceiling
lamps fill the space. Each night, the hotel’s restaurant serves tender steaks
and fish curries to a mature European crowd seated at candlelit tables shaded
by hundred-year-old trees.
The next morning I headed to the other side of the river and explored the
Heritage
Protection Area, a compact district defined by the municipal government in
2009. It’s populated by about 800 historical buildings, the largest collection
in the country. I ducked into a squat, roughly 150-year-old Chinese temple with
curved gables; the roof was partly collapsed but it was still active. Since
most worshipers come in the afternoon, though, I had it to myself, snapping
photos of the tattered red Chinese lanterns and colorful paintings on the
walls.
Nearby is Psar Nath, the city’s main market, housed in a faded yellow Art
Deco edifice with a tiered roof and clock tower built in 1936. Shoppers closely
inspect goods from glittering wedding apparel to recently killed chickens.
Peaceful as the town might be today, Battambang’s architectural vestiges
bear testament to a tumultuous past. Over the last two centuries it has been
ruled by
Thailand and
France. It enjoyed a brief period of
freedom during the heady, post-independence days of the 1950s and ’60s before
the Khmer Rouge came to power in 1975. Battambang province was one of the
regime’s last strongholds — peace wouldn’t arrive until 1997, when the city
began to pick up the pieces.
Nevertheless, Battambang has produced some of the country’s most famous
artists: the 1960s chanteuse Ros Sereysothea, whose popularity persists decades
after her death; the late painter
Vann Nath; and Chhom Nimol, the frontwoman of the Los
Angeles-based indie rock band Dengue Fever.
“Even during Angkorean times, there was a strong, talented group here who
wanted to create their own kingdom,” said Theanly Chov, 26, a painter who
manages the nine-month-old Sammaki, one of the new galleries that exhibits
young local artists. “The combination of cultures — Cambodian, Chinese, Thai,
French — makes the city open-minded to art.”
Last year, the local government restored a majestic mansion built for the
last Thai governor in 1905. On the city’s narrow streets, private owners are
sprucing up 1920s and ’30s shop houses and corner buildings and turning some of
them into bars and cafes. And a few of the early 20th-century traditional
wooden houses on stilts in and around the city are now open for tours.
In 2001, an Australian-Khmer couple, John and Sinouin Parker, transformed
one of those homes into the Riverside Balcony Bar, which features an all-wood,
open-air veranda. At sunset, a symphony of crickets mesmerizes, as the fading
light bathes the surrounding river and towering palm trees.
Anna Milligan, originally from
Washington State, runs Café Eden
in a renovated riverfront shop house. A year ago, Ms. Milligan opened the
boho-chic nonprofit cafe, boutique and art space.
While snacking on French fries and peanut butter bars, visitors can gaze
upon works by local artists, many of whom are graduates of Phare Ponleu Selpak,
an arts school established in 1994 by a group of young Cambodians who met in a
refugee camp during the 1980s. Tourists are welcome on the school grounds, a
10-minute tuk-tuk drive from the city center down a narrow road on the city’s
outskirts, where teenagers play traditional Cambodian instruments and sinewy
boys and girls practice juggling, tumbling and modern dance moves for the
public performances the school hosts several nights a week.
Phare has also become renowned for its fine arts program, which has trained
many of the country’s rising young painters and sculptors, like Mao Soviet, who
opened the Make Maek Gallery with his wife, Phin Sophorn, also an artist, in
September.
“Many local artists graduate from Phare and produce a lot of work, but then
go to Phnom Penh or
Siem Reap because there has been
no space to show art,” said Mr. Soviet, a 31-year-old with disheveled hair.
Make Maek is out to change that, organizing eight shows throughout the year for
local and visiting international artists. The gallery has also spawned an artist-in-residency
program.
To raise local awareness about the arts and to lure visitors to the gallery,
Make Maek holds an event called “Make Light” every Saturday night, distributing
sparklers to neighborhood children and curious passers-by for a half-hour street
party, raucous by sleepy Battambang standards. (The city’s street lighting
still leaves much to be desired.)
One of the guests at a recent “Make Light” event was Darren Swallow, a
46-year-old Welshman who has lived in Battambang since 2005. An active promoter
of the local art scene and a founder of Sammaki, Mr. Swallow has organized
several exhibitions of the city’s artists around Cambodia.
“There’s still a ways to go here, but there’s such talent and energy,” he
said. “It’s not hectic — you can really live for the moment in Battambang. And
that moment stretches into a week for a lot of people.”
IF YOU GO
Battambang is a four- to five-hour drive from
Phnom
Penh by private car ($60; arrange through your hotel) or a six- to
eight-hour boat ride from
Siem
Reap, starting at $20. (The U.S. dollar is the de facto currency in
Cambodia.)
The small, pedestrian- and
bike-friendly
town is easy to navigate. Note that local drivers generally know the name of a
business, not the street address.
WHERE TO STAY
La Villa’s spacious rooms ooze history and charm
(855-53-730-151;
lavilla-battambang.net)
and start at $60 per night.
The year-old
Bambu Battambang Hotel (855-53-953-900;
bambuhotel.com), a 10-minute walk from La
Villa and a few minutes’ drive from the town center, has a resortlike feel. The
16 rooms, from $80 a night, are spread across four raised wooden houses.
At the eco-friendly
Sanctuary Villa (Chrey Kong Village; 855-972-167-168;
sanctuaryvilla.derlengtours.com),
just outside of town, the seven silk-accented bungalows surround a saltwater
pool; rates from $86 per night.
A mile from the town center, the eco-hotel
Au Cabaret Vert
(855-53-656-2000;
aucabaretvert.fr),
opened a year ago, has a restaurant that serves French fare. Doubles, $66.
WHERE TO EAT
Khmer Delight (one block south of Psar Nath;
855-12-671-911; entrees from $3) is a reliable spot for cheap, well-made
local
food, while
Pomme d’Amour (63 Street 2.5; 855-12-415-513;
apple-of-love.com; entrees from $5) offers
creative French-Khmer fusion cuisine.
Café Eden (85 Street 1;
855-53-73-1525;
cafeedencambodia.com;
entrees from $2.50) serves some of the best comfort food you’ll find in Cambodia. The
Riverside
Balcony Bar (about a mile south of the town center along the west bank
of the Sangker River; 855-53-730-313) is easily
Battambang’s most atmospheric spot for dollar drafts.
WHAT TO SEE AND DO
For a self-guided walking door of Battambang’s buildings, download the two
free maps released last year by the nonprofit organization
Khmer Architecture
Tours (
ka-tours.org).
Som
Sangva Sak (855-12-599-890) conducts private architectural city tours
and trips to outlying temples in the countryside starting at $20 for a half
day.
The old wooden houses of
Wat Kor are three miles outside of
town; visitors can tour two homes with the French-speaking owners. English
speakers should bring a guide.
In January, the village’s first boutique hotel opens,
Maisons Wat
Kor (855-98-555-377;
maisonswatkor.com;
doubles from $70). Its eight rooms are in three buildings modeled on their
historic neighbors.
Check out works by local artists at
Sammaki Gallery (87
Street 2.5; 855-17-968-050;
sammaki.kinyei.org)
and
Make Maek Gallery (66 Street 2.5; 855-17-946-108;
makemaek.org).
Visitors are welcome at
Phare Ponleu Selpak (Anch Anh
Village; 855-53-952-424); hourlong circus performances take place five times a
week, starting at 7 p.m.; tickets are $8.
