FOREIGN CORRESPONDENTS CLUB - Phnom Penh

The FCC, Foreign Correspondents Club of Cambodia , is an iconic old French Colonial building, from where the world first heard of Pol Pot's last stand in the jungles to the north. Then known as Kampuchea.
During the time of the Pol Pot regime, the capital Phnom Penh was a virtual ghost town. Then in 1997, the FCC opened and a journalist remarked that it meant that Cambodia was back in business.

I had been searching for the famous public bar for years, not realizing that I had walked past it a hundred times. I had heard it was the best place for a cold beer at sunset, overlooking the mighty Mekong River. And I also knew of its historic significance. So it was a wonderful 'find' when l found it.

I had been refused entry to the Royal Palace . Last time I went there, it was acceptable to where a shawl around your shoulders. Now they insist on a T-shirt, price $2. It wasn't the price that deterred me, it was the thought of putting a T-shirt on over my dress. The heat has been stiflingly oppressive and l was just totally unable to don another layer.

So l set out determinedly to find the FCC and and a cold beer. I asked the local Khmer people all along the Riverside Boulevard, but maybe because of my accent, or maybe because it is a very Western type of establishment, no one knew what I was talking about. Until I asked a tuk tuk driver sitting directly outside the FCC.

I loved it immediately. It's an old French Colonial building dating back over a century.  It reaks of old fashioned charm & character with large breezy verandahs over-looking the Mekong. Big fat comfy leather chairs & shuttered windows add to the ambiance. And vivid old framed news photos adorn the walls.

Back in the day, it was a place of foreign intrigue where the international press met with dignitaries & informers and then revealed to the world about the crimes & terror of the regime, the genocide & on-going civil war. Hard-arsed heavy smoking journalists banged away on type-writers while outbursts of gunfire could have been heard in the distance. Fear & uncertainty were drowned in nights of heavy boozing & the odd firing of a gun from the verandah out over the lawless land. It was the wild east.

Being a quiet afternoon, Rattana who has worked there for 10 years, kindly gave me a tour of the building as well as the Heritage Mansion at the rear. Live music, art performances & movies play there on most nights.

Meanwhile back at the 'F' there is a fabulous restaurant serving Khmer & Western favourites. Happy Hour is from 5-7pm so l returned  with some friends later, to enjoy the atmosphere and the view of the sunset while lapping up $1 beers.
I have now at long last, found my favourite bar in Phnom Penh.