The story is especially poignant for me after cruising the Mekong on AMAWATERWAYS La Marguerite.

In Phnom Penh, Cambodia, we visited the Killing Fields as well as the torture camp known as S-21.

For me, it was important that my daughter and I saw the Killing Fields and the torture camp so that we would never forget the atrocities committed there, just as it is important to see holocaust memorials and museums. Nonetheless, it was a gut-wrenching day in Phnom Penh, especially when confronted with a tree against which babies were beaten to death.

The New York Times article was of particular interest, and I admit some disappointment in such a light sentence for such horrible crimes.

A grim but necessary morning in Phnom Penh. We visited one of the Khmer Rouge's many 'Killing Fields,' where the renegade regime committed genocidal atrocities during its rule from 1975 to 1979. Our guide (pictured) told us how his father was captured and imprisoned by the Khmer Rouge and how out of thousands at S-31, was only one of six to survive. How? He noticed that the Khmer Rouge used hundreds of padlocks to incarcerate prisoners but had no system to organize the keys, so they were forced to cut the locks with bolt-cutters each time they took a prisoner away (for interrogation and torture likely). Upon arriving at S-31, our guide's father told the guards he could pick the locks, saving the padlocks for future use. Although he had never picked a lock before, he had observed someone doing so years before. Each morning at a cafe in Phnom Penh, the father had watched a shopkeeper pick a padlock to enter his store. In a test before the prison commander, the father succeeded in unlocking 7 of 10 padlocks. As a worker in the prison, he was no longer treated in the same way as prisoners. However, he was shackled each day. Never mind that he could pick the lock any time he wanted to. After the Khmer Rouge was toppled, his father returned to the village where he had been given up for dead.

At The Killing Fields In Phnom Penh. It is estimated that the Khmer Rouge exterminated as much as one third of Cambodian's population between 1975 and 1979.

Phnom Penh's Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum is situated at the site of the notorious Security Prison 21 (or S-21). A former high school, S-21 was used a prison and torture chambers during the Khmer Rouge's rule of Cambodia.

Small prison cells at Phnom Penh's Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, situated on the site of the notorious Security Prison 21 (or S-21). A former high school, S-21 was used a prison and torture chambers during the Khmer Rouge's rule of Cambodia.

My friend Gary McLaughlin, a professional videographer, has produced a couple of informative and inspirational videos featuring AMAWATERWAYS Mekong River cruises. I cruised with AMAWATERWAYS  on the Mekong this past spring, and the cruise definitely rated as one of the top travel experiences of my life. You can see my articles at a mini-site on River Cruise Advisor, Cruising The Mekong. Meantime, enjoy Gary’s videos. The top video is titled, Mekong River Cruises by AMAWATERWAYS. The video below features AMAWATERWAYS Vietnam & Cambodia Highlights. Enjoy!

Noodle Station, originally uploaded by Ralph Grizzle.

During breakfast and lunch on La Marguerite, there was a “Fresh Noodle Station,” which prepared delicious noodle soups. Also available: a buffet of Western and Asian foods, fresh fruits and cheeses.

Noodle soup, an option for breakfast and lunch

Beer and wine were included for both lunch and dinner. The Vietnamese beer was good, especially after a morning of touring, but the Vietnamese wine – well, what can I say? As you might expect, it left a lot to be desired. Next season, however, AMAWATERWAYS will upgrade the wines on La Marguerite, probably to New Zealand or Australian vintages.

Dinner was a sit-down-and-be-served affair. Most of the passengers I spoke with were pleased with the dinner choices and quality. You’re not getting Michelin-starred cuisine on La Marguerite, but the food was good, and getting better. AMAWATERWAYS is using its European chefs to train the kitchen staff.

For those who need their comfort foods, hamburgers and cheeseburgers were on the “Always Available” menu.

As noted in another post, there were no illnesses that I know of from food on the ship. All water used, to cook and wash vegetables, was treated. Bottled water was supplied for staterooms and tours.

One of our readers asked about tours and whether they were crowded. They were not. La Marguerite carries 92 passengers. For tours, we split into three groups, meaning there were about 30 people in each group. Thirty is not a small group, but it’s not a large one either.

Passengers who I spoke with said the tours were well-organized, and I agree. We always had a tour guide and a couple of assistants. One of the assistants stayed at the back of the group in case anyone lingered, in markets, for example. The assistants (and tour guide) were helpful if we needed to communicate with the market vendors.

There was never any problem hearing the guide, or understanding him. Our cruise director/guide was one of the best I’ve ever experienced. As a group, we marveled at his knowledge, enthusiasm, attention and way of communicating. Thoai certainly added to and enhanced our cruise experience.

The other great thing about the tours was that we typically traveled by an open-air boat. Doing so allowed us to observe the traffic on the river, taking in sights such as the one pictured above, a boat moving rice to the market.

Occasionally, we traveled by motorcoach, and these were roomy and comfortable, always air-conditioned. In Cambodia, be sure to hail a tuk-tuk and pay no more than $1 per person for short rides (up to 10 minutes).

All Eyes Izzy, originally uploaded by Ralph Grizzle.

There’s been a great deal of interest from readers about whether the Mekong is a good cruise for kids. The short answer is yes. Take them and venture forth! For more explanation, read on.

Isabel Karst, age 17, and Britton, my daughter, age 14

There were four kids on our April 2010 cruise, ranging in age from 5 to 17. For the teens, there’s no question that the cruise was a wonderful and age-appropriate experience. Isabel Karst, 17 years old and daughter of AMAWATERWAYS’ vice president of sales, called it one of the best trips of her life. Yes, Isabel is young, but she’s well-traveled, having been to Europe countless times with her mother on river cruises.

My daughter, Britton, age 14, told me during the trip: “I don’t think it matters what age you are. I’m getting the same thing out of it that an adult would.” That’s true. In fact, she may have absorbed more than I did. Certainly, her journal tells me that the cruise was a valuable experience for her.

La Marguerite even features a pool

On one level, our Mekong cruise was a vacation (La Marguerite was like a luxury hotel, with a pool), but on another level, the trip provided historical and cultural enrichment, a broader understanding of the world we share with others, and yes, the beginning of something transformational for my daughter – to that of a world citizen.

My daughter developed a better understanding of another culture.

Part of the reason that the cruise was so successful for kids was because of the way the program was structured. There were one or two tours each day. The morning tours started at 8:30 a.m., and the afternoon tours started at around 2 p.m. The tours were just the right length for a kid’s and adult’s attention span, typically two- to three-hours and with enough activity to keep the kids interested and amused.

On most tours, we traveled like the locals, by boat (ours was a private boat), which was a great way to get around and also good for the kids, much better than being stuck on a bus.

Isabel and Britton at Cambodia's Royal Palace in Phnom Penh

We were always back on La Marguerite for lunch. On some days, there was a second tour, and on other days, we cruised. On those days, there were presentations, some kid-friendly, like the towel-folding demonstration, where staff taught kids and adults how to fold towels to resemble animals.

Regarding food: Kids can be finicky eaters, and while there were no kids’ menus on La Marguerite, there was a good selection of kid-friendly food, including cheeses and fresh fruits. The breakfast and lunch buffet was a mix of Asian and Western foods, but we could also order hamburgers and other “comfort foods” from the menu. I should point out that there were no stomach illnesses that I know of from the food. Vegetables (the main concern for illnesses) were washed with treated water.

For kids and adults, La Marguerite features an expansive DVD collection, with kid-friendly videos, and the largest flat-panel, in-stateroom televisions I’ve ever seen on a ship.

Friends and Family.

What about the younger Dutch kids, ages 5 and 7? I asked their mother Christine if she thought her kids were too young to appreciate the experience. She responded that the trip was “very important for their development,” adding that “they now understand more about the world and about different cultures and religions.”

Her children saw many people praying in temples and asked what the people were praying for. Christine told them they were praying for good things to happen. The next day, she found her kids praying, Vince, age 5, for a toy car, and Izzy, age 7, for a new Barbie. Christine explained that these were not the types of things that people prayed for, that people prayed for a better world.

Izzy was sometimes reflective on our trip.

Later, Izzy came to her and asked how long it took for prayers to come true. Depends on what you’re praying for, Christine responded. Izzy had prayed for all poor people to become rich so that there would be no hardship. She added thoughtfully, “But I think that will take more than a couple of days to happen.”

There is another component to the trip for families, and that is the bonding that takes place. “In our normal lives, we are so busy with work that we often take family for granted,” Christine said, echoing my own thoughts. “On this trip, we have spent so much time together and had so many experiences. For the bonding of our family, it’s been very good.”

The kids learned more about prayer and ritual and the world we live in.

AMAWATERWAYS' President Rudi Schreiner holding a tarantula.

Fried Tarantula, originally uploaded by Ralph Grizzle.

AMAWATERWAYS’ President Rudi Schreiner could not wait to try the Cambodian delicacy, fried Tarantula.

After holding one of the live specimens in his hand, however, he could barely stomach eating one. “It was so cute,” he said. But as there was a tray full of tarantulas already fried, Schreiner popped one in his mouth.

A Cambodian delicacy: Fried Tarantula

What did he think? “Tastes like bacon,” he said, “bacon with hair.”

Yum!

Click on the photo above to launch a Flickr slideshow featuring the best photos from our eight-day Mekong cruise.

One highlight of our 8-day Mekong cruise: a 20-minute ox-cart ride back to La Marguerite. Click on the photo above to launch a Flickr slideshow.

Aqua Expeditions is spending around $4 million to launch a second luxury river cruise ship on the Peruvian Amazon in April 2011.

The newbuild, Aria, will be slightly larger than Aqua Expeditions’ existing ship on the Peruvian Amazon, the Aqua (pictured).

The 32-passenger Aria is currently being built in Iquitos, Peru to be 147 feet in length, with 16 suites, four of which are interconnecting for families. It will also have an outdoor Jacuzzi and sun deck, an exercise room with elliptical trainer and treadmill, air-conditioned lounge, a bar and library. A crew of 24 will be serving the 32 guests on board.

The 24-passenger Aqua is 140 feet long with 12 guest suites, ranging from 230 to 240 square feet with outward-facing windows and en-suite sitting areas.

The Aria will also offer three-, four- and seven-night cruises along the Peruvian Amazon. It will more than double Aqua Expeditions’ capacity. The seven-night cruise includes the Yanayacu part of the Amazon, the Yanallpa Creek, the Maranon River, the Samiria River, the Pacaya Samiria National Park, Yanayacu Pucate and Charo Lake (the three- and four-night cruises include variations of those destinations).

The significant investment in the new ship is a testament to his confidence in the market, said CEO Francesco Galli-Zugaro.

On Aug. 4, armed pirates attacked and robbed passengers on the Aqua, just nine days after a similar attack on the luxury vessel. But Galli-Zugaro said that security has been beefed up on the Peruvian Amazon ever since, with coast guards now patrolling the waters round the clock.

Just when we thought our Mekong cruise could not get any better, it did. Today’s afternoon tour ended with a 20-minute ox-cart ride back to La Marguerite. Traveling through countryside and a small village on a dusty road, past rice fields and amused locals, we ended the last full day of the cruise on an extremely upbeat note. No freely poured champagne and caviar on this soft-adventure cruise; instead, people who value experiencing more than pampering. When I asked fellow passengers about their best day on the cruise, this was it. As for me, one of my best cruise experiences ever is nearing its end. Tomorrow, Angkor Wat and back to Ho Chi Minh City.