Battambang

Battambang is a city on the Sangkae River in northwestern Cambodia. It’s known for colonial buildings such as Sala Khaet, the former Governor’s Residence. Battambang Provincial Museum has artifacts from local Khmer temples. Nearby, Phare Ponleu Selpak is a circus and performing arts school for underprivileged children. North of the center are the ruins of Ek Phnom, an 11th-century pagoda with sandstone carvings. 

Battambang is Cambodia's second-largest city and the capital of Battambang Province, which was founded in the 11th century. It is the former capital of Monton Kmer and lies in the heart of the Northwest of Cambodia. Until the war years, in which almost every infrastructure was destructed it was the leading rice-producing province of the country.

The name Battambang or Batdambang, literally means "loss of stick" referring to a legend of the Preah Bat Dambang Kranhoung (Kranhoung Stick King). The population is nowadays around 250,000 people . It's a riverside town, home to some of the best-preserved, French colonial architecture in the country.