return to Cambodia

Phnom Penh

 

Wow! That about sums up my thoughts of Phnom Penh. Such contrasts. Our taxi driver to the airport said the average wage is $50 (US – they favour the American dollar and almost everything is priced in US dollars, which of course makes being here a bit expensive after Thailand and Viet Nam). We read in our guidebook that giving someone a dollar for a tip equals their daily wage – our hotel room costs a local a monthÕs labour. This is much better than Thailand. We spoke to a man trying to sell me a tailored made suit who said that the hotel we were staying at was too luxurious for him as it would cost him a weekÕs wage. I always thought we were a bit poor, I suppose by Manhattan standards we are but we own a couple of houses and a car so in local terms we are doing OK.

 

The people are incredibly friendly which of course the Thai and the Vietnamese are too. Considering not too long ago this place was in ruin it is quite amazing they have accomplished what they have. During the Poi Pot years of Kmeher Rouge era the city was diminished from a population of half a million to some fifty-thousand, now there are more than three-million.

 

We avoided seeing the museums Ņthe Killing FieldsÓ and there was another one full of torture memorabilia, which we did not have the stomach to see. I do want to read about it all though, and we bought a couple of books, photocopied ones, from a street seller. The first night I felt a bit spooked in the hotel room, hearing every noise. I guess it was from thinking about the incredible history of the massacres of the 70Õs.

But the next morning that feeling was gone. As Terrell said, folks are friendly. The city reminds me more of India. It is much more underdeveloped than the other Asian cities we have seen. Some of the city roads are dirt roads, but many of them have been nicely paved,  and landscaped, courtesy of foreign gifts (Japan, Canada, were some of the signs we saw; IÕm sure there were many more). The river has many nice cafes and great food. My fears of diarrhoea (I can finally spell it!!..though Bill Gates is telling me otherwise) have been unfounded (not to go into too much detail) the only brush with the ŌrunsÕ was, of all places, in Holland.

The Hotel Pavilion has a lovely pool, which we used, as it is bloody hot here!

 

So after 3 days we took a local flight to Siem Reap.

My word, this is an amazing place. It has a downtown cafˇ area, lots of bars eateries clubs, lots and lots of tourists. On our drive into town we passed so many HUGE hotels, we thought we were in Vegas. No kidding! The place is a boom town. As the guide book says, they have to be careful it doesnÕt become awful.

 

 

Tomb raiders

Angkor Wat

 

 

We have guest house accommodation, just up from backpackers, but at $20 per night itÕs good. ItÕs a traditional Cambodian house, with lots of dark wood. Our room is all wood, even the cupboards are made of slats of bamboo. The owners live right next door I think. They are most helpful and friendly. Luckily the room has aircon. I hate to sound like a wuss but we really need it. If we thought Phom Pehn was hot, this place is hotter.

 

Yesterday we asked the tuk-tuk guy from the hotel to take us for a drive anywhere, not  to tourist places. It was very interesting. One road was flooded so we had to turn back. At another place, in town we found a bike shop and bought two baskets for our bikes in Brooklyn. We were checking out the baskets in Utrecht too (they were 15 Euros, these were $1.50) I wanted to buy a bike too, but Terrell had some concerns about luggage.

And of course we have been to Ankor Wat. ItÕs a huge national park, with miles and miles of roads leading to many ancient temple ruins, dating back to 850-1200 AD. Pretty cool.

 

Relaxing on our Big Lyna porch

Our very own tuk-tuk

A floating school

A day at the floating village

Lake Tonle Sap

Floating Catholic church

 

 

TodayÕs trip to the fishing village on the shores of Boeung Tole Sap (the largest lakeÉfresh water.. in Cambodia) was pretty amazing. We came by tuk-tuk, the last bone jarring 20 minutes was over dirt road, and caused a flat tyre. Our boat tour guide was a lad of 24 who lived in the boat. His parents were both killed by Khymer Rouge in the 70Õs an he grew up as a beggar, then a fisherman, and now has managed to teach himself some English. Quite a moving story. He has never learned to read and write, though schools are now available for children for free, one of them in the floating village, funded by UNESCO. It made a big impression on both of us. These people really have a hard life.

 

The lake is populated by a community of several million, including a large percentage of Vietnamese. In the wet season, the river runs back into the lake, driven by flood waters from the Mekong which swells with melted snow and heavy rain. The fishing community all move, as the waters rise. In the dry season they go back down to the edges of the lake, and the river drains again into the Mekong. We saw (in a display for tourists) the many different kinds of fish, fresh water crocodiles, eel and water snakes that give this village a livelihood. Many of the boats have fish farms under them. We also saw a floating piggery, pharmacy, police station, shops, and repair places. Some of the boats have TV and one or two even a satellite dish; powered by car batteries, or generators.

 

Back in the guest house now, and itÕs raining again. The rain is nice and cools it down. TerrellÕs taken one of his power naps. Tomorrow we head back to Phnom Penh and Singapore and then Adelaide.

June 25, 2008 ALBUM

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