Cambodia

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I wasn't expecting to like Cambodia, from the stories I'd heard. It sounded like it would be a shithole, dirty, dangerous, and desperate. But I've actually enjoyed it much so far. Phnom Penh is a zoo if a city - what results when a country who population is destitute spends all its money "modernizing" the capital. Large plaster buildings, random roadways, shatitowns; dirt, dust, noise. But beneath that veneer of uncouth lies a startlingly serene countenance. Charming French-era buildings, colorful modern takes on the colonial, intermingle with classical Cambodian pomp near the waterfront surrounding the Royal Palace and National Museum. After several weeks of silence on the roads of Laos, it was almost unbearable to hear the honking, zooming crush of motorbikes, tuk-tuks, and trucks caught in traffic which seemed intent on getting there instantly. Even in the narrow alleyways of PP's backpacker ghetto (the only place we've been so far where it's really a slum) has a rush hour. The touts here are very persistent but friendly, so if you joke or laught a little they'll leave you alone sooner.

The thing I was not entirely prepared for was the onslaught of beggars and children. Everywhere you turn there's one or the other, both vying for your money. The children try to work for it by selling books. Their thin, undernourished frames hoist a basket laden with 15 or so photocopied books that htey try to foist off on unsuspecting - or helpful? - tourists. The girl from whom I bought the Vietnam Lonley Planet told us that she is lucky if she sells two books in a day. My heart went out to them after hearing that. I wanted to know whether she had any family, a home, when she last ate or had someone hug her. Was there a child gang, with a boss who coordinated the supply & sales of the books? Who took the profit? The girl was incredibly smart - she learned English on the streets, had never been to school (how long had she been doing this life??) and was still more fluent than even most guesthouse and travel agency operators - at age 10. I wanted to know all these things, but I couldn't bring myself to break the social barrier and just ask her, show her kindness, dignity & humanity. These children have such hard, short lives. These are the real disadvantaged, with almost zero opportunity to change and overcome their situation - indeed, almost zero opportunity to survive. It makes me wonder how the Cambodians propose to survive: with a generation of people lost to the brutality of the Khmer Rouge regime, and another generation of children born to parents trying to overcome their own orphaned backgrounds and lost to the dangers of the city, who is going to carry on the rich cultural heritage of Cambodia? But that seems to be one of the defining characteristics of the Cambodian people, their resilience. Whatever comes their way, they suffer terribly, and those who survive rebuild. They start businesses, families; go back to farming, or educating the young people about their history. I have never seen a people carry a heavier weight than the Cambodians, without complaint and indeed with good humor and smiles to boot. (Highly recommended reading with tremendously moving testimonials about the effects of the Khmer Rouge genecide: First They Killed My Father, and the Cambodian Land Mine Museum.)

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