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Published: February 26th 2010
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National Museum
It was nice enough, but mainly provided a refuge from Tuk Tuk drivers We went to Cambodia about two years ago for a short period and saw the Angkor temples. We had such a lovely time that we thought it would be great to come back again, so here we are! The highlight for me last time was the people, who are gorgeous, gentle souls, and so incredibly friendly.
Within a few hours in Phnom Penh we had already broken a record...that is we saw SIX people on a scooter. Most visitors to South East Asia will first notice the incredible traffic, and then notice the record breaking amounts of people/goods to be sold that can be piled onto a scooter at any one time. Last time in Siem Reap we got to a record of five, this time it was six....three women, one toddler at the front and two babies sticking out the side. Really quite terrible considering road safety, but this is how majority of them get around, and if there's five of you and you need to get from A to B with only one scooter, then one scooter will have to do!
“Tuk tuk?” is something we tired of pretty quickly in Phnom Penh. Unfortunately being fond of
More National Museum
I told Phoebe she can look like this sometimes when she is cranky a good walk, we were left open to constant harassment from various 'tuk tuk' (a carriage attached to a motorbike) drivers. Trying to make an effort to learn Khmer, we learnt the word for 'no' which sounds like 'otey', but of course when you say it they think you're saying 'okay', which lends itself to further harassment! We learnt quickly that a polite, but firm “no thank you” with limited eye contact was an acceptable way to ward off tuk tuk drivers.
Terror tourism seems to be the thing to do in Phnom Penh, as old Khmer Rouge territory is nearby. Tuk-tuk drivers are very keen on “I take you to genocide museum?” The whole thing kind of irked Nick and I, as it seemed like just a bit TOO much. At the same token though, it would be insensitive to pass through Cambodia without at least acknowledging the horrors that the Khmers have suffered. As it was, it would not have been good to tour those areas with Phoebe in tow, so we decided against it. We were however approached by an Aussie expat and asked to visit a local orphanage. After taking the pamphlet and checking them
Duck Duck Goose
Having fun with the kids at the orphanage out on the internet (to see if they were legitimate, and yes they were), we thought it might be nice to go. Off we went with 50 kgs of rice to donate and met the most gorgeous, adorable Khmer kids! There'd have to be something wrong with you to not want to make like Angelina Jolie and run off with them all! They taught us some Khmer phrases, and then we played a few games, namely 'duck, duck, goose', and Nick had no problems starting up a game of badminton with some of the boys. It was a lovely, enjoyable afternoon and a very uplifting experience, as the kids, while orphaned, were in a good orphanage where they received food, shelter, and education and medical care. In the end we rested easy on Angelina tendencies and said a happy farewell.
It's amazing how Phoebe is coping without toys, school and friends. For starters, the lack of toys has made her ingenious at creating play things, mostly animals, that she names and then plays with for hours. Her first one “Scruffles”, a dog, was made out of paper and his head was stuck to his body with a toothpick. Scruffles
Mousey
Phoebe showing off her new friend and Phoebe parted ways when he was left on the bus in the Cameron Highlands. I told her he was going to have a lovely time continuing his holiday on the bus, but that didn't stop her getting rather upset about it though! Currently we are living with 'Mousey', a cut up water bottle with paper legs, eyes and ears attached. We bought Phoebe a school book before we left and it's been really great for her, right at her level and interesting too. So much so, that sometimes we wake up in the morning to find that she's done a few pages already, or that she'd rather do school work than read a bedtime story! As for friends, well she's found them in her home made toys!
Khmer music has already provided some moments of hilarity. It seems the most popular thing to do is take a western pop song and 'khmer-ify' it, interspersing Khmer words with English such as “I miss you well love”, and “you are for meeeee always” etc. The type of phrases that kiiind of make sense but don't really. It's like they thought splicing a few English words commonly found in love songs
Flag Spotting
Phoebe pointing out the different flags along the river. She's putting me to shame! would make sense. Also hugely popular are Backstreet Boys! A few times we've walked into a shop only to find that 'Best of the Backstreet Boys' is playing. It's great, as I can sing all the lyrics to Nick and Phoebe and it makes them very angry.
“You are my fire
The one desire
Believe when I say
I want it that way
But we are two worlds apart
Can't reach to your heart
When you say
That I want it that way.”
Actually, come to think of it, perhaps Back Street Boys used the same 'splicing words commonly found in love songs' formula! No wonder they're so popular here 😊
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janet
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great blog
For the record I read all your blogs and love them!!!