First impressions of Cambodia and Phnom Penh

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Well I have been in Phnom Penh for almost two weeks now and how different it all has been. I must admit I am struggling with this heat 36 degrees plus, although I might get comments about that, as I know there has been snow back at home recently! Apart from this intense heat I am missing my friends, my life and activities in London and especially my two girls but guess it will take a while to settle and get used to this rather different way of life.

Phnom Penh itself is a very noisy and dusty city full of cars, bikes, mopeds and tuk tuks and crossing the road you take your life in your hands! As I sit in a tuk tuk, complete with a mask over my face, a recent purchase because the pollution is dreadful, I am amazed at the volume of traffic and the number of individuals piled on to these small mopeds - mum, dad and as many as three to four kids and sometimes a baby in arms! Actually it is very difficult to walk anywhere in Phnom Penh easily due to this volume of traffic, lack of pavements and not to mention the heat!

It is taking a while to settle into my placement as spending hours inactively sitting in front of a computer screen is not what I have been used to throughout my teaching career. So far I have spent time editing some English documents and am currently writing up a report of a forum about gender based violence that I went to last week. I sat in a large room with a laptop in front of me and headphones on, listening to the English translation of the whole proceedings and then had to type it all up. The tables, notepads, glasses of water, the forum of speakers, the format of the meeting and the projector and screen, prepared for the inevitable PowerPoint presentation, in many respects ressembled an OFSTED training or a similar workshop on a curriculum aspect. I am sure the teachers amongst you will all recognise this as a familiar scenario! However there was one big difference - the singing of the Cambodian national anthem at the beginning and the end, for which I got rather a stern look from one of the attendees as I was rather slow getting to my feet!

I have begun to do a little sightseeing in Phnom Penh over this last weekend. I went to the Royal Palace, which although a very impressive complex, complete with 5000 silver tiles on the floor of the Silver Pagoda, (most of which were covered), there weren't a great many of the buildings that one could actually visit. I went to an outdoor drama/music performance put on by a Cambodian arts organisation, which told the story of the Passage of Life from birth to death, which was very spectaculor. I have also ventured a bit further to a small island in the Mekong river, named Koh Dach, which is very rural and known for it's silk weavers, who live there. Straightaway getting off the ferry you are approached by a few women, who want to show you how they weave the fabric in their homes and obviously hope that you will purchase something. I did have a go at spinning some thread on a wheel made out of old bicycle parts and I will upload a photo of me doing this, along with selection of other photos I have taken. Don't worry I am not going to bore you all with too many!

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Photos

The Independence Monument
This was built to commemorate Cambodia's independence from France in 1953.

The Independence Monument at night
I stood for quite a time looking at the volume of traffic during the 'rush hour.'

Koh Dach island
The home of the silk weavers in very rural Cambodia.

Comments

[Maur]

Great pics!!
Hiya Jul, I've sent a private message too but am loving the photos. The traffic and chaos reminds me of Kathmandu. I remember the tuk tuks there very well and how you take your life in your hands when you go out. I remember the bus I came back on from my Himalaya climb knocked a cyclist off his bike as we arrived in Kathmandu and then the next day, the tuk tuk I was riding in crashed into a taxi. Anyway, you deserve your little happy hour treats!! Enjoy! Have one lined up for me when I come out! Maur xx

[Carol]

Temperature
As you say don't comment too much about the heat...it's still abnormally cold here and forecast to last for another 2 weeks! I hope you are getting used to the different life and routine, the trips sound fun. Angkor Wat is an amazing place, that's something to look forward to seeing. Keep the piña coladas flowing!