Hotel Bingo
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
April 22, 2009
We were able to watch the Ellen Show today on TV, Portia was on the show. It is strange that we are getting more American TV in Cambodia than we have anywhere else.
The shower in our bathroom was interesting. The head is positioned just outside the tub and will not stay put. You have to set the shower head down on the floor of the tub while you lather. It is incredible how many poorly designed bathrooms we have seen on this trip.
We had a mediocre breakfast at the Riverstreet Cambodian Club. I had fried eggs, baguette, bacon and grilled tomato with tea. Bill had a banana pancake (made from a mix). We sat on the outside of the restaurant in wicker chairs around a round wicker table with a glass top Russian Market in PP. I can see the river beyond the mounds of dirt (they are doing a lot of construction to build a park on the riverfront).
We have said, "no thanks" to at least 10 tuk tuk drivers during the 2 block walk to breakfast. There is definitely no shortage of drivers here.
Savot, our tuk tuk driver, picked us up at 10 and brought us to Blue Lime where we are going to stay tonight. Bill was sad when they asked if we wanted breakfast, it would have been better here for sure.
Savot helped us to find a place to do laundry, it is the most expensive and longest place to date. It is going to cost us $8 and will not be ready until after 5 tomorrow. That means we need to do some shopping.
At the Vietnamese Embassy we gave our passports to a police office in a both outside the Embassy and paid $90 USD. I hope to God that we get them back!
We then went to the Russian Market that has everything - food stalls, fruit, veggies, meat, beans and lentils, automotive parts, souvenirs, jewellery, art, fabric, clothes, Typical PP Street Scene... It was very hot in the market, not much of a breeze and very few fans. We bought 2 silk shirts from one lady for $13, 4 t-shirts (3 for Bill) for $9 from another lady, I finally found small hoops for $3, and toys for the orphan children 5/$2.
We went to Nyemo for lunch. Nyemo provides 800 vulnerable women each year with the opportunity to regain their dignity. These women are abandoned by family or husbands, abused, trafficked or have HIV/AIDS. They have a drop-in centre and work with the women to reintegrate them into society and the workforce. They learn cooking, cleaning, sewing and traditional silk weaving since 1998.
I had the 3 course meal for $6 with warm egg and tomato salad, fish with grilled tomato provencal and ice cream. Bill had the chicken satay with rice and ice cream. We had Coke, Coke Light and Tiger Beer. I also purchased a folder made by one of the women for $6, that Bill suggested I use for interviews PP Museum. I guess he expects me to find a job when we return...
Back at the hotel while checking the internet we discovered that today is going to cost us a lot of money. Ally has a kidney infection and is at the clinic getting hydrated. We also learned that we paid $15/ea too much for our Vietnamese Visas, but on the one hand, it should really take us at least 2 days, as we learned in Vientiane, but we are getting them back today at 5:00. I am sure that the police officer and our tuk tuk driver are getting (and others?) are getting some extra spending money today from us.
We walked to the National Museum of Cambodia located next to the Royal Palace. It was built between 1917 and 1920 by French colonial authorities in Khmer style. It houses over 2,000 collections of work from all over Cambodia. We hired a guide to give us a tour for $5. It was a good thing, because there is no guide book and very little written at the displays. The museum in Siem Reap did a better job of providing more information.
The guide explained that the pre-Angkor period was heavily influence by Indian style - slender, flowing, delicate bodies that required additional structure for support. The clothing was simple - loin cloth for men and long skirts for women. There was an emphasis on muscular bodies for men and beautiful figures for women. You can also see some Egyptian influence in the headdress - cylindrical style. During the Angkor period the people began to create their own Khmer style. Women and men had more beautiful clothing and less emphasis on the body. The figures were upright with a strong base (legs and feet) and no additional structural support. The faces had smiles, unibrows and full lips; men had moustaches.
There is a lot of Hindu statues in Cambodia due to the Indian influence and earlier practice of Mahayana Buddhism which is very inclusive. For example, one of the displays is a bronze reclining Vishnu with 4 arms (all that remains are part of 2 arms and the head). We saw a really good example of a lintel with a greatly detailed story, some lingas, lions, Nandi (bull), Garuda and Nagas together (mortal enemies, but are shown together to guard temples), Vishnu, Shiva, Brama, Bodhisattvas with tiny Buddhas on them and many Buddhas.
More recent artefacts are wooden objects such as boat toppers and bowls. We also saw some weapons and tools from the 19th century. There was also older clay pots/ceramics - different types of bowls and dishes, bronze tools and household items.
The guide reminded Bill of the "it's real" tour guide in Bangkok, but not as dramatic. He did like to say "it was sexy" a lot though, but it was more funny than creepy. He was sad that Cambodian youth do not appreciate or work for an education, they would rather play video games. He is also sad that some of the rural people have skills that are no longer used in today's society, so they are no longer hard working individuals.
The museum was very hot and I had sweat running down my body and legs. It is all open and does not have air conditioning. The inner courtyard was nice. It had 4 ponds with lilies and fish. THere were lots of trees, flowers and sandstone statues around.
We walked to Cafe Fresco and I ordered lamb souvlaki in a pita pocket with greek salad - tomato, olive, feta, onion, lettuce and tzatziki dressing. It was expensive ($5), but a large portion. I also had a sugar-free lemon mint iced tea. Bill had a strawberry shake.
Back at the hotel I took a dip in the pool. It has blue and white tiles and is surrounded by trees. On one side there are cabanas with low tables, cushions and pillows. On the other side there are lounge chairs with cushions and pillows. There are lots of birds in the trees and a nice warm breeze.
I went inside to work on the blog. Bill in the meantime has gone to pick up our passports. We have them and Visas for Vietnam. He also booked cooking lessons for us on Friday at Frizz for $20 each. He also went to Cyclone Hotel nearby and booked us for 2 nights. We are hotel hopping again, just like in Vieng Vang.
After some internetting and swimming we went to Pacharan Tapas and Bodega on the riverfront. Bill read that you get a free tapa (appetizer) with every drink order if you sit at the bar. So we sat at the bar and ordered a jug of sangria amd a big water. The sangria was really good! Our tapas was a spanish omelette (like a small quiche on a slice of baguette with tomato sauce), not bad. We ordered bread with alioli dip, chorizo, prawns with olive oil, garlic and chilli peppers, calamari and a goat cheese salad. It was all very good and we really enjoyed our meal. It was expensive though, $38 USD.
I spent some time catching up on the internet, Bill booked us some rooms for our upcoming stay and now I am going to join him in the room.
