Day 13
Travel Location: Phnom-Penh,Cambodia
Oops – should be day 14. Can’t seem to figure out how I change this heading once I have inserted it…….
Another relaxing day hanging around our courtyard, our kids playing with the local kids and Tim and I resting and reading. Really, Sunday is not much different to any other day in Phnom Penh except that there is a absence of little children dressed in their white tops and blue shorts or skirts coming and going to and from school.
It is also wedding season here in Cambodia and from those of you who don’t know, weddings in Cambodia, continue for 3 days, with constant Khmer music playing LOUDLY for the whole 3 days (and nights). So far we have been spared from this cultural experience, but I fear, as it is the season, our turn is just around the corner.
Have discovered some community gossip about the area we are staying in. Apparently we are staying at the guest house of the chief of the village and they had a meeting here last night. When we asked what it was about, we found out that there is a security problem within the village and the chief is trying to get the authorities to officially provide adequate security to reduce the gangs and drug issues in the area. We, of course, are not witness to any of this as we are tucked up in our beds by about 9pm and I believe the place starts to buzz around 10-11 pm. Hence, lot of the tourists don’t begin to rise until about midday.
This village is built surrounding the Boeung Kak lake and has been the main tourist hub for years, raking in a heap of money. The government, who it appears, are missing out on the revenue, have decided to fill the lake in, relocate the village, and sell the land to foreign developers. All I can say is it will be such a shame to fill the lake in (you can see they have already commenced). According to the locals, they have already done this to 3 other lakes in the area and all in the name of development!!!! So rumour has it hat in 5 years this will be so totally different it will be unrecognisable.
