Cambodia
it's been only three nights, but already taher and i really like siem reap- this little city in cambodia where we are.
i have to say, it's the people that make all the difference. sure, head out near Angkor Wat and there is no end of people waiting to pounce like vultures upon any tourist in their path, but that is to be expected. we have just found that there are smiles upon everyone's faces. they seem happy to have us here (for reasons other than the money we bring in)- they are just pleasant, in general. most of the people we have interacted with have been sweet or grinning or incredibly polite.
it's such a change from the dour faces on everyone pulled in ho chi minh. there, it was as though the War was still hanging in the air for everyone to capitalise on- the tourists wanted to see the War sites and the vendors were able to take them there. at times it felt like the culture of the place took a back seat to the tourism. and that was extremely frustrating for us.
the thing is, cambodia hasn't had the prettiest history ever- everyone has heard the term "the killing fields" even if they don't exactly know what it means. but unlike in ho chi minh, i don't feel like i am unwanted here. it's more of a "come, come, see Angkor Wat, sure, spend a few bucks, but also let's be nice to one another and grin a lot and show all our teeth" kind of aura around here. it's all so lighthearted. right now, outside the internet cafe, some guy is sitting on the sidewalk and playing a flute, and i keep hearing people clapping along as they walk by- like it's a block party. and just now, as i wrote that, i heard one guy honk his horn in tune with the beat! it's true.
we went to see the sunrise at one of the farther temples, and on the way we passed out of the touristy section of siem reap and actually got into the residential areas. it was not what i was expecting. although money is slowly pouring in and the economy is beginning to change, the lifestyle seems a bit more static. the houses are all lined up along the road, one next to the other, but if you look at each individual house, it is a village scene. siem reap is a city, not a village. and yet here are these neighborhoods where people don't seem to really have noticed that they live in a city. chickens and naked children are running about amidst yellowed, faded clothing hung up to dry, and the smell of a pet shop is thick in the air. people are sitting around stirring things in pots in their front yards. some men are beating the grass with sticks and chatting. it is all that a village should be.
who knows, in ten years the chickens may be fenced in, the children may be clothed, the pots may be moved to the kitchens. but for now, siem reap seems all right to me.
(i haven't even mentioned our days wandering around Angkor- that will require a separate post, though, so please stay tuned. we leave for bangkok in the morning and i will blog once we get there. i miss bangkok!)
it's been only three nights, but already taher and i really like siem reap- this little city in cambodia where we are.
i have to say, it's the people that make all the difference. sure, head out near Angkor Wat and there is no end of people waiting to pounce like vultures upon any tourist in their path, but that is to be expected. we have just found that there are smiles upon everyone's faces. they seem happy to have us here (for reasons other than the money we bring in)- they are just pleasant, in general. most of the people we have interacted with have been sweet or grinning or incredibly polite.
it's such a change from the dour faces on everyone pulled in ho chi minh. there, it was as though the War was still hanging in the air for everyone to capitalise on- the tourists wanted to see the War sites and the vendors were able to take them there. at times it felt like the culture of the place took a back seat to the tourism. and that was extremely frustrating for us.
the thing is, cambodia hasn't had the prettiest history ever- everyone has heard the term "the killing fields" even if they don't exactly know what it means. but unlike in ho chi minh, i don't feel like i am unwanted here. it's more of a "come, come, see Angkor Wat, sure, spend a few bucks, but also let's be nice to one another and grin a lot and show all our teeth" kind of aura around here. it's all so lighthearted. right now, outside the internet cafe, some guy is sitting on the sidewalk and playing a flute, and i keep hearing people clapping along as they walk by- like it's a block party. and just now, as i wrote that, i heard one guy honk his horn in tune with the beat! it's true.
we went to see the sunrise at one of the farther temples, and on the way we passed out of the touristy section of siem reap and actually got into the residential areas. it was not what i was expecting. although money is slowly pouring in and the economy is beginning to change, the lifestyle seems a bit more static. the houses are all lined up along the road, one next to the other, but if you look at each individual house, it is a village scene. siem reap is a city, not a village. and yet here are these neighborhoods where people don't seem to really have noticed that they live in a city. chickens and naked children are running about amidst yellowed, faded clothing hung up to dry, and the smell of a pet shop is thick in the air. people are sitting around stirring things in pots in their front yards. some men are beating the grass with sticks and chatting. it is all that a village should be.
who knows, in ten years the chickens may be fenced in, the children may be clothed, the pots may be moved to the kitchens. but for now, siem reap seems all right to me.
(i haven't even mentioned our days wandering around Angkor- that will require a separate post, though, so please stay tuned. we leave for bangkok in the morning and i will blog once we get there. i miss bangkok!)
...Natural is the static
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