Texting monks: just another normal day in Cambodia

Cambodians are probably the friendliest people I have ever met. Add my love for monks into the mix, and the following is one of my coolest stories of my time here! 🙂

One of my friends left Siem Reap early to head back to Phnom Penh. She ends up sitting next to a monk for the duration of the 7 hour bus ride. She mentions to said monk that she has a friend who really likes monks. What does he do? He uses her phone to send me a text message! Best thing ever.

A little hello from Seng, the texting monk.

Stay hapy? I will!

Splish splash… A floating village, a jungle waterfall and Tonle Sap

Aside from Angkor Wat, Siem Reap has many worthwhile day trips to offer. And as I’m only here once…I of course went for it!

Our first trip was arguably the best: a 1 hour car ride then a 45 minute boat trip takes you to the other-worldly Kompong Pluk village, which is entirely built on stilts and so appears to “float”. Want to visit your neighbour? You’re gonna have to row there. Going to school? Take the school boat.

It being the wet season at the moment, water levels were particularly high, which meant we also got to go on indigenous boats through the flooded mangrove forest, bonus! Our day ended on Tonle Sap, a simply ginormous lake where we watched the sun set. It was beautiful, but we had to occasionally dodge some waterbombs thrown at us by locals from passing boats. Don’t worry, it’s all part of the crazy Pchum Ben festivities taking place throughout Cambodia this week.

A further trip took us roughly 2 hours away from Siem Reap to the holy mountain of Phnom Kulen, where legend has it the Khmer empire came into existence. After a VERY bumpy roadtrip (which Cambodians dub as “getting a road massage”) we arrived at the top and visited the riverbed of 1000 Lingas (basically, the Khmer word for penis. It’s apparently a very holy symbol here), a sleeping Buddha and the magnificent waterfall which we used to cool off in. But of course Khmer style, where everyone goes in fully clothed!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

The big one: Angkor Wat!

After 6 weeks of living in Cambodia, we finally made it to Siem Reap which of course means one, major thing: the world heritage site of Angkor Wat, the largest religious site in the world.

I spent 2 separate days exploring the massive site, but you would need at least a week to be able to visit all the temples. We had a Tuk Tuk driver for the first day to get our bearings, and on the second day we cycled. The bicycles were pretty creaky and the sun was intense, but cycling meant that we really felt like we earnt every temple we reached 😀

The temples at Angkor are simply mindblowing, and watching the sun set on these magnificent buildings has been a highlight of my trip so far.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Welcome to the jungle

I am not usually a nature lover, but even I was captivated by Singapore’s Botanic Garden, which also contains a jungle and the world famous Orchard Garden. I also spent some time at Gardens by the Bay, a futuristic greenhouse on a massive scale. I am talking waterfalls, inside trees and approximately the size of two football pitches.

Here are a few of my fave exotic plants!

Taking a step back into Cambodia’s past

For those who are not familiar with history: the Khmer Rouge, a brutal left wing party, took power in Cambodia in the 1970s and subsequently imposed a brutal regime during which a quarter of the population were murdered, or starved to death. The Khmer Rouge was opposed to any modern progress, and tried to revert the entire country back to a farming community. This meant that any intellectuals, so doctors, teachers, engineers etc. were killed or forced into backbreaking communal farm work.

The two main places dedicated to keeping the memory of this terrible time alive is the S21 Genocide Museum, a former prison where many people were held and executed, and the Killing Fields, just a short drive outside Phnom Penh.

While the S21 was a chilling experience, the Killing Fields were much more informative. The field is devoid of any buildings as they were torn down shortly after. Masses of people were executed in the field, and still today their bones and disintegrating clothes come to the surface during rainy season, which is why there are signs along the paths that say” Don’t step on bone” as you literally have to watch your step. A very moving visit, and although very chilling I feel it is a must when visiting Cambodia.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Feeling like a Tomb Raider…at Phnom Chisor!

Our guru of a tuk tuk driver, Mr. C (yes, that’s the name he likes to go by, even though his real name contains not a single letter C) told us about these 11th Century Temples that are located on the top of a small mountain in Takeo province, around 1 hours drive from Phnom Penh.

Climbing the 400 steps to reach the summit was intense in 39 degree heat, and you can imagine the amused looks we got from the locals as a group of 10 sweat drenched white people dragged themselves upwards. They even took photos of us!

But the climb was well worth it: stunning views of rice paddies and the sacred Tonle Om lake. Then the magnificent ruins of Phnom Chisor, which pre-date Angkor Wat. And as we were the only visitors apart from the monks living in the new pagoda next door, we were free to wander and had the temples all to ourselves. Thanks Mr. C!

And yes, I am still sunburn-free 36 days into my trip wohoo!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

I spy – a shadow puppet performance!

The Sovanna Phum Arts Association in Phnom Penh keeps the traditional Khmer shadow puppet show tradition alive, so of course we couldn’t miss out on the chance to watch one of their shows!

Even though I couldn’t really follow the story ( I seriously need to improve my Khmer skills…) the intricate patterns of the puppets as well as the acrobatic dancers were well worth seeing! The show started with an intro by a small band consisting of traditional folk instruments. Then, a troupe of dancers imitating monkeys (yes, I know, I got lucky!) did some impressive dancing with acrobatics, which then alternated with the actual shadow puppets.

The gist of the story (or at least how I understood it): a bad guy steals a pretty lady, battles with the good guy who then ends up with her. So basically, the Cambodian version of Hollywood.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Monks, monks, monks and the festival of the Dead P’chum Ben

I have become an ardent fan of Buddhist monks here in Cambodia! They are everywhere, either walking or hitchin’ a ride on the back of a moped, as you do. Their bright orange robes and shaved heads make them instantly recognisable, and I love spotting them on my daily commute to work. Particular faves so far have been rebel monk, who I caught smoking, tech monk, who was taking endless selfies with his Iphone at the museum, and animal lover monk, who was carrying an adorable puppy in the palm of his hand 🙂

At the moment, I am lucky enough to witness the 15 day religious festival P’chum Ben, which honours the Dead. Daily prayers and offerings of food for the monks are the norm, as well as throwing rice at statues of evil spirits. This means they are “fed” and thus return to the spirit world. I spent a day each with my lovely host family and delightful colleagues visiting several pagodas to participate in their ceremonies. I can now say I’ve been blessed by a monk, laid flowers at Buddhas feet , held incense sticks to get good luck, and distributed rice into way too many pots so that all my ancestors have something to eat wherever they are. A wonderful experience which not everyone gets to do, and the days seem to always end in quite a good feast for ourselves too, not just the Dead 😉

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

PPP = Phenomenal Phnom Penh, my new home

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Words fail me when trying to describe Phnom Penh. Maybe it’s because I am actually living here instead of just passing through, but the fact is: I have fallen head over heels for this city! Sure, it’s dirty, absolutely chaotic and just plain mad at times, but its people and their zest for life make Phnom Penh PHENOMENAL, or just simply PPP.

I am living and volunteering here for the next 7 weeks, so I have had the luxury of time to see everything and then some more. This first post will hopefully give you some first impressions of all sides of this city, from stunning palaces to high rises and the neighbourhoods where daily life takes place.

Back to the future…in Singapore!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Tiny Singapore deals out a massive wow factor!.Endless highrises next to old colonial buildings and temples makes it an awe inspiring sight. Here are a few picks of my favourite buildings in beautiful (and freakishly clean) Singapore.