Phnom Pehn is not too big, but it is quite populated (although not as crowded as I had thought it would be) and people live shoulder to shoulder. There are still vestiges of the Khmer Rouge here and there. RM pointed out a building to me this morning...it was a large white (used to be white...now is a very dappled grey and trash) apartment building that was home to many artists until the KR emptied the entire city in the mid-70's as part of their entry into communism. Most of the artists, teachers, doctors, and anyone with any kind of education were marched out and resettled and then eventually killed. This building is now the illegal home to squatters who live there en masse.
Most of the buildings here are just one or two stories. There are some that are three stories but anything over that is truly a tall building. Most buildings open to the street and many on the main streets have shops or market type stalls selling all kinds of things from fruit to sundresses.
Last night on my first tuk-tuk ride we saw many monuments lit up in the dark. A tuk-tuk is basically a carriage attached to a motercycle (a moto here). They can hold 4 people comfortably. RM has a few regular drivers that he uses all the time. We also drove by the river where there is a park and an outdoor free gym. This morning I saw some people using the ellipticals.
There are monks all over the place. You know them by their orange robes. Young men will often choose the monk life and be monks for a few years. They eat once a day and spend much of life in prayer. Being a monk also affords you a free education. I have actually seen very few schools, but we've not seen the whole city, of course. I saw one school this morning called the American Bridge School and University (or something like that). It is so called because it is near a bridge, but I like to think that they teach bridge there. Just kidding. I know they don't.
The one school I saw so far was a muslim school, with small children in bright lime green long tunics and white head coverings. RM says that the muslims are the minority here. I saw a beautiiful green mosque across the street.
From the window on the bus, I've seen many cats, dogs, chickens, and even a few large white cows which the RM says are water oxen. People live with their animals right in the city. We are now leaving the city. There are lots of oxen and big square and rectangle shallow lakes which I guess are for growing rice, but I'm not sure.
More later.
It is just a little later. I see small interactions from the bus.
Two young men having an arm wrestling match in mid air. A woman tossing melons with perfect accuracy so they split in her basket. A young woman bowing to two orange clad monks. Wal-mart babies running from chickens (they are extreme Wal-mart babies in that they have nothing on their bottoms!). A dog taking a leak. A man taking a leak. Moms with their children in front of them on their motos. A man kicking his shoe. They take old bike tires and wrap them in shiny ribbons and sell them as wreaths. It was 81 degrees out this morning. The sky is overcast and it may rain later. Button Cat and I keep smiling at people from the bus. They always smile back. A woman who looks like she could be my grandmother just smiled and nodded twice at me. A man who looks just like a Cambodian version of Elvis drove by on a pink moto. I smile at everything I see. Acres of flooded flat rice lands punctuated with palm trees. Small herds of the white cow-looking creatures. Our bus driver honks his horn about once every 10 minutes, presumable at the traffic...there is not much, but sometimes the road is narrow. There are shrines here and there with tea and what look like very dark bananas or fish...I think they are offerings for people's ancestors. The houses are on stilts and have corregated metal roofs, or terra cotta tiles with stone flames decorating their ridgepoles. Fences are made of lengths of long tree branches. What kind of tree, I wonder? Dirty water is sold in old Pepsi bottles. Lilly pads and beautiful water lilies are prevalent in the shallow ponds. People fish with long poles and often, the steps leading up to their elevated houses have ornately carved wooden sides. The cows are oftentimes thin and you can count their ribs. The windows have shutters and are painted bright colors. Blues and greens. Some houses have woven sides of palm fronds. Woman carry their loads on their heads. I have seen roped off areas of ponds where people are raising ducks. I've seen several schools as we've driven through the towns with schoolyards teaming with children in navy skirts or pants and white shirts...all ages playing together. Here is a place where you can buy the staircase sides to spruce up your house. They are all laid out in neat rows. Someone on the bus is listening to Miley Cyrus "Party in the USA." We hit potholes that rattle the whole bus. Children ride bikes with straight backs like they know their little brothers and sisters are watching to see the proper form. Another naked baby. Beautiful temples appear with their golden gates and elaborate pagodas. Someone used a rug stretched sideways to make a fence. Our road was elevated above the level of the ground, but now we are even with the landscape. Ducks are splashing and carrying on. They don't know they will one day be dinner. Someone is buring a lot of trash. Tires and tarps are everywhere. RM is reading his book and wants to be finished by the time we stop for lunch. That woman is straightening her skirt and patting her hair like she is getting ready to see someone she loves. A young woman sits in a wheelchair. Her face has been badly burned. Everyone smiles for Button Cat. People sweep their yards with fan shaped brooms. Gasoline is sold out of barrels with pumps o the top that have glass cylinders where you can see the gas. Hammocks are popular and are made out of whatever's handy. Boys try to fly a tiny kite with insanely long tails stretching far on each side. A woman with long teeth smiles back at me.
Greg has been keeping a blog for his whole time here. You can see lots of his pictures here:
www.cambodianbem.wordpress.com
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