il 2 dicembre
Cambodia's biggest city, Phnom Penh is also its wealthiest and is the cultural, commercial, and political center of the country. Here is a constitutional monarchy, but that doesn't mean that it is without corruption. When a "highly paid" government official who earns $2000 each month owns properties, lives in a mini-mansion, and drives or has a driver behind the wheel of an Audi or Lexus, one cannot help but question the source of that man’s income when thousands of scooters are the main means of local transportation in Phnom Penh and people wear masks so that they can mitigate the polluted air. This is a hectic city; small shops and markets line the streets and congestion is everywhere; well, except for those pockets where those with money build their homes.
There are beautiful historical monuments here and wide boulevards with trees and fancy shops. Like the other major cities I have visited in Southeast Asia, Phnom Penh is a study in contrasts between the rich and the poor with a small "middle class" in between. I drank margaritas in the Elephant Bar of the famous and elegant Raffles Hotel just a little while after a city tour in a tuk-tuk and looking for souvenirs in the central market where the locals go to do their shopping. I like to think of myself as an exploring traveler and not a tourist, but I have to be honest and admit that I enjoy the extras that being a tourist allow me to indulge in.
The Royal Palace Complex
Street Scenes
Slum area (this used to be the French Quarter)
Park near the Sisowath Quay
Upscale development
Building plans for the future
And yes...they were the best margaritas I ever had...which is why I drank two of them.
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