Cambodia

Our trip around Cambodia has not been extensive but Phileas has viewed enough not to know how to feel towards it. Or rather, there are many conflicting attitudes which leave a firm conclusion impossible.



The achievements of the Khmers' ancestors at splendid Angkor and the resulting pride afford admiration for the people. Yet the modern day apathy of a ntion towards building a future in the new capital receives no praise.

Cambodia is a country which has stirred many emotions in Phileas. The simple lifestyle encountered in the north, particularly in the stilted village, oozes a sense of love and community which is seldom sampled in the UK. Cliche or not, the phrase "having so little, yet having so much" does now hold so much more meaning. Cambodia is a country that you could hug for its rustic charm. It is a country you could pity for the mutilations inflicted on innocents by landmines, the Khmer Rouge regime and needless disease. It is a country you can be frustrated by due to its inability to care for those very same people. There is irritation at the corruption of police and public servants but also bemusement that they are paid so little and resort to haggling their 'fee'! Phileas was impressed by amiable natures which gave out a smile and bore no grudges against obstructions in the road.

Phnom Penh can seemlike a city run on insanity but what you don't know can't hurt you and its population ride around in peaceful oblivion.



In short, Cambodia is a country which perhaps simply needs educating; not in emotions - it has and gives plenty, but in its sytems. Security guards dressed in military-style uniforms protecting homes and businesses (whether they are open or not) are a sugnal of mistrust. Rollercoaster roads potholed and flooded embody an unreliability. Unearthed electrics, well, they are a great uncertainty!

Maybe Cambodia needs educating in order to reverse these negative impressions and reveal its true persona - one of a nation of shiny, happy people.