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Cambodia Laos Thailand

progress and development

ສະບາຍດີ,“We go to Laos when we miss the past.” This from Pond of Bangkok.In our final night in Bangkok, we decide to attend a ‘cultural evening’ in a purpose-built facility in the middle of this massive city. I approach with a healthy scepticism borne of a remote observation of such functions. They are too often …Read More

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Cambodia

voyeuristic tourism and grinding poverty

សួស្តី from Cambodia, Tonlé Sap is the largest lake in South-East Asia and causes a large light blue patch to dominate the map of Cambodia. The torrential rain of the wet season brings so much water, the area covered by the lake ranges from 3000 square kilometres to 12 000 square kilometres. Incredibly, the depth …Read More

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Cambodia

Buddhism and Buddhists

สวัสดี from Bangkok, The journey to Bangkok contained some fun. We got a ride to the Cambodian border with a licensed bandit who mistook the road for a racetrack and the car’s horn for a plaything. The frequent sounding of the horn – to alert oncoming traffic that he was intent on occupying their lane …Read More

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Cambodia

Pol Pot and Hun Sen

សួស្តី Siem Reap is a dormitory for droves of tourists here to see Angkor Wat. We are surprised to find that, although the local currency is the riel, all the prices are advertised in American dollars. It seems it has been that way since 1993 when the United Nations presence ended here (Who said UN …Read More