Recapturing the vibe

Current Location: Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Recapturing the Vibe. Hilltop Hoods wrote a song about it. Or titled the tune with that name anyway. I wonder if they felt that they succeeded. You know, it’s virtually impossible to really recapture an exact feeling, emotion or experience once it has passed. I don’t think I realised that before now, before my attempt to recapture my initial Cambodian experience. I hadn’t actively thought about it anyway. How many factors do you think need to remain the same, exactly the same, in order to make it happen? Some might say hundreds, thousands, or all of them, however many there are. I say not really that many but there are always a couple of key ones. In my instance they were just me…and Cambodia. Two teeny tiny little factors. Ahhh….yep.

So have I recaptured it, that original vibe that drew me back here after four years? Of course not. Both Cambodia and I have changed a lot since our first meeting. My initial visit here was my first glimpse of life in a third world country and such extreme levels of poverty. You only get that raw reaction one time. Plus Cambodia has changed a bucket load. Development is the name of the game here my friends, especially in tourist centres (Cambodia saw an increase of 25% in tourism last year and expect the same again this year), so things are just…different. I’ve read that Cambodia was once viewed as the wild west of Asia. It had a taste of that when I was last here. It’s slowly becoming more and more diluted. We can’t be unhappy about though. The fact that there is less poverty here is a good thing. It means that some things, however small they are, are working.

So, I’ve been a bit slack with this blog but that’s been deliberate. I’ve been in Phnom Penh for awhile now and I’m just living a normal every day regular life. I work from 8am – 5pm (with 2 hours for lunch – they all have a snooze and I go read a book) and then I socialise and eat out and have a few a drinks the rest of the time. My life is so similar to home I felt a little foolish writing a blog about it. Plus, I wanted to use the time to sit back and really see Cambodia, see what I thought of its new outfit. Turns out I quite like the new outfit. It’s only dressing after all – the country inside it, which is driven by some of the most amazing people I’ve ever met, is still the same.

Poverty stole your golden shoes, but it didn’t steal your laughter. This is a perfect depiction of the Cambodian people (thanks Jewel for the lyric). They have such beautiful big smiles and are always happy, always. They see the positive in every situation and rarely ever complain. They just do what they can do to get by and make baby steps towards something better. This is a nation of people that just get on with it and god I admire them for it. I really do. You know, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Khmer with a small smile. I’ve looked I assure you. I spent one day on the way to work looking at every Khmer person possible and they were all smiling their heads off and their grins were just huge. It’s a pretty special sight to see.

Here are some quick facts just so you get the picture of what it is like over here. Although the Khmer Rouge regime ended in 1978 it wasn’t the end of war for Cambodia. The Vietnamese forces came in and occupied for around 10 years. It was 1992 before a government was sworn in and it was 1999 before Cambodia had its first full year of peace in 30 years. Over 70 % of the population are under the age of 30 as Pol Pot and his friends killed pretty much everyone else. They’ve been busy repopulating the nation since then. The average wage is around $30 per month. I assure you, it’s difficult to live on such a small income here, even for them. 40% of the population live below the poverty line which we all know is not very high anyway. Oh and not to mention that their electricity is about three times the cost of ours. No coal here you see. Anyway, you get the picture.

Ok well that should just about do it for this entry I think. I went for a one week razzle dazzle trip to Malaysia and Borneo a few weeks ago and that was awesome. I really liked KL which will shock those that have been there (everyone says it is just another city and it is) but you have to remember that it had been 4 months since I’d even seen a city when I got there so I was just in awe of the place. Skyscrapers, shopping centres, cleanliness, road rules…woah. I went down to Sepilok and visited some cute furry orang utans. There are some pics and videos here. This video is probably the best if you only want to watch one.

One day I’m going to make it my goal to write a short blog. Bet some of you can’t wait…

…’til next time.