Tag Archives: Cambodia

On the Road

Help Cambodians BLOOM

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Every few years, somebody in Asia comes up with a new style of purse or pillowcase or clothing item that proves popular with the tourists, and before you know it, copies pop up all over the local markets.
In Shanghai, one of our teachers produced and sold beautiful bags made from Chinese silk. It didn’t take long before copies of those bags were hanging in nearly every silk and souvenir shop in town. Once I was shopping at the underground “knock-off market” with one of her bags tossed over my shoulder, and a vendor actually whipped out a tape measure and recorded the bag’s dimensions before I could stop him.
In Turkey, we often spotted a unique piece of “mavi boncuk” jewelry at a market, and within weeks, the same design could be found everywhere.
In Siem Reap, Cambodia, Megan and I got swept up in the latest trend: recycled fish food/rice bags. We met Diana Saw, a Singaporean woman who started a social enterprise called Bloom three years ago. She buys discarded heavy-duty plastic bags with interesting designs and writing (mostly from Vietnam), and teaches disadvantaged Cambodians how to turn those bags into trendy purses, wallets, backpacks, duffel bags and other products. Her company’s motto is: “Buy something beautiful. Do something beautiful.” I bought a funky green backpack with blue Vietnamese writing and illustrations of sea creatures. Meg bought an expandable purse in blue and white.
Diana said she takes two steps forward and one step back in the effort to create a sustainable business that pays workers a fair wage. “There’s no copyright protection in Cambodia,” she said.
Sure enough, copies of her designs hang in market stalls throughout Siem Reap. In fact, Meg and I guiltily admitted buying a few of the knock-off bags in the market before we knew about Bloom. “I can’t compete with them,” Diana said. “I just wonder how much they pay the women who do the work.”
So, if your journeys take you to Siem Reap, I strongly encourage you to check out Bloom. It’s next to Warehouse Pub in the Old Market Area. Or if you don’t plan to travel there, check out the Bloom Bags website. Be sure to read the “behind the scenes” stories about the workers who create the bags.

These aren’t the greatest photos in the world (the camera’s settings were goofed up), but here are the Bloom Bags we bought in Cambodia.

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On the Road

Indiana Jones Meets Lara Croft – Beng Melea

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Yesterday’s temple tour was fascinating, but I had already visited all those places during my 2007 trip to Cambodia. This morning, I looked forward to seeing something new. Kim San picked us up early for the drive to Beng Melea, a Hindu temple located about 37 miles outside of Siem Reap. It was absolutely worth the drive!

Although Mother Nature called “dibs” on these temples hundreds of years ago, the jungle was hacked back at most locations in the late 19th century to reveal the ruins, giving tourists and historians a detailed glimpse of life in the Khmer Empire.

Archaeologists intentionally left Beng Melea camouflaged by the forest foliage with tree roots wrapping around the hefty sandstone blocks and weaving a tapestry across the temple walls. Trees spread their canopy at the top of the towers, shading the rubble below. Dappled light plays off the lichen and moss, creating a feeling of tranquility despite the crumbling colonnade and signs that warn of landmines.

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Scholars believe Beng Melea was built by King Suryavarman II, the same guy who built Angkor Wat, in the 12th century. They think his parents were buried there. We did see this shattered stone coffin, but researchers have never found any human remains.

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Sitting on the temple’s library, which would have housed religious writings.

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Meg and I paused for a few yoga poses in this setting of mystery. It’s my new favorite Angkor temple!

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On the way back to Siem Reap, we stopped for a snack from a roadside stand – sticky rice with red beans and coconut milk were jammed into a piece of bamboo and grilled. Deee-lish!
Kim San translates – two for a dollar (they use American money here!).
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The girl peels back the bamboo for us.
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That ought to keep the kids busy in the backseat for awhile.
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Here are some more shots from Beng Melea.

On the Road

Temples of Angkor

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The Lonely Planet guidebook tells you to “prepare for divine inspiration!” when you visit the temples of Cambodia’s ancient Khmer empire. Although this was my second visit and the throngs of tourists precluded any semblance of peace, I still felt a sense of awe and reverence faced with nearly 1,000-year-old structures, intricate carvings, soaring towers, massive restoration projects, and the jungle’s unstoppable reclamation.

For my sister Megan, even jetlag and the sizzling heat couldn’t diminish the experience. As always, photos don’t come close to conveying the spirit of the place.

Our guide, Kim San, picked us up at our hotel at 8:30 a.m., and we joined the caravan of tour buses heading to Angkor Thom. First, we clomped around the Buddha-bedazzled temple of Bayon, one of my favorite places in Siem Reap.

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Click on the Sacred Destinations website for some details about Bayon Temple.

Next we visited Ta Phrom, a lesson in humility. An original Khmer inscription at the entrance says nearly 80,000 people worked at the temple in its heyday, including 2,700 officials and 615 dancers. The sprawling Buddhist temple was built to honor the mother of King Jayavarman VII, and at least one room still bears the marks of the opulent gems that once covered the walls. Over the last few hundred years, however, the jungle has crept back and taken over. Thick tree roots crawl along temple walls and worm their way through the stone blocks, slowly toppling the mighty towers. Kim San says Angelina Jolie filmed some parts of “Tomb Raider” here, but neither Megan nor I have seen the movie, so we’ll just have to take his word for it.

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Lunch break. We gobbled up some Cambodian food, including dessert – sweet glutinous balls covered with shredded coconut. Yum!

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Finally, we braved the crowds and blazing sun to visit Angkor Wat, believed to be the largest religious structure in the world.

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For more than you probably ever wanted to know about the temples of Angkor, check out The Angkor Guide.

Our guide, Kim San. Click on his name to visit his website.
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On the Road

Sisters in Cambodia

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My sister Megan arrived late Tuesday, spent one night in Bangkok, and then hit the road running! Wednesday morning we flew to Siem Reap, Cambodia, where we checked in to our hotel, sipped mojitos by the pool, walked around the town, did some shopping in the markets, ate a yummy dinner, got our toes nibbled at Doctor Fish, had a Khmer massage and just started to check out the night market when her jetlag smacked her in the face. Today, we’re off to Angkor Wat!

Meggie by the pool.
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Mmmm … mojitos!
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I posed with my drink …
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… and then knocked the glass over. I guess I could have sucked the mojito out of my pants.
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Dinner at Khmer Kitchen. Fish Amok – yum!
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These little girls were selling bracelets. The taller one asked where we were from, and when we answered, she said, “America. It’s between Canada and Mexico. It has 300 million people. The president is Barack Obama. He has two daughters. One is 11 years old. One is 9 years old.” And so on. Smart little street kid.
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Megan FLIPPED OUT at the fish spa. I’m an old pro (see my Fish Feet post), so I didn’t have any qualms about sticking my tootsies in the pool. But Meg was shrieking!
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Just like cats always want to sit on the laps of people who are allergic to them, these fish were in love with Megan’s feet. She kept screaming and kicking her legs out of the water, but the fish just waited patiently. Even though my tasty toes were in the water, begging for some fish action, they all just stared up at the surface, waiting for Meg’s bunion buffet.
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We had just started to check out this night market when Megan hit the wall. Jetlag-o-rama.
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