Siem Reap

14th -18th February

Having arrived at Siem Reap bus station at 6pm we took a short tuk-tuk ride into town. We asked the driver to drop us off at Hotel 89 but unfortunately it was full so we stayed at Smilies Guesthouse just down the road. Although the accommodation and restaurant were good unfortunately to the left of the guest house was Siem Reap’s Red Light District! So going out alone at might was a big No No! But as I had two strapping lads next to me I felt pretty safe, oh and then there were Jonny and Elliott…(just joking).

The town itself is the perfect location for exploring Angkor Wat and other surrounding temples. As it stands Siem Reap is a charming town with rural qualities, such as old French shop-houses, tree-lined boulevards and a winding river. However, it has the potential to turn into the Costa del Sol of South East Asia! The gold rush is apparently still unabated and mass tourism has hit this town…so BIG changes are inevitably on the horizon.

However, the time that we spent there was great, plenty of market stall shops, one shopping mall (that had hardly anything in it!) and Pub Street, a road shut off from the traffic where you can get a great meal, watch some traditional Khmer dancing and even get a fish massage! A kind of Khao San road, but not as big.

After a few drinks and a good hearty meal we decided to stop off at a local mini mart for a bottle of water before heading back to the guesthouse. As we approached the shop a young girl grabbed hold of my arm begging me to buy her some powered milk. The town was packed, I turned to Jonny and Elliott and they looked just as bewildered as I did. She followed us into the shop and pointed to the powered milk. It didn’t feel right but on the spot I couldn’t work out whether it was right or wrong. So we bought the little girl a $5 tin of powered milk. When we got back to the hotel, Jonny and I googled ‘powered milk scam’ to see what we could find.

It turns out that the shop are usually in on the deal. A so called ‘desperate mother’ holding her baby begs tourists for powered milk, and the shop increases their prices. It is then sold back to the shop, with apparently little going back to the ‘so called mothers’.

The poverty in Cambodia at times can be overwhelming. If you are not being harassed by children selling crafts, postcards or other nick-nacks, it’s adults selling other goods such as painting, books, scarf’s etc. Then there are the beggars, some genuine, such as mine victims, others perhaps not but who really knows!

All you do know is that you cannot afford to give to everyone so you are perplexed by feelings of helplessness, guilt and exhaustion from continually being harassed, having said that the best form of begging, if you like, are the mine victims that play music. They do not harass you, they simply have a sign that explains that they need your help but would like to keep their dignity, so if you like their music then feel free to donate or buy a CD. I think for all of us the mine victims are the most harrowing, both adults and children who are still suffering the affects and after affects of years of war. Also the mothers lining the streets of Phnom Pehn, sleeping on the streets with their children begging for your help.

There are so many NGOs in this country I lost count. Aid is reaching this country but begging is still a lucrative way of earning money, particularly when teachers for example are on less than $2 a day! So I can’t really see an ending to the begging in the near future, unless the government is prepared to do something about it, which is highly unlikely.

If you have managed to cope with the poverty of Cambodia then you will be highly rewarded by their prize possession, the eighth wonder of the world…Angkor Wat!