Welcome to Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia.
This place is quite big.
Yes!
What do you call it?
Central Market in Khmer, they call it 'Psar Tom Thmei'.
'Psar Tom Thmei', in local language, is Central Market.
It looks very old.
Yes. It used to be largest in Asia.
It used to be largest in Asia?
Yeah.
A-ha. How old is the place?
It's 1937.
1937.
Yes.
Oh. OK.
In this Central Market, can we bargain?...Ask them for a discount.
Yeah, we can.
we don't have to buy exact price?
Yeah.
So, if they say '100', how much can we bargain?
Discount to 10%...5%...depends on the price.
OK. 10%
How to say (give me a discount) in local language?
Chouhtamlei.
Yeah.
means?
Chouhtamlei....Can you give me a discount?
Chouhtamlei. OK. (laugh).
So, 'Toul Tom Poung' Market..is it popular for locals or for international travellers?
Ah. Popular for foreigners.
For foreigners.
They come here to buy what?
Buy clothes. There's everything in here.
In here? Like fashion items?
Yes. Fashion items.
From shirts, T-shirts...
The whole thing.
Everything.
And today, we got a chance to do a little bit of adventurous activity.
A-ha.
And Meta, my friend, took me here. (laugh).
Thank you so much. It's quite a new experience for me.
Actually, we can rent a bike from any shops, right?
Yes.
But the shop we rent is near the Royal Palace. Then, we bike a bit to the Ferry Terminal, which is...
near Koh Pich (Diamond island).
And then, we arrive here. What is it called?
Mekong Island or in Cambodia...in Phnom Penh, some people they call 'Arey Sath'.
Ah..Arey Sath.
What do you feel?
Ah...a little tired.
The weather is hot and humid. But I think it's quite an experience to come here.
to experience the local culture, to see the local people. How they live here.
Just very near the new part of the capital, but it's just like you're far away.
Yeah. And also, they have farms.
For local people, they do some farming and produce some fruits.
I saw bananas, mangos, corns, and local fruits like a little cherry.
Alright, then we're going back by?
Ferry. And then, we go to the city.
OK.
Wow! Arts Scene here in Phnom Penh.
Thank you so much for bringing me here.
I never knew before there's such a place in Phnom Penh.
So, you always take your friends to see Arts?
Yeah. Actually, this is one of my favourite Arts Spaces, 'Salsa Basah Gallery'.
CAST, Contemporary Arts Space Tours, is the highlight of the Arts Space in Phnom Penh.
CAST? C-A-S-T?
Yes. Contemporary Arts Space Tours.
Alright.
So, we bring people to see the Arts Space in Phnom Penh. The main Arts Space.
Like SA SA BASSAC, Meta House, Java Arts, Community Arts Gallery, Institute Francais.
And also Royal University of Fined Arts.
So, we bring people on a tour to see the Art Scene, what's going on.
You can see the exhibition.
What is the name of this place?
SA SA BASSAC.
They have space for the exhibition and also a reading room for people or students who want to research.
Also artists who want to research. So, they can come and sit down and do the research.
And the exhibition today is by a local?
Cambodian woman. A local artist. Her name is Yim Maline.
Right.
I'm here at the National Museum and I'm going to watch a cultural show run by Cambodian Living Arts.
It's a non-Profit organisation.
And I heard there're a lot of cultural performances from different places in Cambodia tonight.
I think the show has a variety into it.
I personally love the 'Coconut Dance'. It's very entertaining.
And 'Apsara Dance' which replicates the movements of Apsara Arts in Angkor Wat in Siem Reap.
And also the movements of birds, like Peacocks and Peahens, I really love it. It's quite unique.
Because, the dancers, they try to imitate how the birds or the peacocks move.
It really shows the artistic perspective of the local people here.
You're seeing me sweating right now because I came here to learn some traditional dance here
at Sovannaphum Theatre.
This place is about 25 years old already.
It's a place where you can come here to not also watch performances but also learn some traditional art.
Like today, I'm here with my coach, my dance coach, Mr. Suphol.
And Mr. Makosol, who is the senior executive of this theatre.
And today, I have learned some traditional dance which is a small monkey dance.
In Cambodian...'Sva Pol'.
So, I just learned about 10-15 minutes and I got sweated a lot already.
because it requires a lot of energy and strength of your muscles to imitate the movements of the monkey.
My coach has learned for 9 years, so he taught me a lot.
So, 'Or Kun Chareon (Thank you very much)'.
I'm now sitting at Sosiwath Quay, a local riverside promenade,
parallel to Sosiwath Boulevard, which is about 3 kilometre long.
And this place is very popular among locals.
They come here in the evening time to enjoy the river breeze because this is the place where 2 rivers meet.
Mekong River and Tonle Sap River, or Bassac River in local language.
The sidewalk is decorated with many national flags.
And there're local food stalls, local shops, restaurants and bars.
So, people really come here to enjoy their nightlife.
From 'Vimean Akareach' or Independence Monument, we just keep walking straight for about 500 metres,
now on the right-hand side, you'll reach Naga World which is a big Casino.
And besides Naga World, there're a lot of new buildings. A lot of new constructions going on by the river.
But not just there, you just have to walk across the bridge just a little,
then you'll reach this new place, new city, new part of Phnom Penh.
where there is this nice walking street by the river that you can witness the Ferry Terminal, the river, and the sunset.
So, it's really nice to come here during the evening time.
Besides, there are many local restaurants...kind of a place where teenagers come to hang out.
Not far from the Ferry Terminal, this is a new property of Phnom Penh.
This is where you must come to experience the modernity of Phnom Penh, AEON Mall.
Here, you know, it's a Japanese Brand, so the property is very well-managed.
I biked here today.
There is a bike parking space also, separated from normal car parking space and motorcycle's.
And inside, there are a lot of brands, both. Japanese and international
For example, Major Cineplex, Blu-O, Starbucks.
Here, you can bring your friends and families to enjoy the air-conditioners,
the comfortable seats in the restaurants.
And there are also nice local food inside here.
I hope you enjoyed the trip. Stay tuned for the next episode.
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