Weekend/Holiday

When I returned after work on Friday Sorya at the hotel front desk asked if I was now on holiday. Aftern explaining this was my weekend off, she acknowledged that yes I was on holiday. Most employees work six days per week.

Since food is such an important part of our experience, please excuse the incessant documentation, but it does take up much of our free time. 

Pop top beer bottle on the most common and cheapest brew, tastes fine, usually served with a glass with ice. No ice by special request.

This restaurant served Thai and Khmer food. I opted for the Tom Yum soup, delicious, familiar, and loaded with shrimp, mushrooms, ginger, lemongrass, and leaves (curry or lime I'm not sure). Margie got a coconut soup with chicken. Not sweet and also wonderful. Overloaded with chicken, too much for her, but a cultural staple. Mixed vegetables with cashew nuts, and rice complemented the meal.

The money bag dumplings appetizer came half way through the meal, filled with ground pork and a spicy thick dipping sauce, maybe palm sugar syrup. More than enough food for $13 for the two of us.

So far the only picture I "paid" for. She came around to the tables selling candy. I bargained for gum including a picture, 25 cents. She seemed used to this gambit, and as soon as I took out my camera struck a practiced pose of ingratiating poise.

Walking home following dinner is the Chabad Center, just a few blocks from our hotel. Whether the nearby deli represents a cluster of Jewish diaspora I don't know, nor was it clear what foods they offered. Will have to check it out when they are open.

One of the resident doctors I work with offered to give us a tour of the city. He borrowed his parent's Toyota Camry, a real treat, as we were expecting him to come on his motorbike, and a subsequent tuk tuk ride. He is 25 years old and lives at home with his wife,  two sibs, his brother, a 21 year old medical student, and his sister who is 13, and likes KFC too much, thinking it is fine to eat there every day. The neighbors think the parents are derelict, despite their admonitions that this is not a good diet. Western culture creep.

After circling we found street "parking". This is usually in front of another vehicle, and cars will have placards they carry, here displayed in the rear window, giving the owner's telephone number, so they can be called to move their car if needed. I had to remind him that he left his phone in the car. He was sufficiently concerned with the space he found that he returned shortly to move it. Sometimes cars get towed, although I have never seen a tow truck.

School on Saturday

Vipol my host on the far right next to his wife. I didn't know of his marital status until he casually mentioned it. She lives with him at home too. She is also a doctor, now doing an internship, and they met at medical school. They married after 6 years of his meeting her. It is considered improper to have a long term relationship without marriage. Here the family was on a recent vacation to Siem Reap. His sister is on the left next to his mother and father, both nurses, and his brother. His maternal grandparents are living in the United States in Long Beach. He has and uncle who lives near Seattle and there are cousins there. Visas to the U.S. are now hard to get, as our government is wary of those coming to stay for the obvious reasons.

Craving home food we came across a pizzeria which opened last October. Skeptical but curious we made the venture, and were rewarded with excellent pizza by any standard. The owner, Jay Miller, grew up in Williamsburg, subsequently moving to Long Island. A peripatetic traveler by way of Paris, Barcelona, Greece, Crete, Turkey, Thailand, and undoubtedly others, he now lives here, and opened this restaurant, which serves his signature pizza, hamburgers, and barbecue. He showed a picture of his "baby" which we thought would be one more beautiful Khmer child, ready to be spoiled. Instead, his three tiered pizza oven, from Taiwan is his pride and joy. His pizza has been named one the best in Phnom Penh, and was reviewed by the newspaper, involving a phantom diner who called in the film crew half way through the meal. His establishment has been a great success, and he is already planning to expand the restaurant, and start up a few more locations. Like all successful businesses, he is hands on, has not had a day off in three months, and cooks or supervises everything, from making his own tomato sauce, to his exquisite cheese cake. His plans include bagels and bialies in the future.

Margie and Jay reminiscing about the old days in Brooklyn. He said he would give his eye teeth for sable from Acme fish, if we came again.

Following a delicious meal we returned for a good night's sleep.