AsiaLIFE Cambodia February 2014

022014 ISSUE86

IN THE SHADOWS DRUGS IN CAMBODIA

www.asialifemagazine.com

note from the editor AsiaLIFE Group Group Editor-in-Chief / Director Cambodia: Mark Bibby Jackson mark@asialife.asia

Group Director Sales & Marketing / Director Vietnam: Jonny Edbrooke jonny@asialife.asia

Managing Editor Cambodia: Ellie Dyer ellie@asialife.asia

Director Thailand: Nattamon Limthanachai (Oh) oh@asialife.asia

Associate Editor: Marissa Carruthers

Art Director Cambodia: Joe Slater

Editorial Assistant: Joanna Mayhew

Photographers: Charles Fox & Conor Wall

Editor-at-Large Cambodia: Mai Lynn Miller Nguyen

Sales Director Cambodia: Sorn Chantha chantha@asialife.asia sornchantha@yahoo.com

Siem Reap: Caroline Major

Ellie Dyer Drug addiction is a curse. It wrecks hopes, dreams and futures. It cuts talented lives short and tears families apart, all the while fuelling crime and putting money into the pockets of criminals.

The situation in Cambodia is worrying, with methamphetamine the drug of choice for many users, who take it as a means to escape reality, to help them keep working for longer, or just to experience an extreme high.

As long as drugs exist, people will take them. But I think that those dabbling with highly addictive drugs in Cambodia are playing a particularly dangerous game.

The Kingdom has little to no safety net to support addicts, though a number of NGOs are doing their best to help vulnerable users and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime is also tackling the problem with programmes in Northwestern Cambodia.

In the expat population alone, deaths are far from uncommon. People take drugs without knowing what they are, risking an accidental overdose, while others slip into a cycle of addiction that they can’t escape.

The lucky ones are able to leave the country and attempt to get clean away from temptation, but some are left penniless and alone, with no network of friends and family to rely upon for support.

Ultimately, in a country where there are less stringent rules and few support networks, your fate is somewhat in your own hands. It’s inevitable that people will try drugs, but they should also accept the inevitable risks that come along with it.

However, it’s not all doom and gloom in this issue.

We’ve met plenty of fascinating people who are using their creativity and drive to enrich both society and business. Marissa Carruthers has been interviewing some inspiring women at the forefront of the capital’s vintage scene. Writer Natalie Phillips has also been out and about examining the resources available for the country’s skateboarders – including the man behind an impressive jungle skate bowl in Kep. Meanwhile, Joanna Mayhew has met a midwife, featured in our monthly question and answer piece, who is passionate about bringing a holistic approach to pregnancy and childbirth in Phnom Penh.

4 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Sales and Accounts: Seang Seiha 012 581 455

Distribution: Sorn Chandara 096 9999 351 Printing: Sok Heng Printing House

Accountant: Seang Satya

For advertising enquiries call Chantha on 012 576 878.

Special thanks to: Darren Gall, Dr Claire Uebbing, Paul Dodd, Natalie Phillips, Sebastian Strangio, Anna Clare Spelman, David Preece, Dylan Maddux, Cambodian Living Arts and Cambodia Restaurant Association – for their contribution to this issue.

On the Cover Photography: Conor Wall Art Direction: Joe Slater AsiaLIFE is a registered trademark.

No content may be reproduced in any form without prior authorisation of the owners. © 360º Media.

Next time you're in Vietnam, check out the latest issue of AsiaLIFE or download it from www.asialifemagazine.com

022014 ISSUE86

front

12 Picks of the Month 14 Openings

getaway

40 Land of the Long White Cloud

food

44 Going with the Grain

42 Where the Wild Beaches Are

18 Dispatches 20 Phnom Penh Calendar 22 Photo Essay 26 Q&A: Krist'l D'haene

on the cover

28 In the Shadows

storyboard

34 Vintage is the Best Age 36 Skateboarding Cambodia

47 Brooklyn Pizza + Bistro

style & design

48 Behind the Design

back

55 Listings

38 Learning the Lingo

26 6 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

36

46 Cafe Yejj

50 Fashion: Printed River

90 Phnom Penh Map 98 Pub Quiz

38

50

Feb 2014

Cambodia’s Lost Rock and Roll graced the Chaktomuk Theatre in Phnom Penh on Jan. 11. The new documentary tracks the twists and turns of Cambodian music as it morphed into rock and roll, blossoming in the 1960s and 1970s before nearly being destroyed by the Khmer Rouge regime. Interviews with the few surviving musicians, unearthed archival film of period performances and beautifully wrought original footage were combined for the world’s first in-depth look at a critical cultural moment.

Oscar Contender

Cambodia will be on tenterhooks for the annual Oscars Ceremony on Mar. 2 following the announcement that The Missing Picture, directed by Rithy Panh, is nominated for best foreign language film. Using clay figures to stand in for himself, his family and the many Cambodians whose lives were destroyed during the years that followed the Khmer Rouge revolution, the

8 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

film recreates a dark and bloody period of the country’s history. If you want to watch the ceremony, don black tie and formal gowns and attend a live screening at Riverhouse on Sisowath Quay from 8am on Mar. 3. Door charge $5.

Rock and Roll Celebration

The world premiere of Don’t Think I’ve Forgotten:

Sofitel on Condé Nast Traveller’s Gold List

The prestigious Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra has struck gold after featuring in Conde Nast Traveller’s 2014 Gold List as one of the world’s best places to stay. The list was compiled after more than 80,000 people cast their vote in the survey to select their favourite hotel, based on location, rooms, design, service and gastronomy. Sofitel

scored a staggering 96.6 out of 100 in the survey and not only ranked first in the Kingdom but was also the only hotel in the Cambodian capital to reach the final list, along with sister hotel, Sofitel Angkor Phokeethra in Siem Reap.

Wild Dreams

Get your glad rags on for what promises to be one of the biggest parties to date in the form of WILD. Boasting eight DJs and two dance floors, the Feb. 1 event will breathe new life into the former Riverside Hotel. Spread across two rooms, the night features music from Kimchi Collective, Si C Vent, Dr Wah Wah, Alan Ritchie and Funkelastiks. The crew will be pulling out all of the stops in the entertainment stakes, with three bars, smoke machines, a top sound system and light show, staff dressed up as a host of crazy characters, and a few more surprises along the way. Entry is free from 10pm to 11pm, and $4 from 11pm onwards. including one drink.

Yoga Move

Yoga Phnom Penh is set to move to a new home at 39 Street 21 this month. The new space includes two light and airy yoga rooms, showers and changing facilities, and parking for motorbikes and bicycles.

There is also a small garden area for visitors to relax, have lunch and chat after class.

The move also marks the start of more beginners’ classes, as well as sessions suitable for the more experienced.

For more information, visit yogaphnompenh.com or the organisation’s Facebook page.

Superfast Internet by 2015

Internet in Cambodia is set for a boost – but later than scheduled after Ezecom revealed work on the country’s first submarine Internet cable is behind schedule. CEO Paul Blanche-Horgan said work on the $80 million project is more likely to be finished by the first quarter of 2015 rather than the end of this year. He said the reason is because construction

was pushed back from the planned October 2013 date to March 2014. The project will see a 1,425 km cable connect landing stations in Preah Sihanouk province with Kuantan, the state capital of Pahang in Malaysia, where it will link into the Asia-America Gateway (AAG) – a 20,000 km cable linking Southeast Asia to the United States.

Health Kick

The Ministry of Health has announced that more than 4.5 million children between 9 months and 15 years of age have been vaccinated with the new measles and rubella vaccine during a recent immunisation campaign. According to Minister of Health Mam Bunheng, 4,500 health workers at more than 40,000 vaccination sites administered the jabs.

In addition to the vaccine, 200,000 children were given a polio vaccine and another 1.4 million young children across the country were provided with Vitamin A supplements and deworming tablets.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 9

Feb 2014

Giant Puppets Take To The Streets

Majestically lit-up puppets are set to take to the streets of Siem Reap on Feb. 22 for the eighth annual Giant Puppet Parade, a local community arts project helping disadvantaged youth. Crafted with care during a series of workshops guided by artists from the acclaimed Phare Ponleu Selpak Visual Arts School in Battambang, the puppets incorporate educational, cultural or ecological themes while offering participating children a creative outlet. The climactic evening procession takes on the air of a carnival and draws thousands of spectators.

Brightly coloured puppets

10 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

will weave through downtown Siem Reap starting at the Old Market, before the night culminates with live entertainment outside the Royal Independence Gardens.

Fashion Forward

Madagascar-born, Frenchtrained and Siem Reap-based haute-texture fashion designer Eric Raisina has opened a spacious new couture house in the Charming City complex, on the road to Angkor Wat. Expanding beyond his existing workroom and atelier on the fringes of Siem Reap

and building on the success of his boutique at FCC Hotel, the new high-end shop showcases Raisina’s luxurious handmade items.

Silk clothing and scarves come in a rainbow of flamboyant, vivid colours and softer, muted tones. The fashion house offers a menswear collection for the first time alongside delicate womens' wear.

Weaves of Cambodia

Renowned American weaver and textile specialist Carol Cassidy has opened her first

boutique in Cambodia, offering high-end silk scarves and accessories for the discerning shopper. Cassidy’s social project Weaves of Cambodia commenced in 1997 in Preah Vihear province, employing and training disabled artisans in the intricate art of spinning threads into covetable Khmer-influenced wares. The new boutique is easier to reach, located at the Visitor Centre for Angkor Hospital for Children in central Siem Reap. Her hand-woven exquisite silk textiles also sell in the Guggenheim Museum, New York. Cassidy adds to the growing list of experts helping to revive the traditional handicraft sector in Cambodia.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 11

PICKS OF THE MONTH Read: Atlas of Cambodia

Learn: 12 Years A Slave

Produced by the NGO Save Cambodia’s Wildlife (SCW), the Atlas of Cambodia is a must read for any data enthusiast.

The team has created an impressive volume of maps using publically available information. From chapters on climate to migration and gender, it documents the changing face of the Kingdom in a comprehensive, yet easily digestible, form. The book cost $45 and is available from Monument Books, Friends and the SCW office in Tuol Kork. Maps are also available on the Open Development Cambodia website.

Hotly-tipped as a contender for best movie at the Oscars, 12 Years a Slave is both educational and moving. Based on the 1853 autobiography of American freeman Solomon Northup, the film tells the story of the violinist’s path into slavery after being kidnapped on a business trip. Solomon (played by Chimetel Ejiotor) is forced to change his name and experiences horrific violence while working on the cotton plantations of the South. It’s an unflinching examination of the reality of life in the 19th century slave trade.

Watch: Blackfish As the antithesis of feel-good movie Free Willy, the 2013 documentary Blackfish investigates the ‘killer’ aspect of the magnificent orca, or killer whale. A series of interviews with former trainers builds up a disturbing picture of mammals kept in captivity, particularly a male whale called Tilikum who has been implicated in the deaths of several humans. The fascinating, and at times shocking, film uses original footage to highlight the consequences of keeping the sentient beasts in captivity.

See: Interpretations Self-taught Polish painter Adrianna Snochowska is exhibiting her works at the Insider Gallery in the InterContinental Hotel, Phnom Penh, until Feb. 8. Inspired by the ebb and flow of music, the works are a result of meditation and relaxation.

The oil paintings are also influenced by the sights and sounds of Cambodia, with each image representing a particular scene, as seen by the artist.

12 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Download: Dots This beautifully designed app should come with a warning label — it’s highly addictive. The free game consists of a grid of colourful dots floating on a white screen. Players connect identical dots to make them disappear and garner points, with any square formed wiping the board of that colour. The more dots that disappear, the higher your score. Simple, straightforward and minimalist, it has hooked users all over the world and is the perfect time-waster. To download, visit weplaydots.com.

Taxidermy Unlikely trend hits the streets of London, with classes in stuffing dead animals a sell-out draw.

M R. M A B

Leonardo DiCaprio Star’s award season gets off to a flying start after winning a Golden Globe for his role in The Wolf of Wall Street.

very delicious

Maps A drawing of Kampot Bay produced by sailors on the HMS Saracen in 1857 is donated to Cambodia’s National Archives.

Cristiano Ronaldo Man Utd might be in football free-fall, but former star knocks Messi off his perch to scoop the Ballon d’Or. The Seaside The fun of the sea draws tourists to the coast with Sihanoukville’s foreign visitor numbers up 42 percent for 2013, according to reports.

GOING UP GOING DOWN Fish Beware what lies beneath as piranha-like fish injure more than 70 people at a popular Argentinean beach.

Temperatures Polar vortex blamed for sub-zero conditions around the US that froze Niagara Falls.

SMS OMG! The number of text messages sent in the UK falls by 7 billion in one year as Internet services like WhatsApp take over.

Valerie Trierweiler France’s first lady admitted to hospital after reports of President Francois Hollande’s alleged affair.

Rhinos Activists up in arms after permit to hunt an endangered African black rhino is sold for $350,000 at an auction raising money for conservation.

serious

STREET FOOD in verdant gardens perfumed by night blooming jasmine enjoy our menu at lunch and dinner (with nightly specials)

MR. MAB ...very delicious now open in Kep at

Spring Valley Resort www.mrmab.com

036.6666673

eat@mrmab.com

OPENINGS CLUB CULTURE

CODE RED A new nightclub is exactly what the capital needs to shake up its afterhours scene. And after almost a year of waiting, Eddie Newman’s latest venture has opened its doors in the form of Code Red, which pledges to bring “intelligent clubbing” to Phnom Penh. The deep red cement walls and high ceilings create an urban-industrial feel. A spacious dance-floor, top-notch sound and light systems and a mezzanine mean that Code Red could easily be found in London, New York or San Francisco. Clubbers won’t go thirsty either with a menu made up of classic cocktails ($4.50), glasses of red and white wine ($5), and bottles of beer. Newman’s promise to attract top quality international acts makes Code Red one to watch.

Opposite Naga World, near Koh Pich Bridge, Phnom Penh.

Tel: 017 800 106, codeclubasia.com

SLEEK SHOPPING

TK AVENUE MALL

Branding itself a boutique shopping mall was a smart move for the owners of TK Avenue Mall. The contemporary centre, decorated in smooth shades of grey, boasts a string of big-name brands catering to every desire. Helping to plant Tuol Kork on the capital’s shopping map, the spacious complex also features a children’s play park, greenery and seating. Shops include Adidas, Pedro, SO. Fashion Outlet and Shiseido salon and spa. On the food front, there are plenty of familiar names, including The Pizza Company, Lucky Burger, Snow Yoghurt and Brown coffee shop. A Legend Cinema and fairly large Lucky supermarket are also on site. Manager Philip Tay says the mall represents the future of shopping in Phnom Penh.

Corner of Streets 315 and 516, Tuol Kork, Phnom Penh.

PREENED AND PAMPERED

BEAUTY BUFFET & BEAUTY COTTAGE Phnom Penh’s newest beauty intersection offers an array of Europeaninspired and Thai-manufactured pampering products. The whitewashed décor of Beauty Cottage is complemented by pale pinks and yellows in a mix of Victorian and farmhouse chic. Products include asparagus and broccoli massage cream ($10.28), white tea and horsetail hair tonic ($12.25) and malt and barley body lotion ($11). The adjacent Beauty Buffet is decorated in a chef theme using bright pinks and blacks, with food quotes and bowls of fake fruits. The products are also food-centered, with offerings like avocado body scrub ($8.25). Both sections carry a range of whitening products.

120 EO Sothearos Blvd, corner of Sihanouk Blvd, Phnom Penh.

Open daily from 10am to 8pm.

14 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

COOL CURVES

THE ALLEY BAR

Street 240½ is fast becoming the place to be as another bar opens its doors on the alleyway. Looking deceptively small from the outside, The Alley Bar is in fact long, lengthy and bright. Designed to be a simple but sophisticated space, it blends cool curves with soft tones.

A selection of cocktails, including lemongrass mojitos and lychee martinis (both $5, or half price during the 4pm to 7pm happy hour), whiskys and red, rosé and white wines are on the menu. Food is also served with dishes including buffalo chicken wings ($5), a cold meat platter ($6) and Australian sirloin steak ($19).

Street 240½, Phnom Penh. Tel: 077 694 864.

Open Monday to Saturday from 4pm to midnight.

NEW GROUND

METRO AZURA The masterminds behind popular riverside venues Metro Rahu and Metro Hassakan have expanded their brand by breaking into new territory in Tuol Kork. Metro Azura forms part of the sparkling new TK Avenue Mall. With the same Asian-infused menu as Hassakan and a similar stylish vibe, it boasts 160 seats. An upstairs patio, a lounge and bar area, and a VIP room complement the spacious main dining area. “We have been working on this for a year and a half and we’re really proud,” says manager Vicky Browne. The menu includes Peking duck pancakes ($6.50), tequila black pepper prawns ($7.20), espresso martinis ($6) and passionfruit mai tais ($5.80).

Corner of Street 315 and Street 516, Phnom Penh. Tel: 012 274 060.

Open daily from 9.30am to 11.30pm.

FROM THE HEART

CAMBODIAN CREATIONS

"Fabulously fair wears" is the motto of this new venue, where shopping with a conscience is a top priority. The shop is a partnership between Cambodia Knits and Khmer Creations, providing the social enterprises with a place to showcase and sell their products. Stock includes Coco Khmer products, including coconut oil ($12 for 500ml) and face and body scrub ($6), and Funky Junk’s colourful line of purses, bags and seat cushions made from recycled goods.

Cambodia Knits' products range from cute miniature knitted animals ($3) to colourful elephants ($15), with cotton yarn also sold for $2.

Khmer Creations has a range of bold jewellery with beaded bracelets ($13), earrings and necklaces.

116 Street 113, Phnom Penh. Open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5.30pm and from 10am to 4pm on Saturdays.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 15

FEEL THE CHILL

FROST BAR

There’s a definite chill in Phnom Penh’s air, and it’s not just January’s drop in degrees. All hail Frost, one of the latest bars to enter the night-life scene.

With tables and seating in the form of huge blocks of faux-ice, topped with snug faux-fur rugs, all lit with an electric blue tone, this bar oozes cool. Cocktails (all $5) top the menu, and the selection is tempting. The Cambodiana, a mix of mango and coconut milk with a splash or two of alcohol thrown in, is already a favourite. Then there’s the signature mickado cocktail, made up of lychee liquor, orange juice, vodka and syrups. The intimate bar, which is tucked away on quiet Street 246, also provides the perfect hang-out at the weekend, with DJs playing lounge music in the early evening and deep house later on.

11 Street 246, Phnom Penh. Tel: 011 422 011.

Open daily from 6pm to 1am.

CHEERFUL SERVICE

HAPPY PATCH Service with a smile is high on the menu at Happy Patch. As the name suggests, the café provides a comfortable environment for guests to sip Australian coffee and taste a selection of Singaporean dishes. The interior is kitted out with large wooden benches, cement floors, white stools and a wall decorated with colourful, bold art. Floor to ceiling windows throw light inside and a large section in the back has been cornered off for big parties of people. The menu caters for the breakfast, lunch and dinner crowd, with dishes ranging from noodles with a choice of two toppings ($2.50) to beef rendang ($5.50). Manager Kao Vandy says: “In Cambodia, we want people to try Australian coffee because it’s really nice and smooth.”

176 Street 288, corner of Street 63, Phnom Penh. Tel: 098 654 455.

Open daily from 7am to 9pm.

16 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

DISPATCHES

Travel news from around the region and beyond

More to Splore

Glamping, art trails, live funk, Afro beats, theatre and poetry are the fundamentals of Splore, a three-day, family-friendly festival that takes place along the shores of Tapapakanga Regional Park in New Zealand’s North Island from Feb. 14 to 16. The park consists of ancient Maori settlements, five separate campgrounds and a beach lined in red pohutukawa — an indigenous tree wrapped in coloured yarn for the festival. The beach turns into a veritable circus and everyone dresses in costumes at night to splore (to carouse) in tented parties. Tickets are $255 at splore.net/buy-tickets.

Hong Kong Arts Festival

Giddy up for the Year of the Horse with Asia’s 42nd Hong Kong Arts Festival from Feb. 18 to Mar. 22. Around 140 opera, theatre and contemporary dance performances from 55 ensembles and solo artists are scheduled, including two rarely staged Cantonese operas called The Gilded Fan and Wu Song the Tiger Killer. The festival will also stage 21 new works, such as a Chinese rendition of Romeo and Juliet by the National Theatre of China, and 16 Asian premieres, including four dance shows from New York-based Trisha Brown Dance Company. For more details, visit hk.artsfestival.org.

Light the Night

Sky lanterns are one of the main attractions in the remote hillside township of Pingxi, Taiwan. Lanterns have been released into the night air there since the early 19th century and nowadays culminate in the annual Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival, which is linked to the Taipei Lantern Festival held in Taipei Expo Park. Each rising lantern represents a prayer sent to ancestors for the coming new year, but lanterns have also been used by mountain dwellers as safety signals to their families. The Taipei Lantern Festival also hosts the Yanshuei Beehive Fireworks celebration as part of Taipei’s “little New Year”.

Behold both spectacles from Feb. 14 to 23.

18 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 19

Have an event coming up?

Send information and dates to ellie@asialife.asia

CALENDAR FEB

01

Running until Mar. 5, the Sa Sa Bassac gallery presents Phnom Penh: Rescue Archaeology, The Body and the Lens in the City, a group exhibition that brings together 17 single-channel video works by 10 artists including Anida Yeou Ali, Khvay Samnang, Kim Hak and Leang Seckon.

WILD party at the Riverside Hotel on Sisowath Quay.

Boasting eight DJs and two dance floors, the night will breathe new life into the former hotel with Kimchi Collective, Si C Vent, Dr Wah Wah, Alan Ritchie and Funkelastiks spinning music crossing a range of genres. Entry is free from 10pm to 11pm, and $4 from 11pm onwards including one drink.

FEB

02

Sacred Dancers by Rafael Winer & Sasha Constable shows at the McDermott Gallery, Siem Reap, from 6pm to 7.30pm. This photo series shows images of the sacred dancers performing a traditional religious ceremony in Angkor Wat. Disability Access by So Nut, Chan Men, Tun Channareth, Bros Phearith and Ty Dara at FCC Siem Reap. The photo essay was created by six members of the Jesuit Centre with varying levels of mobility and analyses levels of accessibility at various locations in Siem Reap.

FEB

Grand opening party at La Clef de Sol and cafĂŠ Le Point at 10 Street 208, Phnom Penh, from 3pm to 6pm. The team is looking forward to seeing guests, with snacks and drinks and gifts available. Call 012 394 915 or 089 413 529 for more information.

08

The amazing acoustic picnic runs from 2pm to 6pm in the grounds of Mith Samlanh Centre at 214 Street 13. The day includes acoustic music, food and games, with the focus on fun for all the family. Adult cover charge is $3, children under-12 go free. All proceeds will go toward supporting the Mith Samlanh programmes.

FEB

Sunbodia river cruise with DJs Donabelle, Sequence and Alan Ritchie from 4pm to 10pm. Capacity 60 people, tickets $10 with a free drink. Call 089 491 039 for more details.

FEB

Fire Without Smoke (Khmer with English subtitles) screens at the Bophana Centre at 4pm.The issue of the domestic violence is exemplified by Phak Lov who mistreats his wife. After an incident home while drunk, he ends up in jail. There, he feels remorse and reconsiders his life.

FEB

FEB

14

15 FEB

07

The Recycle Water exhibition launches at the Make Maek Art Space in Battambang from 6pm to 8pm as part of the Our City Festival. This work examines the phenomenon of flooding in Battambang and its effects on people’s livelihoods.

Get your giggle on with PP Punchliners, an open mic comedy night held at Equinox on Street 278, Phnom Penh, at 8pm.

FEB

05 08

Battambang Photography Workshop with Kim Hak running daily, leaving from the Sammaki Gallery.

The workshop encourages participants to explore their views on the city of Battambang through the medium of photography from 9am to 5pm (morning only on Saturday). For reservations email artsviet@gmail.com.

20 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Showbox on Street 330, Phnom Penh, hosts the launch the first hardcore EP to be recorded, pressed and released in Cambodia. A bill of bands will play at the venue from 3pm onwards.

15

FEB

23

Propaganda Film of The Khmer Rouge regime (in Khmer) screens at the Bophana Centre on Street 200 from 4pm, followed by The Pol Pot Mystery (Khmer Version), a documentary produced by Adrian Maben.

22

Four short films directed by young filmmakers; Sam Tola, Seang Virak, Ran Rotha and Phan Chansey during the Filmcamp trip in 2013 screen at the Bophana Centre from 3pm (Khmer with English subtitles).

Cambodia Living Arts celebrates its 15th birthday with a night of music and performances from 6pm at the Plae Pakaa Theatre in the gardens of the National Museum of Phnom Penh.

EVERY MONDAY

Mad Monday at The Empire, 6pm • Yoga at Yoga Phnom Penh.

Sweat and Samadhi at 8am, YogAbs/YogButt at 12.15pm and Beginner's Flow at 5.45pm. See yogaphnompenh.com • Salsa class ($10) at Feel Good Cafe from 8pm to 9pm

EVERY TUESDAY

Swing dancing at Doors with lindy-hop specialist Janice Wilson from 7pm. Classes are $3 or $25 for 10 lessons • Salsa lessons at The Groove on Street 282 from 8pm to 9pm, $5 per person with a party until late • Latino Time at Cabaret on Street 154 at 6.30pm

EVERY WEDNESDAY

Latin Fever at The Latin Quarter • Trivia in the garden at The Willow, $2 entry and 7.30pm start • Acoustic music at Kep’s Sailing Club by guitarist Mr Rya from 6pm to 9pm

EVERY THURSDAY

Open Mic at Paddy Rice Irish Sports Bar • Art House Sessions at 8.30pm at The Flicks Community Movie House. Enjoy the secret treasures of the big screen for $3.50 • Steak Night at The Empire. Weekly special at a big discount • Women’s Night at The Riverhouse • Movie nights on the beach at Kep’s Sailing Club from 7pm • All About Jazz at Cabaret from 7pm, wine and beer happy hour from 5.30pm to 7.30pm • Drop-in bachata class at Feel Good Cafe from 8pm to 9pm

EVERY FRIDAY

Seafood Haven at Korean Grill restaurant, NagaWorld, from 5.30pm to 10pm. $20 per person excluding beer, $30 per person including free flow draft beer. Tel: 023 22 88 22, www.nagaworld.com • Rhymn sessions at Doors from 9.30pm

EVERY SATURDAY

Cine Saturday at the Bophana Center, 64 Street 200, at 4pm • Art classes for children and adults at Romeet Gallery on Street 178, costing $8.50 per session or $65 for 10. Register interest with Sreymao at romeetgallery@gmail.com or by calling 077 55 07 59

EVERY SUNDAY

Escape at the InterContinental hotel’s Regency Café from 11.30am to 3pm. Free-flow wine at $36 plus taxes per person • Morning meditation with Beth Goldring, a zen Buddhist nun teacher, all religions welcome. yogaphnompenh.com • Phnom Penh Hash House Harriers’ run. Meet at 2.15pm at the railway station

EVERY DAY

Yoga classes at Yoga Phnom Penh, close to BKK market. For information visit yogaphnompenh.com or enquire at 012 739 419 • Daily four-hour photography tours with Michael Klinkhamer. Starts at FCC, 363 Sisowath Quay, at 1.30pm. $35 per person (for groups of less than four people add $10pp). Call 060 873 847 or visit klinkphoto.com

EVERY WEEKDAY

High tea at Public House on Street 204½, 3pm to 5.30pm. Scones, finger sandwiches, sweets and tea. $9pp for high tea, $14 with a glass of sparkling wine, $30pp with a bottle, $50 with a bottle of champagne.

Book for a min. of two guests at least one day in advance 017 770 754

EVERY MONDAY TO SATURDAY

Cultural performance at the National Museum at 7pm. Adult tickets are $15, with discounts for advance puchases. For booking and information call 017 998 570 or email events@cambodianlivingarts.org

EVERY WEEKEND

Fishing trips on the Tonle Sap river from 3.30pm to 6.30pm, email fishingboattrip@yahoo.com • Kids Sessions at 2pm at The Flicks Community Movie House. $3.50 for adults, $2 for under 18 • Weekend brunch at Public House on Street 240½, from 10.30am to 2pm. $25 per person including bellinis or bloody Marys, $15 per person if you’re on the wagon. Book in advance: 017 770 754

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 21

PHOTO ESSAY LITTLE STORIES FROM PHNOM PENH Reality can be witty, inventive or mischievous, despite a derelict or tragic background. In these images, photographer Marylise Vigneau has found little stories from the Cambodian capital, which are a play between fondness and irony, grace and kitsch, the inner and the strange.

For more, visit marylisevigneau.com.

22 22 AsiaLIFE AsiaLIFE Cambodia Cambodia

AsiaLIFE AsiaLIFE Cambodia Cambodia 23 23

24 24 AsiaLIFE AsiaLIFE Cambodia Cambodia

AsiaLIFE AsiaLIFE Cambodia Cambodia 25 25

Krist’l D’haene How did your company, Pregnancy, Birth and Beyond, start?

It has come gradually. I had worked here with the Ministry of Health on midwifery education. In 2008, there were not many midwives, and there was a huge need for services towards pregnant and postpartum women. I spotted more and more pregnant women, so I thought, why not [start providing services]? My company started in 2011 as a group of women who could interact with each other. One purpose was teaching, and giving them some sense of exercise and yoga, and also spiritual awareness. Second was sisterhood, which is very important in pregnancy.

What led you to do this work?

Seventeen years ago, I came to Laos to work in a medical school. It was extremely hard but I survived. What I did was just cut off this part of my body, my brain – thinking all the time, planning and Western-style programming. People don’t do that there; they just live. I was very touched by people who live close to the earth.

The places that I had worked [before] were hospitals, and birth was totally de-sacralised.

And I was part of it, because I had not seen anything else. I left the hospital because I just couldn’t take this environment

26 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

anymore. And then I read all the books about the spiritual side of midwifery, and that’s where I feel that I fit in actually.

Did giving birth to your son shape your approach?

I don’t have any good memories. My natural birth experience was taken away from me. The doctor just decided all at once on a caesarean birth. Something there was lacking. I didn’t have a doula – and that is what I want to offer now to women.

A doula is a person who is in between you and this medical establishment. What I felt there was what most women feel here, that the doctor just decides for them. So their power has been taken away. All that I missed, I want to give to women now.

What services do you offer?

Childbirth preparation classes, pre-natal floor yoga, pre-natal water yoga, post-natal yoga with baby yoga, post-natal baby massage and baby swimming.

I like this holistic approach – seeing a woman from the beginning or even before. If they go and see a doctor, it’s antenatal care. Many women these days think the pregnancy is purely medical. Although I am a midwife, I do all the non-medical things – breathing, their alignment, how they experience pregnancy.

Trained midwife Krist’l D’haene offers holistic pregnancy support to expats and locals alike. Writer Joanna Mayhew discovers her views on birth and beyond, with photography by Charles Fox. You also offer conscious conception counselling and yoga. What does this involve?

A woman can come to see me if she wants to conceive. What I’m doing is bringing energy, which I have learned through massage and yoga, to the womb through types of breathing. As women, our creative power is in our sexually reproductive organs. The creative centre is not the head; your mind has to shift. For men, it’s the same. It’s an old concept but we are not aware about it.

been exposed to all of these services. Like Laos, they are very reluctant to [do] all this.

Big organisations are bringing Westernised, medicalised births to this part of the world.

It’s not that I’m against it; it’s just that there is not a good balance yet.

In the West, there is a huge move towards spirituality again. While here you have traditional in the countryside and totally new, Western [in Phnom Penh], but there is nothing like a balance.

What do you hope to achieve?

What I want to do when they come here is open doors for different experiences. That’s why I call it sacred and conscious pregnancy because it’s this one event in a woman’s life that can totally transform her, if she’s guided into it. It’s the same as if you would walk in the Himalayas, you know.

It’s an experience, and you would go with a Sherpa. And this person will carry your bags and show you things. And pregnancy is something like that. My task here as a teacher is just to uplift my students, and give them more than I have, or that I know.

What keeps you passionate?

I feel that I walk along with people through moments in their life, and it’s very enriching. I can share something from my own experience as a mother, as a midwife. I say it’s compassionate care. I love the mum, I love the baby that’s inside, and I love to see them as a whole. And I feel there is a huge lack of this.

I’m only 54. I have another 54 years to go, so I’m only halfway. I have to keep up.

I was reading that the next spiritual centre is shifting to South America, so I have to go there, to dance tango when I’m 80. My mind-set has become very much like people in Laos – basic to the earth.

For more information, visit the Pregnancy, Birth and Beyond in Phnom Penh Facebook page.

Do your services resonate in the Cambodian context?

For Cambodians, this is totally new. There is nothing like this. Khmer people have not

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 27

IN THE SHADOWS DRUGS IN CAMBODIA DRUG USE ACROSS CAMBODIA HAS SKYROCKETED IN THE LAST 15 YEARS. MARISSA CARRUTHERS DISCOVERS ONE MAN'S STORY OF ABUSE, AND MEETS SEVERAL ORGANISATIONS HELPING PEOPLE ESCAPE THE DARK GRIPS OF ADDICTION. PHOTOGRAPHY BY CONOR WALL. “I felt like I could take on the world,” Matthew Tay* says, describing the incredible highs of his two-and-a-half year crystal meth addiction. “I had these amazing feelings that I could never experience when I was sober, and I wanted more.”

But what comes up must come down, and soon the lows began to outweigh the highs. Tay’s life quickly spiralled out of control, his debts mounted, and friends abandoned him. Then there was his health. Flashing a photograph of himself at the peak of his habit, he is barely recognisable – a skeleton compared to how he looks today, one year after beating his addiction.

A BLACK HOLE

Like many, Tay fell into drugs after being introduced to crystal methamphetamine, commonly called ice, by friends. What started as an occasional high rapidly developed into a full-blown addiction, with the expat reaching for his pipe daily during the peak of his 28 28 AsiaLIFE AsiaLIFE Cambodia Cambodia

$1,000-a-week habit.

“I realised after doing it what my mind could create,” says the 36-year-old. “I was able to make money through this new creativity, but then I’d spend it on meth, and soon I found I was always in deficit. I’d make good money and I’d lose even more.”

After a year of seeing some of the “best” days of his life combined with lows akin to being in the gutter, Tay decided to kick the habit. He left Vietnam, where he was first introduced to the drug, and headed to Cambodia. He dreamed of a fresh life away from the drugs that had seen him so desperate for his next hit that at one point he sold his own passport for $50.

Determined to stay clean, he kept himself busy setting up a new home in Phnom Penh, making new friends and finding work. But within two months, he was offered crystal meth in a grotty bar off Riverside.

It didn’t take long for addiction to take hold, and Tay's life was once again spinning out of control.

“It’s not difficult to lose yourself, because Cambodia is often a country where people go to run away. People are either running away from something, or running to something,” he says.

Following a path familiar with many expats who have fallen into the clutches of drug abuse, Tay fell in with an addict crowd. He smoked ice in “scummy drug dens” and luxury penthouse apartments alike, with some acquaintances carrying out robberies and even stealing cash from him to feed their habit.

“Just like birds flock together, drug addicts do the same and that’s what happened, which made the situation worse,” he says, shaking his head in shame while recalling some of the situations that his addiction led him into.

Once, having failed to settle drug debts of $2,500, he found himself with a gun pointed to his head. “These people are ruthless, and in Cambodia it’s easy to just disappear off the radar without anyone noticing.”

AsiaLIFE AsiaLIFE Cambodia Cambodia 29 29

FLOOD GATES OPEN

But Tay‘s story is far from unusual. Each year, expats and locals fall into the black hole that is drug abuse. With Cambodia sitting close to the Golden Triangle of Laos, Myanmar and Thailand – a huge opium-producing area since the 1920s – there is easy access to cheap, high-quality drugs.

Before the Khmer Rouge rule of 1975 to 1979, experts say there was only evidence of small-scale substance abuse, mostly marijuana, made illegal in 1999, and alcohol, with small pockets of opium use. But once the borders re-opened in the 1990s following years of civil war, the floodgates opened.

A culture of solvent sniffing quickly spread among street kids living along the border with Thailand, especially in Poipet.

By 1999, Friends International, an organisation that works extensively with marginalised youth, noticed a growing trend of young street workers abusing substances in Phnom Penh.

A street survey conducted the next year revealed that 30 percent of those questioned admitted to regularly using glue. “That was all within one year of the first cases of substance abuse being seen,” explains David Harding, Friends' drug treatment officer.

A new wave of drugs, in the form of methamphetamine and heroin, soon arrived in Cambodia. By 2000/01, a growing number of heroin addicts were injecting the drug, fuelling HIV/Aids rates, while yaba, the pill form of methamphetamine, had fast become a drug of choice. A follow-up survey carried out

by Friends in 2004 revealed that a staggering 53 percent of those quizzed regularly used substances.

The introduction of the “significantly stronger” crystal-

form of methamphetamine led to a further rise in misuse.

“We’d have two or three cases a year,” Harding says. “That was up until about 2006, when Cambodia felt the kickback effect of the war on drugs in Thailand.”

With Thailand taking a tough stance on drugs, and the majority being trafficked into the Kingdom from Myanmar via Thailand, experts says heroin and methamphetamine supplies froze across the region. But despite the disruption of established supply routes, Friends quickly noticed a sudden rush of crystal meth into Cambodia.

“The market here was suddenly flooded with crystal meth despite the freeze, which we felt signified the first evidence of drug production in Cambodia,” Harding says.

The use of ice rocketed between 2006 and 2008, and it continues to be a major problem in Cambodia today.

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) drug treatment officer Clay Nayton, who works with users in rural areas, estimates that today more than 90 percent of Cambodian drug users are battling a meth addiction.

ESCAPING THE PAIN

Just yards from the bustling riverside, a group of street kids gather at dusk before another long night of work targeting tourists. On a good day, they’ll make up to $10, of which it is unlikely they will see a cent.

They squabble as one of them tries to grab a meth pipe from the other’s hands for a hit to keep them going during the long and at times dangerous night ahead. Harding says this is not an uncommon picture for Friends, which offers support, rehabilitation and treatment to the many street kids caught up in substance abuse — the

"In Cambodia, things became worse because I was feeling more and more unhappy.

I felt very low, because I was alone"

30 30 AsiaLIFE AsiaLIFE Cambodia Cambodia

majority of whom use it to escape the pain of their daily lives.

The average drug-user that Friends deals with is aged in their mid-teens or older, but the organisation has seen youngsters aged five battling solvent abuse. Children under the age of 10 are often caught up with crystal meth, and the youngest heroin user that the organisation has helped was aged 13.

“There are usually four reasons why people abuse drugs,” Harding explains.

“Because they want to feel, because they don’t want to feel and numb themselves, to forget, and then belong.”

Outside the capital, Nayton explains that many male workers turn to crystal meth to keep them going for longer.

With the problem rife along the country's borders, he says the typical user is a man aged between 21 and 26.

More than 50 percent work in service industries, with a large proportion also involved in the entertainment industry.

A worrying recent development is an increased use of crystal meth by highschool students living on the borders with Thailand and Laos, where drugs flood into the country. “Reports show the issue is growing very rapidly in high schools, particularly in Battambang,” Nayton says, adding that UNODC workers are working with schools, students, teachers and communities to tackle the problem and find out the reasons behind it.

And with the emerging middle class boasting more expendable income, Harding adds that another rising risk is youngsters taking more “exotic drugs”, such as cocaine and ecstasy. In recent years, experts say there has been an increase in the trafficking of these substances, believed to be destined for the Thai market, through Cambodia.

“We’re concerned it’s only a matter of time before Cambodia and Phnom Penh are viewed as lucrative [markets].

That will have a major impact,” says Harding.

UNODC research indicates more than 90 percent of Cambodian drug users are battling a methamphetamine addiction.

Methamphetamine is the moist used illicit drug in 13 Asia-Pacific countries surveyed for a UNODC study, including Cambodia.

AsiaLIFE AsiaLIFE Cambodia Cambodia 31 31

“My biggest fear is that crack cocaine comes to Cambodia,” he says. “This is a very risky drug for a culture such as this. The availability of crack could be devastating.”

ROAD TO REHABILITATION

With drug abuse relatively new to Cambodia, a major challenge has been the lack of professionally trained experts, treatment centres and rehabilitation programmes.

Nevertheless, a handful of NGOs and other groups have launched a variety of treatment programmes and centres.

In response to the lack of facilities, Friends started developing its “comprehensive continuum of care” in 2000, which set out a rounded approach to supporting drug users. This included training

UNODC also carries out a range of outreach projects, including a needle exchange to help users in Battambang, Banteay Meanchey and Strung Treng provinces, as well as working with law enforcers to educate them on the importance of recognising when criminals are battling an addiction and referring them to the relevant agencies for help rather than throwing them in prison.

But for the majority, there’s little support out there, and what exists is either stretched or inadequate. “It’s the NGOs who are providing most of the work,” Nayton says. “They provide counselling services and social workers and put together treatment plans with health centres, which hold discussion sessions, a bit like

"I saw her face. The disgust and disappointment... It made me so uncomfortable, and I realised then that this had to stop" professional care staff for dedicated treatment centres, individual and group support, and support and education for friends and relatives.

Friends went on to launch the country’s first needle exchange and syringe programme. By 2004, it had developed the first voluntary drug withdrawal treatment centre. It provides users with a place of refuge where they can seek help and support to kick their addiction, as well as building a brighter future by equipping youths with vocational skills through a range of training programmes.

Under the scheme, which has already helped thousands of Cambodian youths, social workers also spend time with relatives to inform them on how to help reintegrate former addicts back into their community and help them continue a drug-free life.

32 32 AsiaLIFE AsiaLIFE Cambodia Cambodia

AA [Alcoholics Anonymous].”

Other primary means of treatment are state-run drug centres, which have been mired in controversy, and a methadone program launched in 2010. There are currently eight governmentrun drug detention centres based in Phnom Penh and Battambang, Banteay Meanchey, Siem Reap, and Koh Kong provinces.

In December, Human Rights Watch released a report based on interviews with 33 patients that claimed the centres, which were built to treat drug dependency, were illegally holding inmates who were being subjected to abuse, including torture, sexual violence and forced labour.

KICKING THE HABIT

In Tay’s case, he hit rock bottom in a country far away from friends and family and

vividly remembers the day that the reality of his situation hit.

Sitting in a bar in the capital, a former friend walked in. “I saw her face. The disgust and disappointment; I’ll never forget that face. It made me so uncomfortable and I realised then that this had to stop.”

With just a handful of expensive treatment options available to foreigners in the region, Tay was forced to go cold turkey and battle his addiction alone. He moved to the outskirts of Phnom Penh and set up a farm to keep his mind busy. Mustering all of his strength, he managed to kick his addiction and eventually moved to Singapore.

“In Cambodia, things became worse because I was feeling more and more unhappy. I felt very low, because I was alone,” he says.

“Ultimately, I’d say go back home. Cambodia is not the right place to try and overcome an addiction like this.”

Dr Richard Jefferson, director of counselling centre Indigo in Phnom Penh, says Cambodia is a common place for expats to fall into the trap of drugs. “Society as a whole has very little or no safety nets,” he says. “Suddenly you’re given an open field with very few restrictions — the restriction here must come from within.”

With little help available in terms of treatment centres for expats, the psychologist advises seeking help from friends or support groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous.

“There is very little help in Southeast Asia for an expat with drug problems and no money,” he adds. “If the issue is really getting out of hand, then returning to their home country for a while to figure things out is best. If you have a history of alcohol or drug use, Cambodia may be a difficult place to live. ” *Names have been changed.

Anyone wanting to seek help for issues mentioned in this feature can contact AA in Phnom Penh on 012 222 179.

The group also deals with those battling drug issues.

Ecstasy pill seizures more than tripled in 2012 across East and Southeast Asia, from 1.6 million pills in 2011 to more than 5.4 million.

227 million meth pills were seized across East and Southeast Asia in 2012, a 59 percent jump on 2011, according to a November UNODC report.

AsiaLIFE AsiaLIFE Cambodia Cambodia 33 33

34 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Old is the new trend sweeping across the capital. Marissa Carruthers takes a look at the stores leading the vintage movement.

Photography by Conor Wall.

A mountain of crumpled dresses, skirts, shirts, shorts and coats are piled high in a back room. It may look like a mound of discarded rags to the untrained eye, but for Neou Sothearith they’re jewels that will make it onto the shelves of her vintage store, Lost ‘N’ Found.

Like a magician, Sothearith will spend the next few days with her small team, wading through the prize-catches landed during trips to a secret warehouse on the outskirts of Phnom Penh – a treasure chest bursting to the seams with second-hand clothes waiting to be given a new lease of life.

Then comes the arduous task of washing all the items so they are as near to new as possible and carefully inspecting for any alterations or sewing work needed to drag them into the modern world.

“We also have to make sure they can be washed by the laundry or us,” says Sothearith, perfectly dressed in a fitted 1960s-style patterned dress. “So many clothes have been ruined because the laundry doesn’t know the difference between washing silk and cotton, so we always wash delicate items ourselves.”

Following in the footsteps of the Western world, the vintage movement is a trend that has swept across Phnom Penh in the last few years. Retro clothes, posters and music memorabilia harking back to bygone times

are among items helping to spur the capital’s blast to the past, and it’s not just barangs bagging themselves a bargain.

The fashion is catching on at a rapid rate in a country where the wearing of old clothes can be frowned upon.

“A lot of Cambodians still don’t understand exactly what vintage is. In Khmer culture, people don’t have so much respect for old clothes and second-hand items, but with more shops in Phnom Penh, they are definitely starting to see the value,” says Chum Dalis, who launched the movement when she opened the capital’s debut vintage clothes store, Color, in July 2011.

Sothearith has also noticed more locals shopping in her Street 63 shop, which opened last May. “Cambodians still like new clothes,” she says. “But they are discovering the benefits of used clothing and what they can actually buy, and that is changing their attitude.”

Take the stunning turquoise silk dress that hangs as good as new on the rail. The price tag sits at $15 – a fraction of its original cost. “With vintage, it’s all about being able to buy quality clothes at reasonable prices and that’s what we provide,” the retailer says, showcasing endless rails of original items.

“You can’t beat classic clothes and items,” adds Dalis, who sources a lot of her stock from a warehouse in Australia. “A lot

of these things you can’t buy in Cambodia, so it’s great to be able to wear something totally different from everyone else.”

And it’s not only clothes stores that are taking a step back in time. Retro Indochina is top of the bill at new venue Estampe on Street 174, which specialises in selling vintage maps, movie posters, magazines and photographs.

The Vintage Shop in Russian Market opened its doors four years ago as a tribute to Cambodia’s great artists of the 1960s and 1970s. Reacting to the rising demand in retro memorabilia, the shop boasts an enviable collection of exclusive film release posters and album prints, and also showcases merchandise from modern-day artists with a retro flair.

“The '60s and '70s were such a great era for Cambodia and something we should be proud of,” says owner Teng Samphors.

Since opening, the tiny store has proved popular with both expats and tourists. “There’s something charming and authentic about retro items,” she adds. “People like being reminded of those times gone by, and that’s what we’re here to do.”

Color, 168 Street 13, Phnom Penh. Tel: 092 738 678; Lost ‘N’ Found, 321 Street 63, Phnom Penh. Tel: 017 236 002; Vintage Shop, Stall 807 Russian Market, Phnom Penh: Tel: 017 795 159; Estampe, 72C Street 174, Phnom Penh. Tel: 012 826 186.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 35

Cambodia gaining With skateboarding rapidlytalie Na , om gd traction in the Kin ing done to Phillips examines what is becommunity. provide for the burgeoning Photography by Sam Jam.

36 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Three years ago, skateboarding was virtually unknown in Cambodia, limited to a handful of enthusiasts who brought in boards from Vietnam, Thailand and America.

Awareness of the sport has since snowballed, with Phnom Penh welcoming skateboarding NGO Skateistan in 2011 and two new skate shops in 2013.

Even legendary American pro Tony Hawk showed off his skills in the capital late last year.

Despite an increase in publicity and equipment, public space in which skaters can practise tricks and hone their skills is still in woefully short supply.

Phnom Penh street skaters generally migrate between the crowded riverfront and a faraway corner of Diamond Island, which they share with BMX bike racers.

“There’s nothing to do but skate flat ground. It’s like bowling without pins,” Khmer-American Raymond

could afford,” Sam Jam says.

“We saw the potential these guys had and wanted to keep them skating.”

If a good public skate park, complete with varied obstacles, were to be built in the country, he speculates that Khmer skaters could make a dint internationally in five to 10 years.

The value of the sport is no longer up for debate.

Once associated with vandalism, truancy and hooliganism, the global face of skateboarding has long been shifting to one that stands for confidence, community and a connection to the arts.

Former youth worker Sam is adamant that it can change lives. “[Skating is] something that takes so much determination and persistence, because everyone’s going to fall,” he says.

“Skating is not the same as other sports, like football,” adds talented skater and sociology student

“It’s only myself in control, doing everything” Suos says. One of Cambodia’s first skaters, he grew up boarding in Long Beach, California, and notes that, comparatively, it’s “harder to develop here.”

Members of the emerging scene are trying to make-up for the lack of resources.

Khmwe Dysamil Luon, who is known as Steve and owns Phnom Penh’s 10K SkateShop, has built a moveable ledge in front of the store for skaters to use.

The owners of skateshop phnom penh, Australian Sam Jam and partner Sally, were also impressed with the capital's resilient young skaters when they moved to Phnom Penh in 2011.

Many had beat-up decks long overdue for retirement.

Though the pair hadn’t intended to start a shop, they soon found themselves supplying the local community.

“If I ever took a trip to Bangkok or Vietnam, I’d go and buy as many boards as I

Kong Sopheakdalin, known as Dalin, who has been practicing his craft almost daily for the last three years.

“There’s more feeling, more emotion. It’s only myself in control, doing everything.”

Skateistan, which first gained acclaim for its social development programmes in Afghanistan, echoes the sentiment that the sport can encourage personal growth. About 150 kids aged between five and 18 pass through its doors weekly, around 45 percent of whom are female.

“Especially in developing countries, there’s limited opportunities for girls to play any sports,” says the organisation’s development manager Alix Buck. “With girls, you see a lot more of a noticeable change, you just kind of see them transform from being kind of nervous to really determined.”

With its smooth concrete floors and wooden ramps, Skateistan naturally fields

requests for user time from local street skaters. To help meet some of the need, it hosts a well-attended open skate session every Saturday from 2pm to 4pm.

“The reality is, that’s not who were trying to target, but we also want to have a good relationship with the local skateboarding community,” Buck says.

What may be the closest thing Cambodia has to a public skate park is, somewhat ironically, on private land. With local contractors and a lot of concrete, Owen Beck built Cambodia’s only skate bowl at his resort - the Jasmine Valley Eco-Resort in Kep. Skateistan has hosted two annual competitions at the bowl, events for which Beck provided about 20 youngsters and staff with free lodging and meals.

“This was about me getting some exercise and having a bit of a play with our staff, and it turned into, suddenly we’ve got great skaters from all over the world turning up to skate,” the Australian says, expressing amazment about how his pet project has expanded.

Noticing that staff member Dit had a knack for the sport, Beck fundraised for the talented 20 year old to give him a position as the resort’s full-time skater. With sponsorship from skateshop phnom penh, which provides Dit with new gear, he is in a sense Cambodia’s first professional skater.

The bowl cost $3,000 to build and a month of construction time, though Beck comments that if planned and executed efficiently it have would cost $700 or $800 and taken two weeks to build.

“There’s kind of no excuse, I reckon. If you had a plot of land or a warehouse, it’s not really expensive to build something like this,” the hotelier says, adding that he plans to start construction on a larger second bowl later in 2014.

“If someone comes up and wants to skate, they can skate,” he says. “It’s no problem at all.”

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 37

LEARNING THE LINGO 38 38 AsiaLIFE AsiaLIFE Cambodia Cambodia

Some parents wonder if a multilingual environment, like an expat community, is bad for their children’s language development. But recent studies lead to one conclusion: multilingualism makes the brain stronger.

Words by Chris Mueller. Photo by Fred Wissink.

We all know the obvious benefits of being able to speak multiple languages, especially for expats who live in such cosmopolitan environments. But how are expat children affected by this immersion in another language? What if a child’s parents speak different languages? Will the child develop in the same way as his peers?

These are questions that often plague expat parents, but fortunately the answers are proving to be all positive.

Much has changed about the thinking of bilingualism and multilingualism. For a long time, many psychologists believed children who learned multiple languages at a young age became easily confused and were ultimately hindered by them.

However, studies conducted over the past decade have proven this to be completely unfounded.

“For a long time people believed bilingualism is too hard for children, that it will hold them back,” Ellen Bialystok, a leading bilingual researcher at York University in Toronto, told me in a phone interview.

“Now we know that is simply not true.”

Bialystok’s research has largely focused on something called the “executive control system”, which is a part of the brain that decides what is the most appropriate reaction to a certain situation.

“We’re always bombarded by choices and too much stimuli,” she says. “The ECS directs attention to what’s necessary.”

Children who speak multiple languages are constantly exercising their executive control system, which leads to a stronger, more effective brain.

“For people who really are bilingual, both of those languages are always active and available,” Bialystok says. “That means every time you open your mouth to say something, you’ve got competition between the two language systems. So what the brain does is call on this system.

If you’re bilingual you use it all time and it gets better.”

Of course, there are simple social and personal benefits in learning other languages, such as making for a more wellrounded person. But Bialystok’s research

has revealed there are some not-so-obvious advantages as well.

Bilingual children, for example, are much better at multitasking. Because their brains are constantly having to choose which language to use, their executive control system becomes stronger, leading to a better decision-making process. Her research also suggests that the benefits are lengthy. According to her studies, life-long bilinguals show signs of Alzheimer’s disease five or six years later than those who only speak one language.

Although there are plenty of benefits for having your child learn multiple languages, it isn’t always easy.

“Being bilingual can mean children are a little slower to talk and struggle at school at some points as their academic language develops,” says Bridie Gallagher, a clinical child psychologist at Indigo International in Phnom Penh.

At first, young bilingual or multilingual children often have difficulty organising the different languages, and it is common for them to confuse syntax, mixing

Languages most often thought of as the most difficult for non-native speakers to learn, Chinese and Thai for example, are actually the mostadopted languages by expat children.

up words or grammar from one language with another. But this problem disappears quickly, and after a few years the children learn how to separate the different languages.

Some studies also indicate that because monolingual children have only one language to focus on, their range of vocabulary early on is better than their multilingual counterparts.

In a 2009 study, Bialystok found this to be largely true. This shortcoming, however, is mainly limited to vocabulary related to home life, where the second language (which in the case of this study was English) isn’t spoken as frequently. Bialystok says this is nothing to worry about, and as a child’s executive control becomes stronger, it will sort itself out.

“I really want parents to understand that they’re not harming their children,” she says. “Speaking multiple languages is enriching and doing good things for their brains.”

With all of this evidence highlighting the benefits of multilingualism, it seems obvious that parents should go out and sign their children up for a new language class.

After all, that’s what many expat families are already doing, especially in Asia where 58 percent of expat kids were found to be learning a new language, compared to 44 percent globally, according to the results of the HSBC Expat Explorer survey released in November.

The survey also indicates that languages most often thought of as the most difficult for non-native speakers to learn, Chinese and Thai for example, are actually the most-adopted languages by expat children.

In Thailand, Taiwan and Hong Kong, 75 percent, 72 percent and 52 percent of expat children, respectively, adopted the local languages. There was no data available for Cambodia.

But learning a language is very different than actually practicing it. In order to profit from the skill, children need to use it constantly, Bialystok says, adding, “Using it more, even imperfectly, leads to more benefits.”

AsiaLIFE AsiaLIFE Cambodia Cambodia 39 39

LAND OF THE LONG WHITE CLOUD Three years ago, the city of Christchurch in New Zealand’s South Island suffered a devastating earthquake. Ellie Dyer returns to the country’s beautiful eastern coast to find a population uncowed by disaster.

New Zealand is as dramatic as it is beautiful. From the high peaks of the Southern Alps to the lush vines of its wineproducing areas and the deep waters of the Marlborough Sounds, it is filled with aweinspiring vistas that take your breath away.

Such beauty, however, comes at a price. Set on the edge of the Australian and Pacific tectonic plates, “the land of the long white cloud” bears the scars of massive volcanic eruptions and shifts in the earth’s crust.

Nowhere is this more evident than the eastern coast of the country’s South Island – an area renowned for its wine, agriculture and raw beauty.

February 25th, 2011, is a date that will live forever in 40 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

the memory of Christchurch residents. It was the day that a major earthquake rocked the coastal city – the second in a matter of months – levelling swathes of the central business district (CBD) and leaving 185 people dead.

The terrible devastation caused by the shallow quake is still evident today. Block after block in the city centre lies empty, with many of the remaining buildings taped off, or left just as they were the moment the quake struck.

But if you thought the town’s population would crumble after such widespread destruction, think again. New Zealanders are made of hardier stuff.

Just look back to 1931, when an earthquake destroyed the

town of Napier in the country’s North Island. The community was subsequently rebuilt into an art-deco architectural paradise. Although the shape of Christchurch’s rebuild has yet to become clear, resilient residents are already bringing the damaged city back to life.

Shipping containers have been converted into avenues of small stores and cafés, with one such area – the Re:START shopping district – providing a cheerful spot of bustling life in the largely flattened CBD. Elsewhere, an impressive temporary church, designed by Japanese architect Shigeru Ban and featuring cardboard tubing as a major building material, has replaced the imposing 19th century Gothic cathedral

damaged in the quake.

Near the lush Botanical Gardens lies the wellmaintained Christchurch Museum, which provides a fascinating history of New Zealand’s first English settlers.

The facility also features a bizarre paua house. The tiny bungalow was once owned by an eccentric elderly couple who opened it up to the public in 1963 after decorating it with thousands of shiny abalone, or paua, shells in a quirky showcase of the national Kiwiana style.

But ultimately, it’s New Zealand’s stunning landscape that draws many to its windy shores, and the area surrounding Christchurch doesn’t disappoint. The city lies

“The city lies close to the Banks Peninsula, an outcrop of land formed by ancient volcanic activity that is characterised by rocky hills and scenic bays”

close to the Banks Peninsula, an outcrop of land formed by ancient volcanic activity that is characterised by rocky hills and scenic bays.

The picture-perfect village of Akaroa is a one-hour drive from the city and makes a perfect day trip. Once a French settlement, it contains wellpreserved clapboard houses set around a long, sheltered harbour – in fact the crater of a long-extinct volcano – watched over by a 19th century lighthouse, which was moved to its current location from the Pacific coast in the 1980s.

Hop on a two-hour Black Cat boat tour to spot the rare Hector’s dolphins, tiny penguins and fur seals that thrive in the area’s protected

shores and inlets. If the weather is good, the boat will head into the undulating waves of the Pacific Ocean, enabling visitors to look out over an expanse of sea that stretches uninterrupted to South America.

A road-trip up the eastern coast is another fantastic way to experience the country’s diverse landscape. The flat agricultural areas of the Canterbury Plains soon give way to dramatic scenery, where drivers twist and turn through mustard-coloured hills and vineyard-filled valleys.

At Kaikoura, two hours from Christchurch, it feels as if the road has been hewn into cliffs.

Sparkling azure waters crash against rocky shores populated by fattened seals. Sperm whales, once hunted off the coast, are

also regularly seen in the area and now form a central part of the settlement’s tourism industry.

The northerly tip of the island is also home to a stunning natural feature: the flooded valleys of the Marlborough Sounds. Steep green hills dotted with small holiday homes rise straight out of a deep-blue sea. Here, boatowning locals trawl for fresh scallops or dive for paua in the cold waters, as yachts ply the peaceful waterways.

And, no matter where you are in the South Island, you’re never far away from the craggy peaks of the Southern Alps.

The dramatic mountain range stretches up the island and provides skiing opportunities

in winter, as well as magnificent views and trekking opportunities all-year round.

For a taste of this powerful landscape, visit the country station of Castle Hill, 120 kilometres west of Christchurch on the road to Arthur’s Pass National Park. The site is home to fields of limestone rock formations that rise out of the hills like ancient statues.

The Dalai Lama is rumoured to have called the area the “spiritual centre of the universe” in 2002 and a walk among the area’s gigantic boulders, which dwarf any human visitor, is a perfect demonstration of the beauty and power of New Zealand’s awe-inspiring natural environment.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 41

where the wild beaches are Writer Taisa Sganzerla explores the virtually untouched and pristine beaches just south of Rio de Janeiro and finds they are still unknown to Brazilians and foreigners alike.

On the south coast of Rio de Janeiro state is a strip of white sand surrounded by mountains covered with the Atlantic Forest. On one recent December afternoon, as the sun began to set, gentle waves of an emeraldgreen sea bathed the remote cove. Only two people could be seen on the entire beach, young boys playing with a scruffy football by a stream that emptied into the ocean.

Later on, I learned they are two of the more than 30 grandchildren of Manoel dos Remédios, known as "Seu Maneco".

He and his family are the only inhabitants of Martim de Sá, a far-flung beach located in the Juatinga Ecological Reserve, a peninsula near the southeastern town of Paraty. Despite its stunning beauty, this place is little known to Brazilians and foreigners alike, and rarely mentioned in travel guides.

Like Martim de Sá, the Juatinga Reserve hides many other small beaches and coves,

42 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

inhabited mostly by fishermen.

I decided to visit all of them in a multi-day trek – eased by a few boat rides here and there, a good option if you have less time than money.

It all starts in Paraty, a four-hour bus ride from Rio de Janeiro. A destination on its own, Paraty was founded in the 1600s by Portuguese colonisers and reached its economic peak in the 19th century, when its port served as the main distributor for Brazil's large coffee production. The town also thrived in the production of cachaça, the Brazilian spirit made of sugar cane juice, with which the famous caipirinha cocktail is prepared. Even today, the cachaças produced in Paraty are highly praised throughout the country.

As if having the best caipirinhas weren’t enough, Paraty is also one the most-preserved historical sites in Brazil. Today, the town brims with restaurants, shops and art galleries, attracting a multitude of tourists year round. But Paraty

remains democratic, not only in the variety of its activities, but also with its visitors: from those who pay $300 for a room in a chic boutique hotel to backpackers who sleep in youth hostels for as little as $15 a night.

The many tour agencies based in Paraty will try to sell you day tours to the more than 63 islands spread along the bay.

If you're fond of adventure, though, don't let them fool you: the best, most preserved beaches lie in the Juatinga Reserve.

For about $10, a two-hour boat journey will take you to the beach of Pouso da Cajaíba, the home of a small community of Caiçara – the descendants of intermarriages between indigenous people and Portuguese settlers. Pouso has fairly good infrastructure. Well, a few houses have solar panels for electricity at least. But the coarse, yellow sand and the amount of construction so close to the ocean might disappoint some. Two superior beaches lie nearby: Praia de Calhaus and Praia Grande de Cajaíba, reach-

able after a 30- to 60-minute walk. There are no guesthouses in Pouso, you have to find accommodation at a local home, which can usually be arranged on an ask-around basis.

I didn't linger here long and instead made the difficult, two-hour uphill trek to the exquisite Martim de Sá, and Seu Maneco's sanctuary.

Sixty-year-old Maneco is the eldest son of Roque Caçador, a Caiçara fisherman who settled at the beach in the 1930s. Since then, his family has been living off the land and sea in this little inlet. But due to the restrictions of the ecological reserve, only 10 people are allowed to live there permanently. The rest of Maneco's extensive family lives in nearby beaches and towns.

In 2012, Maneco won a court battle that secured his right to remain in the area, putting an end to a decade-old dispute with a prominent family from Rio de Janeiro. Some speculate that the family meant to lease the area for the construction of a resort.

In Martim, a few small houses are sprawled amongst the trees, where Maneco lives with his family. Maneco charges $10 for camping on his grounds and for use of the communal bathrooms and open-air kitchen.

There are no bedrooms and

For $20, one of Maneco's sons agreed to take me to the beach of Ponta Negra with his boat.

Ponta Negra is a modest beach. There are no waves, so it’s great for swimming, with hills surrounding the sand strip. As with other beaches in

There are no bedrooms and no electricity. There is a little store selling essentials, but Seu Maneco doesn’t peddle alcohol. "Here, we get drunk on nature," he says.

no electricity. There is a little store selling essentials, but Seu Maneco doesn’t peddle alcohol.

"Here, we get drunk on nature," he says.

It was hard to leave Martim de Sá and the company of Maneco's family, but there were other beaches to explore.

Juatinga peninsula, fishermen and their families mostly inhabit it. There is no electricity and the only accommodation available is at the locals' homes.

The next day, I was off to Praia do Sono, or "sleepy beach", after a three-hour walk along the shore, passing through

two other deserted beaches on the way. Earlier in the day, I had been told about Galhetas Waterfall, accessible through a 10-minute detour off the trek.

It was a welcome sight after the hot hike in the tropical heat.

Locals say there are countless other waterfalls and freshwater pools along the way, though a guide is needed to find most.

Praia do Sono is probably the most visited among the beaches in Juatinga, since it's easily accessible from Paraty, but that doesn't make it any less beautiful than the more secluded ones.

There are more accommodations and restaurant options here, and, most importantly, electricity.

It'll still take some time before electricity arrives to the rest of the peninsula, but that shouldn’t dissuade you from discovering the beauty of Juatinga. But if it were up to Seu Maneco, electricity would never arrive. "Why do I even need electricity?” he says. “To watch television? I prefer watching the birds in my backyard."

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 43

Cambodia’s rice wine is as old as the hills. Ellie Dyer meets some traditional brewers of the potent tipple, along with two foreigners adding a unique twist to the ever-popular drink. Photography by Conor Wall.

A yeasty perfume permeates the small backyard of the Sannoum family home in Pouk district, Siem Reap province.

In the centre of the space lies a large wooden pallet piled with steamed rice sprinkled with a fermenting agent.

Soon the grains will be placed in large earthenware jars in order to brew Cambodia’s rice wine, or sraa in Khmer – a fiery variant of rice spirit, related to Japan’s sake and Korea’s cheongju, that is used both to fuel community celebrations and in traditional medicines.

Around four days later, the watery mixture will be boiled over a fire, and the steam condensed and then cooled through a series of pipes to produce the 50-percent-proof liquid. In a corner of the compact brewery, a batch of the potent alcohol already drips slowly into a white bucket, ready to be sold on to market vendors.

Traditional small-scale businesses like the Sannoums' are often family affairs, with techniques passed on from generation to generation. “I learned to make rice wine from my mother when I was younger,” explains Ou Polla, a 50-year-old former wine producer. “I remember when I got married in Battambang 30 years ago, I made up a big batch of rice wine for the wedding guests. We didn’t have beer or whisky in those days.”

44 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

But the market vendor, who stopped brewing in 1990 after a decade in the industry, has observed a shift. Modern practises are being introduced, making the production process both quicker and cheaper thanks to the use of chemicals.

According to a 2011 report from The Cambodia Daily, an increasing demand for lowpriced tipples with higher alcohol content has pushed many old-fashioned brewers out of business.

“Real pure rice wine is hard to find these days and costs 10,000 riel [a litre]. This is safer

traditional operation lies the headquarters of Sombai, an innovative foreign-owned company that is infusing rice wine with local fruits and spices such as ginger, tamarind, banana and lemongrass.

“In Mauritius we have a tradition of using the local rum,” explains Joëlle Jean Louis, who runs the operation with former banker and rum enthusiast, Frenchman Lionel Maitrepierre. “We put fruits and spices that we have in our own yard inside [the alcohol]. We let it sit for two to three months – this is the main difference

“I made up a big batch of rice wine for the wedding guests. We didn’t have beer or whisky in those days” to drink and tastes much nicer,” says Ou Polla, hinting at the cases of rice wine poisoning that can result from tainted production processes or the incorrect use of chemicals such as methanol.

But though some lament the changes in the industry, the market is opening up and a wave of experimentation is under way. Rice wine is now being produced at factories in major hubs, and new entrants are helping to bring the classic drink to a fresh audience.

Just thirty minutes drive away from the Sannoums'

between rum and rice wine – and usually drink it for parties and when friends come over.”

“We put our two cultures and passions together, and here is what came up,” the bubbly Mauritian adds, explaining how the business began around a year and half ago after the pair moved closer to family in Siem Reap.

The company now operates a tasting lounge near its compact workshop – a small white house set in a green field. Inside the facility stand huge glass jars of rice wine packed full with strips of candied coconut and

chunks of pineapple. Over six to eight weeks, the flavours slowly seep into the spirit, which the owners explain is factory-made rice wine in order to ensure the liquid’s long-term stability.

The pair started by experimenting with the traditional rum flavour pairings of banana and vanilla, and lime and pineapple, but have since refined and expanded the range. Flavours now range from the zingy lemon and lemongrass, a mango variety with a pleasing green chilli kick, and a smooth anise and coffee variant. Research is ongoing, with a durian version possibly in the pipeline.

Sombai is linking up with hotels and businesses to introduce the wine, which varies from 29 to 31 percent proof, to the tourist market. It is now stocked in more than 40 locations countrywide, including the Park Hyatt Siem Reap, which serves it in the Living Room lounge.

The global hotel brand also ran a tour of a traditional wine maker's home and the Sombai facility, topped off with a sumptuous eight-course food and rice wine pairing feast, as part of its regular Masters of Food and Wine event last month.

For more information on the Masters of Food and Wine event and Sombai’s infused rice wine, visit park.hyatt.com or sombai. com.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 45

Cafe Yejj New menu additions are a regular occurrence at Cafe Yejj, with constant change a factor that has kept the venue fresh during its nine-year lifespan.

As part of Yejj Social Enterprise – an organisation that trains underprivileged Cambodians in areas such as hospitality before helping them to secure jobs in the sector – chefs from across the globe volunteer to carry out six- to eight-month stints in the kitchen, sharing their skills with students.

“These chefs will always bring their own ideas,” says owner Trevor Sworn, pointing to the newly-launched menu, which includes a range of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern dishes. ”We’ll then work together to put this on 46 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Writer Marissa Carruthers and photographer Charles Fox discover that heart-warming fare tops Cafe Yejj’s mouth-watering new menu.

the menu, so it’s constantly evolving and changing.”

Turning to the cuisine was an easy decision for the British owner and keen cook. “It’s very healthy, good food for a start,” Sworn says, listing common ingredients as cumin, parsley and chickpeas. “It also has a very flavoursome taste and there isn’t much around Phnom Penh.”

The aromatic blend of herbs and spices associated with Middle Eastern and North African cuisine is evident from the sumptuous smells that hang in the air inside the three-storey, yellow eatery.

As a waitress passes by with a dish of Moroccan lamb stew ($8.75), it’s easy to see why the Brit has embraced this style of food.

Time is taken to ensure the chicken tagine ($7) and the lamb stew are cooked to perfection. The meat and vegetables are cooked slowly over two to three hours to absorb a blend of herbs and make the meat melt-inthe-mouth.

The tabbouleh ($4.50) – a salad made from bulgur wheat, tomatoes, cucumbers, chopped parsley, mint, onion and garlic, and seasoned with olive oil and lemon and lime juice – is given a twist by switching the bulgur for couscous.

“It becomes easier to digest, so it’s better for this climate,” he explains. “And the lemon and lime give it a really lovely, sharp taste.”

The best way to sample the selection of dishes on offer is

probably through a Lebanese tasting platter ($5), which offers small bites of home-made hummus, falafel, mujadara (a mixture of lentils, caramelised onion and rice), tabbouleh and marinated olives served with warm pita bread.

As well as catering for the lunchtime rush, Cafe Yejj is open for the evening crowd, with the recently renovated rooftop terrace providing a good spot to enjoy a glass of wine while the sun goes down.

If all this isn’t enough to get your stomach rumbling, from Monday to Thursday, ladies can enjoy a free glass of sangria.

170 Street 450, Phnom Penh.

Tel: 092 600 750. Open daily from 8am to 9pm.

Brooklyn Pizza The sweltering streets of Phnom Penh and polarvortexed New York may be worlds apart, but new restaurant on the block, Brooklyn Pizza + Bistro, doesn’t mind.

The glass-fronted eatery near Russian Market is determined to bring a taste of the five boroughs to the Cambodian capital. And although the simply decorated interior, featuring a tiled floor with yellow walls and touches of red and orange, may not scream New York hipster-ville, it’s the themed menu that is doing the talking.

‘Williamsburg’ and ‘Godfather’ pizzas grace the menu alongside BBQ ribs and wings and an ‘Ellis Island’ salad, making it clear that

nothing less than good-old American indulgence is appropriate in this corner of Brooklyn.

Embracing the concept, we kicked off with the excellent buffalo-style wings ($4.99 for six). Thanks to the twoday production process, the battered chicken was crispy on the outside with a delightfully tender interior. The orange glaze was pleasingly tangy, with a slight kick that left you wanting more, especially when tempered by a free side of cut vegetables with a creamy dipping sauce.

Next came a pulled-pork sandwich on a sesame brioche bun ($5.50). A zingy barbeque sauce complemented the mass of succulent meat, though its intense flavour

Ellie Dyer and photographer Conor Wall find a taste of New York near to the capital's Russian Market.

slightly overpowered the accompanying coleslaw topping. But overall, given that pulled pork is a rarity in the capital, it was a triumph.

To most eyes, the centrepoint of American cuisine is the humble burger, so we ordered a Royale with cheese ($6.50).

Consisting of a generous patty topped with caramelised onion and cheddar, plus a side of rosemary fries, it was a homely take on the national dish, though I found the meat a little dry for my taste.

With a vegetarian on board, we also opted for the ‘Stella’ pizza, topped with mozzarella, feta, roasted garlic and mushroom ($8.90 for a large).

Although good in terms of size, toppings and crust, it somehow lacked the spark of Brooklyn’s

earlier dishes. The sparkle returned with a vengeance with our final dish – a massive slice of cheesecake topped with passion fruit coulis ($2.95). It was New York on a plate, with a dose of acidic passion fruit and a clever touch of lemon cutting through a rich and indulgent interior.

During our lunch, the owner told us that Brooklyn will soon expand, with an adjoining New York-style deli set to open later this year. I think this is where Brooklyn Pizza could really excel. The raw ingredient – indulgent comfort food – is right on the money, but the addition of an extra dose of New York pizzazz could take it to the next level.

20 Street 123, Phnom Penh. Tel: 089 925 926.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 47

BEHIND THE

DESIGN S O N G S A A P R I V AT E I S L A N D

48 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

The long, curving walkways of Song Saa Private Island are indicative of the development’s design ethos. The timber pathways and sandy lanes that lead visitors around the small island take a roundabout course, twisting and turning around trees and rocks as if hewn by nature itself.

Set on a tiny island off the coast of Sihanoukville, the luxury resort provides a case study in design that is sympathetic to its idyllic surrounding. Far from the mirrored windows and unabashed bling of other highclass Asian resorts, Song Saa has taken a subtler route.

Recycled timber and other natural elements dominate, from the disused fishing boats that have been turned into works of art to the driftwood collected from local beaches and coves, and transformed into furniture.

The most has also been made of the isle’s spectacular

setting. Cross a wooden walkway built over the sea to reach a stunning restaurant and bar open to the elements. Tables benefit from unobstructed views over a blue expanse and jungle-clad coastline, made all the more dramatic at night when storms light up the horizon.

But perhaps it is what you don’t notice at first glance that is the most impressive aspect of the resort. Wander its paths and you will soon happen upon hidden spots containing small seating areas that provide a sense of privacy, making it seem as if you have a corner of this paradise to yourself.

Or spend a moment gazing into the water from each room’s private pool to see schools of fish swimming beneath. With the surrounding area deemed a marine reserve, the island is as much a haven for local sea-life as those seeking a taste of luxury.

Words by Ellie Dyer

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 49

PRINTED

RIVER

Photographer: Dylan Maddux Location: Koh Kong/Rainbow Lodge Model: Vichka All clothes from: TonlĂŠ Assistant: Sophear Ouch

N

EW

LISTINGS

hotel & travel Airlines & Agencies

Air Asia Domestic Terminal Arrival Office NºA17, Phnom Penh International Airport Tel: 023 890 035 Asiana Airlines Room A16 at Phnom Penh International Airport.

Tel: 023 890 441 Bangkok Airways #61A, Street 214, Phnom Penh Tel: 023 722 545 Cambodia Angkor Air Branch Office in Phnom Penh #206A Preah Norodom Blvd.

Tel: 023 6666 788 Cebu Pacific Air No. 333B, Preah Monivong Blvd, Sangkat Orussey 4, Khan 7 Makara, 12257 Phnom Penh Tel: 023 219 161 China Airlines #32, Preah Norodom Blvd, Phnom Penh Tel: 023 222 056 China Eastern No. 68, st. 606, Sangkat Beung Kak 2, Khan Toul Kork, Phnom Penh Tel: 016 985 668 #304, Steung Thmey Village, Siem Reap. Tel: 063 965 229 China Southern Room F-G-H-I,Ground floor Nº53, Phnom Penh Hotel, Monivong Blvd.

Tel: 023 424 588 DragonAir #168, Monireth Boulevard, Phnom Penh Tel: 023 424 300 Eva Air Suite 11-14B, Street 205, Phnom Penh Tel: 023 219 911 Jet Star Asia #333B, Monivong Blvd., Phnom Penh Tel: 023 220 909 Korean Air #254, R03, Monivong Blvd., Phnom Penh.

Tel: 023 2240 47-49 Lao Airlines #58B, Preah Sihanouk Blvd.

Phnom Penh Tel: 023 222 956 Malaysia Airlines #35-37, Street 214, Phnom Penh Tel: 023 218 923-924 Myanmar Airways International No. 90-94Eo, Charles de Gaulle (St. 217), 12257 Phnom Penh Tel: 023 866 404 Qatar Airways Ground floor, Intercontinental Hotel, Phnom Penh. www.qatarairways.com

Skywing Asia Airlines IOC buld, Monivong Blvd, Beoung Riang, Doun Penh. Tel: 023 217130 Silk Air Regency Complex C, Suite 2-4 Samdach, Monireth Blvd, S.k.

Tomnoubteouk, Khan Chamkarmorn Tel: 023 988 629 Thai Airways #294, Mao Tse Toung Blvd., Phnom Penh. Tel: 023 214 359 Tiger Airways No. 296, Mao Tse Toung (St. 245), Intercontinental Hotel, Suit 16B, 12306 Phnom Penh.

Tel: 023 5515 888 Vietnam Airlines #41, Street 214, Phnom Penh Tel: 023 215 998

La Librairie Phnom Penh

#22, Street 184 ( rue Keo Chea) Phnom Penh 855 (0)23 221 812 | www.la-librairie-phnom-penh.com

Battambang

Cafe Eden Located along the River Tel: 053 731 525 www.cafeedencambodia.com Eclectic cafe with incredible food that overlooks the river. EspressoWifi- A.C.-Local Art. Non-Profit that focuses on training Cambodian People. Boutique with handmade local crafts. Happy hour 3pm-7pm. Open Wednesday - Monday 7:30am-9pm Bambu Hotel Phum Romchek 5 Tel: 053 953900 / 053 953 905 bookings@bambuhotel.com www.bambuhotel.com 16 rooms arranged in four traditionally inspired buildings with swimming pool, bar and restaurant.

Battambang Resort Wat Ko Village, Battambang Tel: 012 510 100/053 666 7001 info@battambangresort.com www.battambangresort.com Jaan Bai restaurant Road 2 near Psar Nat Market Tel: 097 398 7815 Located in the heart of downtown Battambang, Jaan Bai is a home for folks who share a love of gatherings around the table, a passion for food and an interest in supporting Cambodian youth. Using seasonal organic produce sourced from own kitchen garden, local farmers and neighboring markets. Open Tuesday – Sunday 11am – 9pm.

Kinyei cafe Street 1 and 1/2, Phum 20 Osaphea Tel: 017 292 119, www.kinyei.org Social enterprise, best coffee in town, serving snacks, lunch, breakfast and other drinks, friendly staff, free space for small open workshop. Won the National Barista Championship two years in a row 2012 and 2013. Open 7am-7pm, 7 days.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 55

La Villa 185 Pom Romchek 5 Tel: 017 411 880 / 053 730 151, lavilla.battambang@gmail.com, www.lavilla-battambang.com Beautifully restored 1930s colonial house with six rooms is the premium hotel in the country’s second city and with an excellent kitchen and bar.

Sangker Villa Hotel Pool Restaurant 200 Street, Romchek4 Village, Ratanak Commune Tel: 097 764 0017 www.sangkervilla.com Sangker Villa has 7 rooms and 1 Balcony Suite. It is located 10 minutes walk from the city center. The hotel combines the charm of the countryside with the advantages of the city. Swiss management, speaking English, French, German, Italian and Spanish.

Kampot

Blissful Guest House Tel: 012 848 390 www.blissfulguesthouse.com Small guest house, with 18 rooms, set in guest house street with downstairs garden bar and restaurant and bar, Sunday roast, home-baked bread.

Bokor Mountain Lodge Riverfront Tel: 033 932 314 / 017 712 062 www.bokorlodge.com Beautiful French colonial building situated on riverfront with well-fitted air-conditioned rooms. Has a good restaurant and bar.

Epic Arts Café Old Market Street Employing deaf staff, this café next

56 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

to the old market has a good range of bagels, shakes, brownies and coffee. Is also the centre for the community arts programme.

Open from 7am - 6pm.

Les Manguiers 2km north of Kampot.

Tel: 092 330 050 Small resort with bungalows and rooms set in beautiful gardens overlooking the river with a restaurant which has daily changing, freshly prepared food.

Mea Culpa 44 Sovansokar Tel: 012 504 769 meaculpakampot@gmail.com Accommodation established by the former manager of Bokor Mountain Lodge set in the French Quarter. Six rooms have air con, hot water, DVD and TV. The large garden has a patio pizzeria and bar.

Nataya Coral Bay Resort Prek Ampil, Kampot, Tel: 016 226 471 / 012 902 823. natayaresort@yahoo.com Only 16km from Kampot, this topend hideaway comes complete with eight beachfront bungalows, a 25m infinity pool, a 2km private beach, stilt huts off a 300m pier, and simply oodles of relaxation.

Rikitikitavi Riverfront Tel: 012 274 820 / 012 235 102 www.rikitikitavi-kampot.com Western food served in large portions in this river-facing restaurant, bar and three-room guesthouse. A more

upmarket venue for Kampot, the upstairs seating affords great sunset views. Restaurant and bar open 7 days a week.

Rusty Keyhole Riverfront This British pub is the place for expats to chew the fat over a pint. Friendly British owner has recreated the atmosphere of a rural pub in outer Kampot, or at least as close as it gets.

The ribs remain as good as ever. Open 8.30am until midnight.

Kep

Breezes Route 33. Tel: 097 675 9072 Situated on the main coast road about halfway between Kep Beach and the ferry to Rabbit Island, this stylish restaurant and lounge is located right by the sea in a green, wooded area. The food is a fusion of Asian and western with a focus on small dishes with plenty of seafood. Free pick-up and return to Kep hotels.

Kep Lodge Tel: 092 435 330. www.keplodge.com Nestled just below the calm Kep National Park, this boutique resort offers only 10 standard and luxury bungalows, all with private balcony, hot water and sea view. The comfortable restaurant pampers you with local and Swiss specialties and the lively bar.

The beautiful infinity salt water pool has one of the best views in Kep and is the perfect place for a sunset.

Knai Bang Chatt Resort Tel: 078888 557 www.knaibangchatt.com An exclusive resort offering personal

service in private grounds housing a collection of remodelled 1960’s style colonial villas. Offering 18 rooms, infinity pool, spa and media centre. All rooms refurbished to international standards.

Choice of two dining options – upscale The Strand or the adjoining Sailing Club.

Le Bout du Monde Tel: 011 964 181 www.leboutdumondekep.com Individual and separate bungalows in traditional Khmer architecture located on a hill-top with good views and nice gardens. Serves French and Khmer cuisine. Rooms have hot water, minibar, fan and safe.

Saravoan Hotel Thmey Village, Kep, Tel: 036 639 3909 012 715 588 / 012 357 729 Recently renovated building with 17 rooms has all the modern amenities including an inviting swimming pool and sweeping views of the sea.

The Vine Retreat Tel: 036 633 3383 / 097 461 0711 www.thevineretreat.com Eco guesthouse and organic food.

Get away from the chaos of the city to peaceful, homely comfort surrounded by nature.

Valley Resort/Mr. Mab Kep City, Cambodia, Tel: 036 666 6673 www.mr.mab.com, www.springvalleyresort.com Spring Valley Resort, at the base of Kep National Park, is just a short walk to the beach. The rooms are scattered throughout vibrant green gardens, connected by walkways that wind through vines, trees and flowering

plants. Their new restaurant, Mr. Mab... very delicious, takes a fresh look at traditional Khmer street food.

Veranda Natural Resort Tel: 033 399 035 / 012 888 619 www.veranda-resort.com Traditional wooden bungalows set in the hillside. Settle in for the night and listen to the jungle purr. Has a good restaurant and bar with some quite stunning sweeping views down to the coast.

Villa S’aat Tel 017 38 31 85. www.villa-kep.com Your holiday home in Kep! Elegant and spacious villa for rent in Kep during holidays and weekends. Located around 2 km from the crab market, with spacious rooms, fully equipped kitchen, swimming pool, large terrace, garden and household staff. Maximum capacity of 12 guests.

Mondulkiri

Mayura Hill Resort (Mondulkiri 4 star Boutique Resort) Phnom Penh Office: 225 Sisowath Quay Tel: 017 711 177 / 017 811 188 www.mayurahillresort.com Mayura Hill Hotel & Resort located in Mondulkiri Province has 14 exclusive private Bungalow villas embodying the north eastern lifestyle. The first eco-tourism resort in Sen Monorom city located just 1 Km from downtown, surrounded by wonderful views of the highlands.

Phnom Penh – Deluxe

Amanjaya 1 Sisowath Quay. Tel: 023 214 747 www.amanjaya-pancam-hotel.com Large hotel with a great central location along the riverfront. The rooms are spacious and well-equipped with tasteful Khmer decorations. The downstairs restaurant doubles up as the air-con K-West bar.

Bellevue Serviced Apartments 68 Tonle Sap Street. Tel: 023 432 999 www.bellevueservicedapartments.com www.facebook.com/ bellevueservicedapartments Located in a deluxe hotel complex on the riverbank of the Tonle Sap, Bellevue offers spacious, contemporary accommodation 10 minutes away from the city.

Cambodiana 313 Sisowath Quay. Tel: 023 426 288 www.hotelcambodiana.com Great riverside location with spectacular sweeping views of the confluence of three rivers. Large rooms with air-con, in-room safes and good bathrooms. Live band plays nightly (except Mondays) from 8.15pm until late.

The Governor’s House 3 Mao Tse Tung Blvd. nr cnr Norodom Blvd. Tel: 023 987 025 www.governorshouse.net The Governor’s house offers an exclusive 10 rooms 5-star boutique hotel embodied in an original colonial-style mansion in the heart of BKK I, surrounded by the top residential area in downtown Phnom Penh city, Kingdom of Wonder.

Himawari 313 Sisowath Quay. Tel: 023 214 555 www.himawarihotel.com The 115 beautifully-designed suites have air-con, cable TV, IDD, Internet, inroom safes and large bathrooms. Nice swimming pool and good gym facilities as well as two good tennis courts.

InterContinental 296 Mao Tse Tung.

Tel: 023 424 888 www.ihg.com

One of Phnom Penh’s most luxurious 5-star hotels, the 346 air-con rooms have all the expected facilities including in-room safes and king size beds. Also has a large swimming pool, a fitness centre and a spa.

Patio Hotel & Urban Resort 134z Street 51. www.patio-hotel.com Close to Independence Monument, the Royal Palace, the Silver Pagoda, the National Museum and the river front, Patio has 45 luxurious rooms.

Modern amenities include a rooftop swimming pool, a restaurant and a bar on the 7th floor.

Restaurant open daily from 6am – 11pm.

Raffles Hotel Le Royal Street 92 Tel: 023 981 888 www.phnompenh.raffles.com Emanates the same class as its more famous namesake in Singapore. The Elephant Bar is a popular expat haunt during the 4pm to 8pm happy hour.

Season Residence Apartments 109-133, Street 144 Tel: 023 990 628 / 012 457 408 www.seasonresidence.com Season Residence is self-catered accommodation located only 9 km from the airport. Featuring spacious apartments with free Wi-Fi access.

Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra 26 Old August Site, Sothearos Blvd.

Tel: 023 999 200.www.sofitel.com Set riverside amongst landscaped gardens this 12-storey colonial style hotel is close to key attractions, embassies and the central business district.

Phnom Penh – Mid

Almond Hotel 128F Sothearos Blvd. Tel: 023 220 822 www.almondhotel.com.kh 56-room hotel located close to the Royal Palace and the riverfront with spacious rooms with WiFi. Downstairs restaurant serves dim sum and Cantonese food.

Asia Club 456 Monivong Blvd. Tel: 023 721 766 An oasis of water and green in the city, the five bungalows and four rooms with air-con and bath, large safe and flatscreen tv. The beautiful swimming pool is tucked around the back of Man Han Lou Restaurant.

Blue Lime 42 Street 19z (off Street 19), Tel: 023 222 260. www.bluelime.asia Centrally-located mini-hotel with a great swimming pool and contemporary rooms is a good flashpacker option.

Homefeel CS Hotel #23AB, Street 278.

Tel: 023 214 571 www.homefeelcs-hotel.com Located in the heart of the tourist area in the center of Phnom Penh, Homefeel CS Hotel welcomes you warmly and guarantees you will get this feeling.

Hotel Cara 18 Street 47 & 84.

Tel: 023 430 066 / 023 998 422. stay@hotelcara.com www.hotelcara.com This stylish boutique hotel has wellfitted rooms at very reasonable rates and a great sushi restaurant.

Lebiz Hotel & Library 79F Street 128.

Tel: 023 998 608 / 610 info@lebizhotel.com

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 57

www.lebizhotel.com Luxury accommodation with a sleek modern design offers a full range of specialty services tailored to business needs, and cutting-edge technology to maximise comfort and productivity. Has unique library.

Queen Boutique Hotel 49A Street 214. Tel: 023 211 683 om@queenboutique.asia Boutique hotel located conveniently close to all the major attractions including the Royal Palace and National Museum.

Splash Inn Hotel 5 Street 244. Tel: 023 986 174 www.splashinncambodia.com The Splash Inn opened in March 2011 after full renovations to two traditional Khmer villas, one block from the Royal Palace.

TEAV Boutique Hotel 14 Street 310, Phnom Penh, Tel: 023 981 818 / 017 989 191 www.teavboutiquehotel.com, stay@ teavgroup.com Located in a quiet, peaceful setting in the prestigious central heart of Phnom Penh near the Independence Monument, the uniquely designed art deco style TEAV Boutique Hotel provides single travellers, couples, families, leisure and business with a relaxing and highly personalised stay in Cambodia’s capital.

Rambutan Resort 29 Street 71, BKK1. Tel: 017 99 22 40 www.rambutanresort.com Urban modern oasis located in a quiet residential area only 5 minutes from all major sights in Phnom Penh. Deluxe pool view and garden rooms with outdoor bathtubs. Salt water pool and private spa room for some unwinding treatments.

River 108 2 Street 108. Tel: 023 218 785 www.river108.com Art deco hotel aimed at the flashpacker set, the river view rooms are extremely comfortable with flat screen TV and separate bathroom and toilet. Efficient WiFi, good working space and spacious rooms make this the perfect business option.

The Little Garden 8 Street 398.

Tel: 078 217 871 Stylish boutique hotel with a swimming pool. A quiet retreat from the city’s chaos. Rooms feature attractive Cambodian furniture and gorgeous colonial tiles.

The Plantation Urban Resort and Spa 28 Street 184. Tel: 023 215 151 theplantatation.asia 70 rooms – including a penthouse suite, two swimming pools, a restaurant, two bars, a gym, a spa and a meeting room. Centrally situated close to most of Phnom Penh’s main attractions.

The Quay Sisowath Quay.

Tel: 023 224 894 http://thequayhotel.com Five-storey, 16-room riverside boutique hotel has beautiful contemporary rooms designed by Gary Fell. The stand-out features are the roof-top jacuzzi and the very contemporary ground-floor bar and Chow Restaurant with WiFi.

58 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Villa Borann 235A Street 19. Tel 023 211 518 www.villa-borann-boutique-hotel.com Business boutique hotel in the historical centre of Phnom Penh with 14 rooms, swimming pool, bar and restaurant.

Nicely furnished rooms. Colonial style.

Villa SALT 4 Street 294. Tel: 012 815 066 villasalt@sentosasilk.com Whether you are touring Phnom Penh or planning a long vacation, Villa SALT along with SentosaSilk, create an atmosphere that makes you feel at home. Explore 14 artistically decorated rooms, each created to give you that authentic sense of uniqueness.

Villa Samnang Street 302, BKK1.

Tel : 023 221 644 www.villa-samnang.com Boutique hotel with 14 rooms, swimming pool, bar and restaurant.

Villa ey 16 Street 306. Tel: 023 213 219 www.villasrey.com Charming hotel, six rooms with terrace and swimming pool. Very quiet in the heart of Phnom Penh

Phnom Penh - Budget

California 2 79 Sisowath Quay. Tel: 077 503 144 www.cafecaliforniaphnompenh.com New guest house and bar on the river front with well-priced rooms with air con and security box. Downstairs bar has great Tex-Mex food and pool table.

Feeling Home Cnr. Streets 278 & 63. Tel: 023 221 522 www.feelinghomecambodia.com Stylish nine-room boutique hotel with

ample rooms at competitive rates, including flatscreen TV, air-con, security box and great beds. Also has two apartments, an Asian restaurant and a Café Sentiment coffee house.

L’Imprevu Highway 1, 7km past Monivong Bridge Tel: 024 390 405 Complex with twenty-four bungalows just outside of Phnom Penh. Tennis courts and excellent swimming pool make this a good break from the city.

Le Rit’s 71 Street 240. Tel: 023-213-160 Small & charming 6-room guesthouse with spacious rooms is managed by NYEMO NGO, part of its hospitality training. Rooms equipped with queen sized bed, cable TV, private bathroom.

Sihanoukville

Independence Hotel Independence Beach Tel: 012 728 090 www.independencehotel.net Beautifully restored hotel on Independence Beach, originally opened in 1963, reopened in 2007 following a complete refurbishment. Has sweeping ocean views from most rooms. Also has a gym, conference rooms and circular restaurant.

Mick & Craig’s Restaurant Serendipity Beach, Sihanoukville Tel: 034 934 845 www.mickandcraigs.com A small friendly restaurant serving comfort food from around the world since 1997. Open daily from 7am-11pm.

Reef Resort Road to Serendipity Beach Tel: 012 315 338 www.reefresort.com.kh Guesthouse set around a beautiful pool with well apportioned air-con rooms, in-room safe and cable TV, family rooms also available. Has a welcoming bar with excellent TV screen, slate pool table and excellent Mexican cuisine.

Scuba Nation Lane off road to Serendipity Beach Tel: 012 604 680 / 012 715 785 www.divecambodia.com Five-star PADI centre offering daily trips to the area’s many islands and reefs including the decent dive sites at Koh Rung Samloem and Koh Kon, also runs a range of PADI-certified courses, and has an office in Phnom Penh.

Sokha Beach Resort Sokha Beach.

Tel: 034 935 999 With its own private beach, excellent swimming pool and fine restaurants, Sokha is the most up-market place to stay in Sihanoukville. A live Filipino band plays around the cocktail bar at night.

The Secret Garden Otres Beach. Tel: 0976 495 131 www.secretgardenotres.com Modern beachside air-con bungalows with hot water, jungle showers or baths, TV, WiFi and Otres Beach’s only swimming pool. Restaurant run by professional Australian chef.

Zoco Independence Hotel Road to Serendipity Beach Two fashion boutiques – one on the way to Serendipity Beach, the other in Independence Hotel – run by the Spanishborn Nuria, sells dresses, skirts, bags and accessories.

Travel

Cambodia Uncovered 11B Street 370. Tel: 012 507 097 www.cambodiauncovered.com Offers village and cultural tours in Phnom Penh and surrounds including road trips, Mekong cruises, accommodation, cooking classes and other activities.

Exotissimo Travel No. 66, Norodom Blvd. Tel: 023 218 948 www.exotissimo.com Excellent French-owned agency specialising in adventure tourism, flight bookings, package holidays and a range of tours of Southeast Asia.

Helicopters Cambodia 10 Street 310. Tel: 012 814 500 www.helicopterscambodia.com Over 12 years experience operating in the Kingdom offers scenic flights around the Temples of Angkor and beyond. Is a wholly owned subsidiary of Helicopters New Zealand Group. iDeal Reward 23 KT Tower Level 9, Street 112 Tel: 023 555 00 24 / 017 87 29 15 www.idealreward.com A website that provides the best tourist deals in and around Cambodia with up to 80% discounts on Travel, Beauty & Wellness, Leisure, Restaurant, and Shopping. Check out idealreward.com now to get exclusive tourist deals and guides of places to eat, see, and relax.

Intrepid Travel 468 Sivutha Blvd. Tel: 063 966 655 For travellers with a yearning to get off the beaten track, Intrepid opens up a whole new world of adventure travel.

With a huge variety of tours available.

Travel Indochina 43-44EO Street 108. Tel: 023 991 978 www.travelindochina.com.au Australian-owned and managed travel company specialising in small group journeys around Asia that can tailor trips for individuals.

LISTINGS

siem reap Siem Reap - Bars

AHA The Passage. Tel: 063 965 501 Sophisticated and beautifully designed wine bar selling a wide range of wines from around the world and tapas, as well as great cheese and Lavazza coffee.

Open 10.30am to 10.30pm.

Angkor What?

Pub Street. Tel: 012 181 4001 “Promoting irresponsible drinking since 1998,” this graffiti-laden bar is the mainstay of Pub Street. A healthy mix of loud rock, punk and grunge, buckets of vodka and red bull for $6.

Laundry Bar Old Market Extremely chilled music bar just off Pub Street with great mellow decor and extremely cool t-shirts. Free drink during the 6pm to 9pm washing hours.

Open 6pm until late.

Linga Bar Alley behind Pub Street Tel: 012 246 912. www.lingabar.com

Laid back, gay-friendly bar with extremely chilled Buddha Bar tunes and some amazing light boxes that serves a great range of cocktails.

Free WiFi. Open 5pm until late.

Mezze 13a (1st floor) Street 11 Tel: 097 7667343 mezze.siemreap@gmail.com www.mezzesiemreap.com Escape the heat and dust to be warmly welcomed by attentive staff at one of Siem Reap’s unique venues. Enjoy signature cocktails, original cuban cigars, fine champagnes, luxury shisha and fusion tapas. Open every day from 6pm-1am.

Miss Wong Lane off Pub Street. Tel: 092 428 332 Imagine yourself in China at the turn of the last century and you won’t go much wrong in Miss Wong with excellent and original cocktails and dim sum. Open late.

Nest Sivutha Blvd. Tel: 063 966 381 A step up for Siem Reap, Nest is high level drinking and dining, serving light Mediterranean and Asian food in a unique, highly stylised setting, with loungers and table settings.

Picasso Alley West A very cosy wine and tapas bar, with artful décor and a curved bar making conversation easy and fun. Good selection of wines and delicious tapas make this a regular haunt for expats.

Open 5pm until midnight.

The Station Wine Bar Street 7, close to Pub Street Tel: 097 850 4043 www.thestationwinebarsiemreap.com

For lovers and lovers of wine offers a selection of fine wines, always 20 by the glass and a list of over 100 by the bottle. Good music and pleasant decor in air conditioned comfort. Tuesdays, varietal wine tastings and every Wednesday, Friday and Saturday our Lady Boy Variety Show.

The Warehouse Old Market Tel: 012 530 227 Popular expat bar plays great music with good Asian-Western fusion cuisine. Best stocked bar in town and homemade infused vodkas. Open 10am to 3am.

Siem Reap - Cafés

Blue Pumpkin Old Market Tel: 012 946 227/ 063 463 574 www.tbpumpkin.com Popular café with a great range of freshly baked breads and pastries, shakes and coffee. Also at Angkor Wat and the airport. Open daily from 6am to 10pm.

Free WiFi.

Siem Reap - Galleries

Diwo Galleries One at Vat Svay, Tonle Sap Road and another between Monument Books and Ta Prohm Hotel on the riverside Features a selection of refined Khmer statues and Buddhas. The larger Vat Svay location features a gallery exhibition of Thierry Diwo’s photography, as well as sells home decor and books. Drinks are available in the garden and on the terrace.

Happy Cambodia Gallery 2 Hospital Street, between Psar Chaas and Pub Street Tel: 063 963 114 www.happypainting.net McDermott Gallery I & II FCC Complex Pokambor Avenue, Alley behind Pub Street. Tel: 092 668 181

www.mcdermottgallery.com Two galleries devoted to photographic works. with permanent exhibition of photographs taken by John McDermott.

Open 10am to 10pm.

Siem Reap - Hotels

Golden Banana Boutique Resort Phum Wat Damnak, Kum Sala Komreuk, Krom 10, Siem Reap Tel: 012 654 638 / 063 766 655 goldenbanana2@gmail.com, www. goldenbanana.info Deluxe suites & villas in modern Asian style build around a salt-water pool.

Private balcony or terrace with outdoor bathtub/splash shower. Gay-friendly.

3mn walk to Old Market.

Golden Orange Off East River Road Tel: 063 965 389 reservations@goldenorangehotel.com www.goldenorangehotel.com Mini-hotel with good sized air-con rooms that tends to have customers when others are empty. Nice outside bar makes for a good place to sit and have a few beers.

Raffles Grand Hotel D’Angkor 1 Charles de Gaulle Tel: 063 963 888 www.raffles.com Elegant hotel with opulent gardens and a spectacular swimming pool in its grounds.

Sofitel Angkor Phokeethra Golf & Spa Resort Vithei Charles de Gaulle Tel: 063 964 600/ 610 www.sofitel.com Ultimate in comfort and refinement, combining the traditional architecture of Cambodia with elegant French colonial style. 5-star accommodation, 5 bars and restaurants, swimming pool, spa and international standard18-hole 72-par golf course, 16km outside Siem Reap.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 59

Siem Reap - Leisure

Angkor Silk Farm Puok District (20min from Siem Reap downtown) Open daily from 8am to 5pm Tel: 063 5555 768 www.artisansdangkor.com Learn about the meticulous process of silk-making and traditional silk weaving.

A free shuttle bus departing from Artisans Angkor’s shop in Siem Reap center to the Angkor Silk Farm is available daily at 9.30am and 1.30pm.

Body Tune 293-290 Pokambor Av. (next to the old market along Riverside) Tel: 063 764 141 www.bodytune.co.th When you need to re-balance and rejuvenate your body in between daily routines, BODY TUNE is the perfect place to regain your energy. Open daily 10:00am - 10:30pm.

Helicopters Cambodia 658 Hup Quan Street.

Tel: 063 963 316 Professionally run company that has flights over the temples and beyond in modern, safe helicopters.

Phare, The Cambodian Circus Behind Angkor National Museum on Komay Road. Tel: 015 499 480. www.facebook.com/PhareCambodianCircus A unique professional Cambodian theatrical circus show mixing traditional and modern artistic skills. Emotion guaranteed every night for only $15.

7.30pm daily.

Phokeethra Country Club Sofitel Angkor Phokeethra Vithei Charles de Gaulle Tel: 056 396 4600 reservation.angkor@phokeethragolf.com International standard 18-hole, 72-par golf course 16km outside of Siem Reap.

Clubhouse facilities: pro shop, rental equipment, restaurant.

Sam Veasna Centre Wat Bo Area.

Tel: 063 96 37 10 Wild Asia Responsible Tourism Award winner. Some of the rarest birds in Asia can be seen at Prek Toal and Ang Trapang Thmor, a day-trip from Siem Reap, or combine bird watching with temple trips to Koh Ker and Beng Melea.

Siem Reap - Medical

Royal Angkor International Hospital National Route #6 Phum Kasekam, Khum Sra Ngea.

Tel: 063-761-888.

Fax: 063-761-739 www.royalangkorhospital.com Royal Angkor International Hospital is part of the well known Bangkok Hospital Network. We offer high quality care for all eventualities from routine care to emergency treatment 24 hours a day.

Siem Reap - Restaurants

with a menu catering to a range of budgets and tastes. Both food and service is consistently good. An attractive wine list rounds out this restaurant’s promise.

L’Oasi East River Road. Tel: 092 418 917 The best Italian restaurant in, or rather just outside of, town. The combination of the beautiful garden and home-cooked Italian pasta and pizza makes the trip well worth it.

Khmer Ways Wat Svay Village. Tel: 077 367 790 www.khmerways.com Ride specially adapted motor-scooters to explore parts of Siem Reap nobody else gets to, including villages, temples and waterfalls. No previous experience required. Lunch, water, sunscreen and snacks provided.

Maharajah Indian Restaurant Next to Pub Street, btwn CAB bank & provincial hospital. Old Market Area Tel: 063-966221 / 092-506622 Authentic Indian vegetarian and nonvegetarian food. Maharajah believes that exclusivity with a touch of simplicity is important in the creation of every dish.

Open daily 11am – 10pm.

Marum 8a Route B, btwn Wat Polanka & Catholic Church. Tel: 017 363 284 contact@marum-restaurant.org Great food, good service. Part of the Friends International group that trains marginalized and vulnerable young people for a career in the hospitality industry. Profits go back into the training programme. Open Mon-Sat 11am-10pm.

Siem Reap - Shops

Artisans Angkor Boutique and Workshops Stung Thmey Street (2min from the Old Market) Open daily from 7.30am to 6.30pm Tel: 063 963 330 www.artisansdangkor.com Boutique offering a large collection of handmade souvenirs such as high-quality silk scarves, clothing and accessories, wooden and stone sculptures, lacquer paintings and decorative items for all contemporary lifestyles. Also offers free guided tours of the handicraft workshops to see some of the secrets of traditional Khmer craftsmanship.

Eric Raisina 53 Veal Village Tel: 012 965 207 / 063 963 207 Accessories, decor, textiles and clothing created by Madagascan-born and French-trained designer. Phone in advance for an appointment.

Jasmine Boutique FCC Angkor, Pokambor Avenue Tel: 063 760 610 Same sophisticated, stylish boutique as on Street 240 in Phnom Penh.

Chanrey Tree Pokombo Ave. Tel: (855) 63 76 79 97 www.chanreytree.com Traditional Khmer food in a beautiful contemporary setting. Alongside the river, 50m brfore Preah Phrum Rath Pagoda. Open daily. Lunch 11am2.30pm, dinner 6pm-10.30pm.

Smateria The Alley West Tel: 063 964 343 www.smateria.com Boutique specialising in accessories made from recycled materials including a range of bags and wallets made from old cartons, plastic bags and mosquito nets.

FCC Angkor FCC Complex, Pokambor Avenue Tel: 063 760 280 Elegant bar and restaurant serves a mix of Asian and international cuisine. The complex includes shops, the McDermott Gallery, Visaya Spa and boutique hotel.

Sokkhak Spa Sok San Street, next to Haven Restaurant, Old Market Area Tel: +63 763 797 www.sokkhakspa.com In Khmer, Sokkhak means ‘tranquility’.

A nature-inspired décor with a soft, warm and tranquil atmosphere in which to relax, refresh and indulge and using carefully chosen natural botanical and marine-based products.

Open daily 11am - 10pm.

Le Malraux Street No. 7. Tel: 063 966 041 Beautiful French restaurant offering alfresco, café and brasserie style dining

60 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

siem reap

Siem Reap - Spas

Our City Festival Caroline Major A photo essay examining disability access, a ballet that considers the importance of cultural heritage, and an exhibition looking at youths working on construction sites are just some of the thoughtprovoking works that form the Our City Festival, taking place in Siem Reap for the first time this year.

The festival, now in its sixth year, originated in Phnom Penh but has expanded to include the country’s three core creative centers. The spotlight shines on Siem Reap from Jan. 31 to Feb. 2, followed by Battambang from Feb. 7 to Feb. 9.

Focusing on urbanism and its influence on contemporary culture, the festival issued an open call to local and international artists, inviting them to share their “ideas for our city”. As Cambodia’s urban hubs undergo rapid development, the festival serves as a growing platform for both creative and critical exploration of changes in the modern landscape.

Open to the public, all events are free to attend and take place in a variety of venues, including the Phare Ponleu Selpak Big Top in Siem Reap and the Sammaki Gallery in Battambang. In keeping with the festival’s mission of participation, Siem Reap’s co-curator Sasha Constable included all artists that applied.

“It is not about being museum worthy, but participation and personal reactions to the works,” she says.

The festival programme promises a broad range of artistic mediums from the traditional to the technological, including dance, video, installations, mixed media and painting. The shows offer a similarly diverse interpretation of themes relevant to the respective cities.

Art-Bin: To Stop People Hating Bins by Siem Reap co-curator Oun Sovann and children from The Global Child Foundation is an installation at the Shinta Mani hotel that is challenging wider public opinion of bin use in the community, while raising greater awareness of waste.

The Light Our Lives exhibition held at the FCC in Siem Reap takes a look at rural life just outside the city, where many struggle to afford electricity.

In Battambang, the Recycle Water exhibition by Nov Sokunthea considers the impact of flooding on communities, thus encouraging a greater awareness of ways to deal with the issue and the handling of waste management.

Battambang is also set to host workshops and an art walk as part of its line-up of events.

For more information about the upcoming shows, visit ourcityfestival.org.

LISTINGS

food & drink Arabic

Beirut Resto-Café 117 Sisowath Quay, (after night market) Tel: 023 720 011/ 092 483 759 The only authentic Lebanese halal cuisine and Sisha Lounge in the town. Offering middle east flavours including mezze tapas – hummus, shish kebab, baba ganouj, falafel, vegetarian and non-vegetarian kebab wraps. Delivery, takeaway, catering.

Open daily 10am until late.

Petra 8 Street 288 (between St 51 & St 57) Tel: 023 666 3222 / 089 990 150 Authentic Arabic cuisine, ambiance and chef with rooftop shisha lounge.

Located in the heart of BKK1.

Special dining experiences with great costumes.

Open daily from 10am – 11pm.

Cambodian

Khmer Surin 9 Street 57.

Tel 012 887 320 Elegant restaurant featuring wood and silk décor with a tropical garden that serves Cambodian and Thai favourites. Dishes are well prepsred and large enough to share.

K’NYAY The Terrace on 95, 43 Street 95 (corner of Street 348) Tel: 093 665 225. www.knyay.com Modern Khmer restaurant tucked away off Monivong Blvd, with a menu including a selection of freshly prepared vegan dishes, along with traditional Cambodian specialities.

Offers a selection of cakes, ice creams and sorbets, using all vegan ingredients. Open 12-9pm (Tue to Fri), 7am-9pm (Sat & Sun), closed Monday.

Malis 136 Norodom Bvd. Tel: 023 221 022 www.malis-restaurant.com Beautiful modern Khmer restaurant with a courtyard set around narrow water channels and decorated with terracotta floor tiles. Has air-con rooms inside for those who find the midday sun too much. The cuisine is modern Khmer, with no MSG. Open 6am - 10pm.

Restaurant Le Royal Raffles Hotel Le Royal Tel: 023 981 888 (see also restaurants, French) Romdeng 74 Street 174.

Tel: 092 219 565 Come to Romdeng and order some delicious Khmer food for you and also for your children from our new kid’s menu, serving creative and

healthy treats for little one! While waiting for your dishes, let you kids enjoy the playroom while you relax by the pool… And before leaving don’t miss our new gift shop in the first floor. Special lunch set menu everyday. Open 11am - 9pm.

Chinese

Emperors of China 19 Street 163 Tel: 097 929 2699 Up-market Chinese restaurant, popular with the capital’s large Chinese community, private dinning rooms, specializes in Peking duck and dim sum.

Fortune Palace NagaWorld, Hun Sen Park Chinese restaurant with authentic Greater Chinese cuisine and all-youcan-eat Dim Sum buffet on Sundays.

Open from 11am - 3pm, 5pm 10pm.

Fu Lu Zu Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra 26 Old August Site, Sothearos Blvd.

Tel: 023 999 200 x 6613 Elegant Chinese restaurant specialising in contemporary Cantonese delicacies and dim sum with private rooms for intimate ambience.

Open from 11.30am - 2.30pm, 6.30pm - 10.30pm. Dim Sum weekend from 8am - 2.30pm.

Hua Nam 753 Monivong Bvd. Tel: 023 364 005 Large Chinese restaurant that specialises in seafood and duck and has a good selection of wines, with VIP rooms.

Open 11am - 2pm, 5pm - 10pm.

Man Han Lou Restaurant 456 Monivong Blvd.

Tel: 023 721 966 Micro-brewery with four types of German-style beer. Has extensive Chinese, Thai, Khmer and Vietnamese menus, as well as dim sum breakfast.

Open from 6am - 10am.

Sam Doo 56-58 Kampuchea Krom Tel: 023 218 773 The place for dim sum in Phnom Penh, baskets of steamed prawn dumplings, pork buns and more go for a pittance. The wonton soup and other tasty meals are a steal.

Open 7am - 2am.

Xiang Palace InterContinental Phnom Penh 2/F, 296 Mao Tse Toung Blvd.

Tel: 023 424 888 x 3562 Xiang Palace is locally acclaimed for its authentic Cantonese cuisine and delicious dim sum, all prepared with the finest ingredients.

Open daily for lunch and dinner.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 61

Yi Sang Chinese Restaurant 128F Sothearos Blvd.

Tel: 023 220 922 www.almondhotel.com.kh Set on the ground floor of the Almond Hotel, this stylish restaurant specialises in Cantonese food and dim sum that fuses the traditional with the contemporary, including excellent dim sum.

Open from 6.30am - 10am, 11.30am - 2pm and 5.30pm - 10pm – Dim Sum not served in the evening.

French

Armand’s 33 Street 108.

Tel: 015 548 966 A true bistro experience in a cosy wood-panelled space, despite the informal and relaxed ambience it has the menu to even satisfy high-rollers.

Open 5pm until late. Closed Mondays.

Brasserie du Port 49E Sisowath Quay, cnr Street 84 Tel: 066 821 224 Seaside bistro featuring eclectic menu of haute cuisine mixed with pasta and ish specials. French classics including flambéed duck, pork filet mignon and home-made fois gras available at reasonable prices. Open daily for lunch and dinner, Brasserie’s long wooden bar is the perfect spot for enjoying a sea breeze and the

62 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

restaurant’s comprehensive wine list.

Open daily, 8am – 10pm.

Comme à la Maison 13 Street 57.

Tel: 012 951 869 www.commealamaisondelicatessen.com Sophisticated French restaurant with a beautiful outdoor terrace area at the front, yet secluded from the street. One of the best French kitchens in town. Small delicatessen at the back of the restaurant.

Open daily from 6am - 10.30pm.

K West 1 Street 154, cnr. Sisowath Quay Tel: 023 214 747 Stylish aircon bar and restaurant below the Amanjaya with an excelllent steak menu and good value happy hour from 6pm to 8pm Fridays. Now has a brasserie menu with daily specials. Also has free WiFi. Open 6.30am until midnight.

La Marmite Cnr Streets 108 & 51.

Tel: 012 391 746 This small, reasonably priced French bistro has two adjoining rooms (one non-smoking) creating a relaxed, cosy atmosphere. Serves excellent fish, steaks and offal as well as daily specials, for a taste of real home-cooked French cuisine.

Open 11am-2.30pm, 6pm-10.30pm.

La Residence Restaurant 22/24 Street 214. Tel: 023 224 582 Fine dining on an international scale in this sophisticated restaurant, where French classics meet gourmet, modern cuisine. Open from 11.30am-2pm, 6.30pm-10.30pm.

Le Café Mith Samlanh French Institute, Street 184 Tel: 092 471 791 Set in the lush garden of the French Institute (formerly CCF), Le Café offers an extensive à la carte menu with Khmer and French dishes. All proceeds go towards Mith Samlanh’s programmes for marginalised youth.

Open 7am - 5pm, closed Sundays.

Le Gourmet NagaWorld Hotel and Casino, Hun Sen Park. Tel: 023 228 822.

Quality ingredients come together in beautiful presentation on the plate, with the luxury of the surroundings complemented by professional and attentive service. Open daily from 12pm-3pm and 6pm-10pm.

Le Jardin 16 Street 360. Tel: 011 723 399 Beautiful shaded restaurant with large garden and spacious outdoor play area for kids with excellent ice cream.

Open 8am - 10pm (closed Mondays).

Le Vôtre caterer 9A, Street 178.

Tel: 092 638 683/092 24 88 16 levotrecambodia@gmail.com Caterer specialising in fine French cuisine preparing both fresh and frozen meals for wholesale, private events and walk-in customers.

Products include foie gras, terrines, salmon gravlax, French cheeses and deli goods. Open daily 7am - 7pm.

Sunday 7am - 12pm.

Restaurant Le Royal Raffles Hotel Le Royal Tel: 023 981 888 www.raffles.com/phnompenh dining. phompenh@raffles.com Treat yourself to the finest French & Khmer cuisine in one of Indochina’s most elegant restaurants. The Chef’s Degustation menu allows you to try a myriad of dishes in a single meal in a refined atmosphere. Private rooms are available on request.

Open from 6.30pm-10.30pm.

The Wine Restaurant 219 Street 19.

Tel: 023 223 527 Excellent fine dining restaurant in the same grounds as Open Wine deli. The fresh food and extensive selection of wines make this one of the exclusive places to dine in town.

Topaz 182 Norodom Blvd.

Tel: 012 346 555/ 023 221 622 Sophisticated, air-con restaurant with outside dining, upstairs bar, wine shop, cigar room and private rooms. One of Phnom Penh’s finest restaurants. Has a popular piano bar, night club upstairs.

Open 11am-2pm, 6pm-11pm.

Van’s Restaurant 5 Street 102. Tel: 023 722 067 French fine-dining in a grand setting awaits at Van’s, located on the second floor of a well preserved colonial era building near the city’s Post Office. Open daily 11.30am-2.30pm, 5pm-10.30pm.

Indian Sub-Continent

Dosa Corner 15 Street 51. Tel: 012 673 276 This small south Indian restaurant opened in January. True to its name it has a wide range of very good value dosa as well as thali and biryani dishes. Air-conditioned.

Open 7am-10pm.

East India 9 Street 114.

Tel: 023 992 007 South Indian cuisine predominates in this pristine restaurant with excellent breads including nine types of dosa.

Open 11am-2pm, 5.30pm-10.30pm.

Flavours of India 158 Street 63.

Tel: 012 886 374, Relaxing Indian and Nepalese restaurant with friendly staff and a good range of dishes including good value vegetarian and meat thalis.

Open 10am - 11pm.

Indian Delight 115Eo Sisowath Quay.

Tel: 023 724 885 / 098 776 543 Delicious North Indian tastes served at a modest yet clean and bright on riverside. Opposite Titanic restaurant.

Open everyday 11am – 1pm.

Shiva Shakti Street 63, between Mao Tse Tung Blvd. and Street 466 Tel: 012 813 817 / 023 213 062 Decidedly upmarket and sophisticated Indian restaurant in a beautiful setting with prices to match.

Good place for an Indian treat.

Open from 11am - 2pm, 6pm 10.30pm. Closed Mondays.

Indochine

Indochine NagaWorld, Hun Sen Park With a focus on Southeast Asian

cuisine, Indochine offers tradition dishes from Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand in a sophisticated space.

Open 11am - 11pm.

Irrawaddi 24 Street 334.

Tel: 012 979 510 Authentic Myanmar food at very reasonable prices in a clean setting with paintings of the Burmese countryside decorating the walls.

Open 10am - 10pm, closed - Mondays.

Lemongrass 14 Street 130.

Tel: 012 996 707 Elegant Thai-managed restaurant with stylish use of heavy wood and artefacts to create a far more luxurious ambience than the reasonable prices would suggest.

Open 10am - 10pm.

Le Wok 33 Street 178. Tel: 092 821 857 Light and modern pan-Asian and French eatery with dishes such as prawns with lime and wasabi and Mekong lobster thermidor, and a comprehensive list of wines and cocktails. Open daily 9am - 11pm.

Ngon 60 Sihanouk Blvd. Tel: 023 987 151

www.ngonpnh.com Open air restaurant that features a vast range of Vietnamese food in a garden environment. Meaning delicious, although the food does not live up to its name, the ambience makes up for it.

Pangea Fusion Restaurant NagaWorld Hotel and Casino, Hun Sen Park.

Tel: 023 228 822 Pan-Asian fusion restaurant with a western flair that specialises in allyou-can-eat dinner buffets.

Open daily 6am - 10.30pm.

International

Aussie XL Café 205A Street 51.

Tel: 023 301 301 Aussie style bistro food with quick lunch menu and a good selection of house wines and retail wines.

Open 7am - 11pm.

Byrd Cafe & Restaurant 23 Street 288.

Tel: 023 997 255 Japanese run restaurant in BKK1 where comfort meets a good atmosphere. Guests can enjoy dishes including appetizers, salads, grill, side menus and drinks.

Open daily 11am-midnight.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 63

CABARET 159 Street 154, near Central Market Tel: 092 650 980 info@cabaret-restaurant.com Restaurant and lounge bar with live music.

Enjoy trendy food, tapas, cocktails and wine in a modern setting encompassing two elegant areas, bar and patio. Fine and casual dining available. Live music four to five times a week, sumptuous variety of wine and cigars.

Cafe Monivong Raffles Hotel Le Royal Tel: 023 981 888 Wicker armchairs and marble tables covered with crisp white tablecloths create the perfect place to relax and linger over a delightful alfresco breakfast, lunch or dinner. Western and Asian cuisines are available buffet-style or a la carte. Private rooms are available on request. Buffet from 6am - 10am, 12pm - 2.30pm, 6pm - 10pm, A la carte from 11am - 11pm.

Doors Restaurant 18, Street 47 & 84. Tel : 023 998 114 www.doorspp.com New tapas restaurant, with live music. Open 11am until late Equinox 3a Street 278. Tel: 023 676 7593 www.equinox-cambodia.com marco@equinox-cambodia.com anthony@equinox-cambodia.com French-run bar and restaurant.

International menu, pool tables, splitlevel bar. Art exhibitions each month and live music gigs most Saturdays.

Bachata class on Tuesdays, Salsa class on Wednesday and swing nights on Thursdays. Open daily 11am – late.

FCC Phnom Penh 363 Sisowath Quay. Tel: 023 724 014 The first stop for newcomers and it’s easy to see why. Set in a beautiful colonial house with sumptuous views across the river on one side and the National Museum to the other, it’s best to come at sunset when the streets below are most crowded, the cocktails are half price and draft beer goes for $1. Open daily from 7am to midnight.

Fish Sisowath Quay, cnr of Street 108, Tel: 023 222 685 www.fishphnompenh.com Contemporary, modern restaurant specialising in all things oceanic.

64 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Menu includes everything from lobster through sushi to gourmet fish and chips for upmarket, but reasonable prices. Open 7am-late.

Flavours Corner St 51 and St 282 Tel: 017 765 896 Relaxing restaurant and popular bar run

by Quebecois with comfortable chairs that fall out onto the street. The mix of Asian and western cuisine has proved so popular that they have a copycat restaurant opposite. Open 7am - late.

FOX Wine Bistro 104 Sothearos Blvd & St. 266.

Tel.: 098 78 99 61 Casual wine-dining. For passionate food and wine lovers who want an unforgettable dining experience or even just a place to hang-out that’s unlike elsewhere in Phnom Penh.

Serving simple yet thoughtful dishes and drinks in a comfortable, hip and trendy atmosphere.

Friends 215 Street 13. Tel: 012 802 072 Non-profit training restaurant where all the proceeds go to the neighbouring street-kid school. Food is a reliable mix of Mediterranean and Asian with tapas thrown in if you are not feeling too hungry. Great juices. Another one of Phnom Penh’s places designed to take it easy, but this time with a clear conscience.

Open 11am - 9pm.

Gasolina 56/58 Street 57. Tel: 012 373 009 The largest garden bar in town has an extensive menu. Crèche facilities make this a popular choice with families at weekends. Has regular events with live music and DJs, even fashion shows.

Open from 8am - 12am.

Irina Russian Restaurant 22 Street 29 Tel: 012 833 524/ 092 833 524 www.irinacambodia.com Russian restaurant of iconic Phnom Penh status. If you can walk out of the restaurant after hitting the vodkas then you are doing well. Open daily from 11am until the vodka runs out.

Java Cafe & Gallery 56 Sihanouk Blvd.

Tel: 023 987 420

www.javaarts.org Great coffees, salads, mix-and-match sandwiches and juices served in an elegant setting. The upstairs terrace, overlooking the Independence Monument, is a good place to watch the chaos below, while the downstairs space is a great place for coffee and catching up on your emails. Has exhibitions both upstairs and down.

Open 7am - 10pm.

Lime Restaurant + Bar 79F Street 128 Tel: 023 998 608/ 610 info@lebizhotel.com, www.lebizhotel.com Located in Lebiz Hotel Lime serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner, offering a stylish mix of Asian and western favourites with a focus on fresh, healthy and local ingredients, with regular changes to the menu.

La Coupole Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra 26 Old August Site, Sothearos Blvd.

Tel: 023 999 200. www.sofitel.com Casual and authentic Indochinese and French cuisine with live cooking by chefs in an open kitchen concept.

Offers breakfast, lunch, dinner and the Sunday brunch, all set in a stunning restaurant with high ceilings and natural light.

Lotus Blanc 152 Street 51. Tel: 017 602 251 Run by local NGO Pour un Sourire d’Enfant, this centrally located training restaurant has a monthly changing lunch menu as well as a la carte Khmer dishes. Serves both Asian and continental breakfast.

Open Monday – Saturday, 7am - 10 pm.

La Croisette 241 Sisowath Quay.

Tel: 023 220 554 Riverfront restaurant with an ample outside dining area screened off by trees that serves good, reasonablypriced food, also has a cool, air-con restaurant inside. Often arranges special events. Open 7am until late.

La Plaza Spanish Tapas Bar 22b Street 278, nr cnr Street 57 Tel: 012 825 443 Recreates to perfection the best known and most delicious Spanish tapas, making of seafood Paella its signature dish. Tapas are the result of hundreds of years of Spanish culinary history and evolution. Simple, tasty and healthy dishes have become a standard to be enjoyed with friends while drinking large amounts of sangría.

Open 11am - 2pm,5pm - 10pm. All day on the weekend.

LA ROSE Restaurant 164b Norodom Blvd.

Tel: 023 211 130 / 080 900 900 www.larose.com.kh Revive your strength and restore your health with La Rose Restaurant’s healthy option menu.

Cozy ground floor restaurant with experienced chefs serving both Asian and Western cuisine.

Latin Quarter Cnr Street 178 and Street 19 Tel: 093 319 081.

Latin restaurant and bar that serves excellent tapas and mains with extra salsa. Beautiful courtyard often hosts live music and salsa dancing while the air-con restaurant is available for private hire. Open from breakfast until the music stops.

Le Quay Café Cnr. Sisowath Quay & Street 110 Tel: 023 998 730, www.amaraspa.hotelcara.com Enjoy the menu of sushi, salads, paninis, crepes and Asian specialities, with a wide range of healthy power juices, smoothies, cocktails, coffees, beers and wines, either beside a relaxing water feature or on the riverside terrace. Smoke free environment for lunch and dinner.

Open 10.30am-10.30pm.

Metro Café Cnr. Sisowath Quay & Street 148 Tel: 023 222 275 Cool east-meets-west decor and a chic menu offering tapas, starters and mains, comprehensive cocktail menu, favourite among which is the Espresso Martini, Metro also offers a range of classic breakfasts and an elegant lunch spot with free wifi in an air-con and smoke-free (until 10pm) atmosphere.

Open daily 9:30am - 1am.

Mike’s Burger House Russian Blvd, inside Sokimex Petrol Station. Tel: 012 633 971 Hugely popular burger bar that serves food with plastic knives and forks and equally plastic French fries with cheese sauce. Ideal for those who believe that American culture starts with a Mc. New York Steakhouse 264 Street 63 cnr Mao Tse Tung Blvd.

Tel: 023 987 500, www.steakhouse.com.kh Indulge in a seductive dining experience in the famed Phnom Penh Steak restaurant. The innovative menu features New-York Steakhouse signature prime cuts of beef charred to perfection accompanied by decadent sides and desserts.

Open Daily from 11am-2pm and 13pm-midnight.

Ocean 11 Street 288.

Tel: 017 766 690 European managed Mediterranean restaurant that dishes up some of the best fish and seafood in town.

Try the red snapper or the squid with rocket. Often has exhibitions around the understated walls.

One More Pub 16E Street 294.

Tel: 017 327 378 (see bars) Paddy Rice 213-217 Sisowath Quay.

Tel: 023990321. www.paddyrice.net (see bars) Regency Cafe InterContinental Phnom Penh 296 Mao Tse Toung Blvd.

Tel: 023 424 888 ext. 3603 Regency Cafe features sumptuous international and Asian buffets as well as a la carte dining for the most discerning palates. Open daily 6am-10.30pm

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 65

Restaurant Tell 13 Street 90.

Tel: 023 430 650 Up-market eatery that re-creates the genuine feel of an Alpine chalet, has a spacious indoor restaurant and outdoor terrace with rotisserie and bar. European menu with imported steaks, fondue, raclette and an extensive wine list.

Open 11.30am - 2pm, 5pm - 11pm.

Rising Sun 20 Street 178.

Tel: 012 970 718 (see bars) Riverside Bistro Cnr. Sisowath Quay & Street 148 Tel: 012 277 882/ 023 213 898 Popular restaurant with expats and tourists alike mainly due to its large outdoor terrace area to view the river. Serves a mixture of Asian and western food with an emphasis on German cuisine. Has rock music videos and a pool table in the music bar at the back.

Open from 7am - 2am.

Samba Brazilian Steakhouse 64 Sihanouk Blvd.

(Nr Independence Monument).

Tel: 023 222 599 Experience the unique Brazilian Churrasco way of cookingwith a large variety of meats skewered and roasted to perfection and served piping hot direct from the skewers to your plate! Open daily 11am - 3pm, 5pm - 10:30pm.

Stella Restaurant 55 Street 75 Tel: 099 574 188 / 012 735 002 A cosy restaurant located near Wat Phnom, Stella serves pizzas, grilled food and Asian cuisine in a peaceful garden atmosphere.

Steve’s Steakhouse 8 Street 240.

Tel: 023 987 320 Longstanding restaurant specialising in local grain-fed beef as well as a large variety of imported steaks, hamburgers, ribs and Greek cuisine.

Has a terraced lounge with pool tables upstairs as well as a sports bar with large screen TV and happy hour from 12pm to 7pm.

Open daily 11am - 10.30pm.

Stonegrill 649 Sisovath Quay.

Tel: 023 999 950 www.stonegrill.com.kh Stonegrill offers a unique interactive dining experience where diners meals are served cooking at the table on a natural volcanic stones heated to 400C (752F).

Open daily 11am - midnight.

T-Bone Steak House 392 Monivong Boulevard & Street 360 Tel: 012 900 138 Contemporary restaurant serving a premium selection of both imported and Cambodian beef, in a sophisticated air-conditioned setting – a carnivore’s delight.

Open 12pm - 2pm, 5pm -11pm.

66 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Tepui Restaurant Lounge Chinese House, 45 Sisowath Quay Tel: 023 991 514 Located on the second floor of Chinese House, Tepui offers a mix of Mediterranean and South American small plates with Asian accents.The skilled Venezuelan chef is considered one of the city’s best culinary talents.

Open 6pm-10.30pm, closed Mondays.

The Exchange / The Vault 28 Street 47.

Tel: 078 886 889 Large colonial mansion contains The Vault, Phnom Penh’s first private member’s club for thoses who have $1000 to burn. Underneath, the Exchange has elegany exposed brickwork and low lighting as well as an impressive fusion menu.

Open daily, 10am - midnight.

The Quay 277 Sisowath Quay.

Tel: 023 224 894 Rooftop deck with spectacular views of the river is a great place to enjoy a drink during half price 4pm-8pm happy hour. Food is a mix of tapas and more substantial offerings, including an excellent duck confit.

Open daily 7am – 11pm.

The Lost Room 43 Street 21 Tel: 078 700 001 A hidden gem, with eclectic food in an urbane environment. This small restaurant and bar owned by the former owners of Talkin To A Stranger offers small plates of food for sharing. Using imported and local foods, the menu encompasses global foods and unique cocktail and wine listings at reasonable prices. Caring and experienced staff makes for a pleasant evening.

Come find The Lost Room and ring for directions. Open from 5pm Monday to Saturday. Kitchen closes at 10pm. Closed Sundays. Lunch by appointment only.

The Taste Khmer Dessert & Café The Taste Khmer Desert & Café collection which appeals to your eyes and mouth you will be charmed by lovely Khmer Dessert. 9 Street 310, Phnom Penh, Tel: 023219498 / 012476012, axchoeun@yahoo.com Open daily from 7am – 9:30pm.

The Village Restaurant, Bar & Live Music 1 Street 360.

Tel: 012810731 Stylish purpose built music venue serving a sumptuous array of international dishes. Superb stage and acoustics plays host to a variety of international and local bands.

Open from 9am - midnight Closed Sundays Zino Wine Bar and Restaurant 12 Street 294. Tel: 023998 519 FB: www.facebook.com/zinowinebar Zino offers a comprehensive wine list by the glass and bottle, professionally made cocktails and a constantly evolving Mediterranean and Asian menu. Open for lunch and dinner 7 days a week. Kitchen closes at 11pm.

Italian

Aria D’Italia 41EO Street 310.

Tel: 012 840 705 Cute little Italian pizzeria tucked away between Street 57 and Street 63. Well-priced lunch set menu and homemade ravioli. Home delivery available.

Open 10.30am-2pm, 5.30pm-10pm.

Bistro Romano NagaWorld Hotel and Casino, Hun Sen Park.

Tel: 023 228 822 Best known for its sumptuous Sunday Prosecco Brunch, this stylised Italian restaurant in the NagaWorld complex specialises in Italian cuisine.

Open daily 11am - 11pm.

Cafe Monivong Raffles Hotel Le Royal.

Tel: 023 981 888 Indulge in home made antipasti, fresh prepared pasta and risotto as well as oven-baked, crispy pizzas and pair it all with the finest selection of Italian wines, every Saturday night 6pm - 10pm.

Da Sandro 162 Street 63 (near Sihanouk Blvd) Tel: 010644987. www.sandropanini.com contacts@sandropanini.com Daily homemade authentic Italian sandwiches in the heart of Phnom Penh. Delicious cold cuts and cheeses directly imported from Italy and fresh baked bread. Open 7 days, 11am - 9pm.

Do Forni Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra 26 Sothearos Blvd.

Tel: 023 999 200 Sophisticated Italian diner set in the grounds of the Sofitel hotel, dishes up much more than your basic pizza and pasta. Excellent range of wines, dimmed lighting and plush surroundings make this an excellent romantic meal for two option.

Open daily 6.30pm - 10pm.

Dolce Italia da Giorgio 96 Sothearos Blvd.

Tel: 012 562 892 Authentic neapolitan pizzeria ristorante. Pizza prepared in traditional wood-fired oven.

Delivery service now available at yourphnompenh.com last orders at 9pm. Open from 11:30am - 2pm and from 6pm - 10pm, closed on Sunday.

Genova Italian Restaurant 19Eo Street 154.

Tel: 012 390 039 This small restaurant has the feel of an Italian trattoria with food just like mamma made. The spaghetti al pesto Genovese is its signature dish.

Good range of meat and fish dishes as well as some Khmer dishes.

Open daily 10am - midnight.

La Volpaia 20–22 Street 13.

Tel: 023 992 739 Part of a global pizzeria chain that includes Florence, Tokyo, Seoul and Phnom Penh, the cuisine is excellent with pizza and pasta cooked fresh in front of your eyes.

Limoncallo 81E0 Sisowath Quay Tel: 081 800 210 / 081 800 240 Authentic Italian cuisine with pasta, risotto and pizzas prepared in the traditional way and baked in a blazing wood-fired oven. Open daily 11:30am- 2:30pm, 6pm- 10:30pm Luna 6C Street 29. Tel 023220895 Stunning garden courtyard with day beds and couches as well as outdoor tables and chairs or air-conditioned interior. Excellent homemade pasta, woodfired pizza and contemporary Italian cuisine. Great selection of wine from climate controlled cellar. Now also offering brunch on weekends.

Open 11am-11pm Mon-Fri and 9am–11pm Sat & Sun. Pasta & Vino 45 Street 288. Tel: 086 314 400 Cosy Italian spaghetteria that specialises in well-priced authentic Italian pasta and wines in a smokeless air-con environment.

Open daily 12pm - 2pm, 6pm - 10pm.

Pop Café da Giorgio 371 Sisowath Quay. Tel: 012 562 892 Sophisticated, small Italian restaurant located next to the FCC that serves light, contemporary Italian cuisine including fresh pasta and pizzas. Delivery service now available at yourphnompenh. com last orders at 9.30pm. Open daily 11.30am - 2.30pm, 6pm - 10pm.

Terrazza 1c Street 282. Tel: 023 214 660 www.terrazza.asia Experience Italy in Phnom Penh. Fine Italinan restaurant and Deli shop. Open daily 12pm-10pm, Deli shop: 9am-9pm

Japanese & Korean

Fusion Sushi Cnr. Streets 47 & 84 Tel: 023 986 114 Located inside Cara Hotel this beautifully decorated restaurant dishes up excellent Japanese and Korean food.

Hachi Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra, 26 Sothearos Blvd.

Tel: 023 999 200 ext.: 6612 A taste of Japan in a Zen atmosphere with tatami rooms and sushi bar. Open daily, 11.30am 2.30pm, 6.30pm - 10.30pm.

Kan Ji Japanese Restaurant 128f Sothearos Blvd.

Tel: 016 318 383 / 016 312 828.

Kan Ji is three floors of Japanese culinary delight in a bright and modern setting. Open for lunch and dinner, it features a stylish mix of ancient and modern creative cuisine. Open daily, 11.30am – 2.30pm, 5.30pm – 10.30pm.

Le Seoul 62 Monivong Blvd.

Tel: 012 971 516 Popular up-market South Korean restaurant specialising in BBQ, each table is equipped with its own charcoal burner, with all beef imported from the U.S. Open daily, 11am - 2.30pm, 5pm - 10pm.

imbibe

The Piedmont Revolution Darren Gall In 1961, a 21-year-old named Angelo Gaja commenced work at his family’s winery in Piedmont, Northwest Italy. At the time, the ancient valleys of the Occitan were something of a bucolic backwater, producing wines in a very traditional manner. Only 100 or so producers worked with the Nebbiolo grape and their reputation was for producing harsh, impenetrable, rustic wines with excessive tannin and oxidised fruit.

Using a thick-skinned variety of grape renowned for poor transference of colour, the winemakers in Peidmont would give new wines extended maceration time after fermentation in order to increase the wine’s hue. At the same time, this would create excessive tannins in the wine.

To soften these wines, the Piedmontese would leave them to mature in large chestnut tanks for up to seven years in order to reduce the harsh phenolic compounds. The process caused premature oxidation and volatile acidity, resulting in wines stripped of vibrant, primary fruit characters, which were left leathery, dried out and astringent.

Following several trips to France, Angelo learned new techniques in viticulture and winemaking. After many disputes with his equally passionate yet staunchly traditional father, the younger

Gaja set about introducing dramatic changes to the family business, abandoning generations of time-honoured traditions in the region.

“Sure, the wines from around here are ancient, but until recently, so was the winemaking,” is an early quote attributed to the young rebel.

Harsher pruning and lower yields in the vineyard, temperature controlled fermentation in stainless steel tanks, malolactic conversion, maturation in new French barriques, and even the introduction of non-indigenous varieties are all regional revolutions attributed to the young Angelo Gaja. He also concentrated on producing single vineyard wines that brought out the unique expression of the variety from each site.

Angelo planted Cabernet Sauvignon in one site that he eventually named Damagi, which translates to “its a pity” in English, said to be the word his father uttered whenever he walked past the vineyard.

Today the wines of Angelo Gaja can fetch Bordeaux firstgrowth prices and have made him the most highly regarded Italian winemaker in the world.

His Barbaresco and Barolo wines are incredibly complex and, thanks to his convictions, are accessible even at a young age, although the wines can still improve in the cellar for many years to come.

Darren Gall has spent a quarter of a century involved in virtually every aspect of the wine industry and the passionate pursuit of the next great bottle continues. He currently resides in Cambodia developing the wine market with Celliers d’Asie. gall.darren@ yahoo.com 68 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Ninja Dining & Bar 14B Street 278. Tel: 088 861 623 Traditional Japanese cuisine including sushi, ramen, BentoBox. Japanese chefs prepare authentic dishes amid a great atmosphere.

Open daily 11:30am-2:00pm, 5pm12am.

local expats with a large selection of Mexican beers and tequilas, and sinfully good margaritas. Serves good Mexican fare, and features photographs that capture the changing face of Cambodia.

Kitchen open 3pm - 10:30pm.

Closed Saturdays.

Origami 88 Sothearos Bvd. Tel: 012 968 095 Up-market, contemporary Japanese restaurant with a spacious air-con area downstairs and four private rooms upstairs. Specialises in sushi and tempura, and has Asahi, Kirin and Sapporo beers. Open daily 11.30am - 2pm, 5.30pm - 9.30pm.

Casa Lika 16 Street 136. Tel. 012 429 542 American-run family restaurant serving up good Mexican fare in an authentic setting with rustic brick walls and colourful Mexican artwork, great music and even better tacos make this a good place to share some Coronas with friends.

Open 10am - midnight, closed on Mondays.

Rahu 159 Sisowath Quay. Tel 023 215 179 Stunning, upscale atmosphere with a mix of modern Chinese décor, high ceilings, muted colors and rich woods.

Japanese food takes the main stage but there is also Khmer and Western fusion cooking. A good place to go late night for sushi or a bowl of congee. Open daily 5pm-2am.

Udon Café Green Bowl 29B Street 288. Tel: 086 426 530 Freshly made Sanuki-style udon noodles offer a real taste of Japan.

Noodles and accompanying soups and sauces from are prepared from scratch using traditional methods and fresh ingredients. Open from 11am-2.30pm and 5.30pm-9pm.

Closed every 2nd Wednesday.

Mexican & Tex-Mex

Alley Cat Café Off Street 19 (side street behind Royal Art School) Tel: 012 306 845 Small, friendly patio café serving good Mexican food and claiming to have the biggest burgers in town.

Hard to find, Alley Cat is tucked down an alley at the back of the National Museum, the first on the right if you are coming from Street 178.

California II 79 Sisowath Quay. Tel: 077 503 144 American-style bar with some of the best Mexican food in town, the excellent pool table and great tunes make this a good place to while away a few hours on the riverfront. Open 24/7 with good rooms upstairs.

Cantina 347 Sisowath Quay.

Tel: 023 222 502 A mainstay of the riverside scene, this is a popular meeting place for

Freebird 69 Street 240. Tel: 023 224 712 Aircon American bar with neon lighting, a variety of memorabilia, comfortable seats and rock music.

International menu with good lunch offers, an excellent range of bottled sauces, excellent International, Mexican food and burgers.

Be prepared for some good solid R&R. Open 7am - midnight.

La Citá 13 Street 282.

Tel: 092 388 123 Riverside, between St 108 & 110.

Tel: 092 626 123 www.lacita.ox2net.com Get ready to change your tune about what you think Mexican food is! Just one taste of our hand-rolled burritos, tacos and quesadillas will tell you how much effort we put into our mouthwatering products.

Open daily, 9am-10pm.

Taqueria Corona 14E Street 51 (btwn Sihanouk Blvd and Street 242) Tel: 089 281 626 / 012 629 986 Enjoy our mexican specialties, barbacoa, al pastor, texas chile, carnitas, pollo and carne asoda in our festive dining room. Open daily from11.30am - 2pm, 6pm - 10pm (Sunday evenings only).

Vegetarian

Fresh Salad Bar 37E0 Street 310 Tel: 081 555 559 / 016 977 790 The first salad bar in Phnom Penh which provides healthy organic salad and other foods to help you maintain you healthy lifestyle.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 69

We serve salad coffee and bakery goods. Free Wifi. Free delivery, call Jung on 081 555 559.

Open daily, 8am - 10pm.

K’NYAY (see restaurants Cambodian) The Vegetarian 158 Street 19 Tel: 077 900 210 / 012 905 766 With a lush garden space in the heart of Phnom Penh, The Treez provides a relaxing dining experience.

Whether it be amok, curry or tom yam, The Treez, creates vegetarian versions of popular Cambodian, Indian and Thai dishes.

Open 10:30am - 8:30pm, closed Sundays.

Vego’s 3E0 Street 51 & 21b Street 294 Tel: 012 984 596 Salad bar with an emphasis on greens and a menu of healthy western items. Also offering bagels, salads and wraps with a wide array of super fresh toppings. Choose from ready-made or d.i.y. options.

Also on offer are a vegetarian soup of the day as well as fresh-squeezed juices, yogurt and granola.

Cafés

Art Café 37 Sothearos Blvd. Tel: 012 834 517 Elegant bistro in the style of a European coffee house is now transposed to the Meta House with regular classical music performances.

Blue Pumpkin 245 Sisowath Quay and at Monument Books on Norodom Blvd Tel: 023 998 153 Siem Reap’s favourite café also offers multiple locations in Phnom Penh, serving breakfast sets, Asian and Western entrées and an array of ice cream flavours in air-conditioned comfort. Open daily from 6am - 11pm.

Botanic Cafe-Art gallery 126 Street 19. Tel: 077589458 botaniccafe@yahoo.com, www.botanica-gallerycafe.com Cafe set inside 80 year old building with garden displaying art and premium souvenirs. First floor exhibition and event space promotes local artists. Lunch and dinner menus for your special times.

Open daily 8am – 9pm.

Brown Coffee & Bakery 17 Street 214. Tel: 023 217 262 Stylish, locally owned café with bakery on the premises serves a variety of coffees and pastries, with the green tea latte a house speciality. Open 7.30am - 8pm.

Café El Mundo 219 Sisowath Quay. Tel: 012 520 775 Affordable and stylish riverside café and restaurant with adjacent apartments for short-term hire. Seating available on the mezzanine lounge, groundfloor restaurant and on the streetside terrace. Open 6.30am - 10.30pm.

Café Namu 28b Cnr Sts 30 & 57.

Tel: 023 220 074

70 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Breakfast, brunch and lunch venue.

Serving pizza, cakes, cookies, desserts, teas, coffees and fresh juices.

Café Yejj 170 Street 450, Tel: 012 543 360 / 092 600 750 Quiet, cosy café serving bistro-style western cuisine, with extensive range of coffees, pasta dishes, pannini and wraps and fabulous cheesecake making this an ideal spot to escape the bustle of the nearby Russian Market.

Open every day from 7am - 9pm.

Coffee Room 385 Street 215. Tel: 098 518 888 The first coffee house in Phnom Penh to have an electronic menu, at the Coffee Room you simply tap in your order and wait for your order to arrive. Serves coffees, juices.

Pastries and breakfast.

Open daily from 7.30am - 6pm.

Cross Town Café 193 Street 29.

Tel: 017665204 Japanese-owned restaurant with welcoming wooden interior. which spreads from floor to bar. A recently opened venue serving traditional Japanese cuisine with an added twist, the restaurant aims to add new dishes to its menu every week. Open daily from 11am - 10pm.

Daughters of Cambodia 65E0 Street 178.

Tel: 077 657 678 www.daughtersofcambodia.org The cafe, called Sugar ‘n Spice, serves light lunches, a few main courses, home baked goods, desserts, coffee and some original smoothies. The cafe is a place for vocational training, where trainees will train and then have the opportunity to graduate into working in top end restaurants and hotels. Value for money. Free Wifi. There’s also a shop selling clothing, accessories and jewellery made on site. Or relax in the spa which offers head, shoulder, face and foot treatments.

The Deli 13 Street 178.

Tel: 012 851 234 Chic delicatessen, bakery and small restaurant serving excellent bread and pastries, with take-away menu. Open from 7am to 9pm (closed Sundays).

Gloria Jean’s Corner of Street 51 & Street 310, Tel : 092 404 365 Sisowath Quay along Phnom Penh Port, Tel: 092 555 973 Canadia Tower Monivong Blvd., Tel: 092 555 937 Popular cafe serving hot and cold drinks and snacks.

Hahahoho Board Game Cafe 74 Street 456, 2 blocks from Russian market Tel: 096 737 2955, hahahoho.cafe@gmail.com, facebook. com/hahahoho.cafe Come and enjoy lots of board games like genga, monopoly and catan. Free wi-fi. Air conditioned and comfortable.

Variety of drinks, sandwiches, beer and Korean specialties including bibimbap, bulgogi rice. Open daily from 11:00am – 9:00pm

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 71

Java Café & Gallery 56 Sihanouk Blvd. Tel: 023 987 420 (see restaurants, international) Kiriya Café No.174, St.51 Cnr St.370 Tel: 016 363 730.

This Japanese café chain offers good locally sourced coffee, delicious desserts and a relaxing atmosphere.

Open daily 6am - 2am.

Café Tin Tin Tango A cosy restaurant located at Toul Kork area the same road to Royal Rattanak Hospital has served Asian and Western food including bakery and apartment services. Open daily from 6:30am – 10:00pm. 38 Street 592, Toul Kork Tel: 023 982 109 / 012 808 816 The Shop 39 Street 240, Tel: 092 955 963 / 023 986 964 Stylish café, with a wide range of fresh bread, tempting patisseries and juices, excellent salads and sandwiches.

Crowded at lunchtime, but the small, cool courtyard at the back creates a perfect haven from the sun. Has a Chocolate Shop three doors along, and a second outlet in Tuol Kork. Open 7am to 7pm (Mon. to Sat, 7am to 3pm Sun.)

Bars

Aristocrat Cigar Bar NagaWorld Hotel and Casino, Hun Sen Park. Tel: 023 228 822 Club aimed at attracting wealthy expats and Khmers who like a good cigar and glass of wine. Not as stuffy as you might imagine with cigars from $10. Open daily from noon to midnight.

AQVARIVM Bar 23 Street 55 Corner Street 254, Tel: 077 536 342 Drop by for Happy Hour drinks and nibbles from 5:00-9:00 PM. Available for special occasion and group discounts. AQVARIVM: Drink like a fish!

Backstage 377 Sisowath Quay. Tel: 097 958 7338 Cocktail bar, located near the Royal Palace, is a trendy, intimate yet dazzling place committed to serving some of the best cocktails in town.

Open: Mon-Thu 5.30pm-1am, Fri-Sat 5.30pm-3am, closed on Sunday.

Cadillac Bar and Grill 219 E0 Sisowath Quay.

Tel: 011 713 567 Riverfront air-con bar and restaurant.

Has good American cuisine as well as ariverfront vantage to watch the world go by.

California II 79 Sisowath Quay.

Tel: 077 503 144 (see Mexican & Tex-Mex restaurants) Cantina 347 Sisowath Quay.

Tel: 023 222 502 (see Mexican & Tex-Mex restaurants) Chow 277 Sisowath Quay.

Tel: 023 224 894 Contemporary and sophisticated riverfront restaurant that serves Southeast Asian cuisine, a wide range of cocktails, juices and Illy coffee. The rooftop deck with spectacular views of the river is a great place to have a drink during its half-price 4pm to 8pm happy hour.

Open daily from 7am to 11pm.

72 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Do It All Pub & Bistro 61 Street 174. Tel: 023 220 904 Dishes out African, Asian and Western cuisine, with hip hop and reggae played into the early hours of the morning. Open daily 9am to 4am.

recipe

Elephant Bar Raffles Hotel Le Royal, Street 92 Tel: 023 981 888 Flamboyant carpet, comfortable wicker chairs and hotel pianist provide a sense of a time gone by, you can imagine Jackie Kennedy drinking here. Its many signature cocktails, including the femme fatale make this a popular place with expats especially during the two-for-one happy hours (4pm to 8pm). Open 2pm to midnight from Monday to Friday. Saturday and Sunday from 12pm to midnight.

Equinox 3A Street 278, Tel: 012 586 139 / 092 791 958 (see Restaurants, International) FCC 363 Sisowath Quay. Tel: 023 724 014 (see Restaurants, International) Freebird 69 Street 240.

Tel: 023 224 712 (see Mexican & Tex-Mex restaurants) Howie’s Bar 32 Street 51 Air-conditioned and open until very very late, this is the Heart’s unofficial chill-out bar although the sound system could give its neighbour a run for its money.

Tends to be a popular late night hang-out, especially around the ‘mini’ pool table.

Open 7pm to 6am.

K West 1 Street 154 (Cnr. Sisowath Quay), Tel: 023 214 747 (see Restaurants, French) Le Bar Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra, 26 Sothearos Blvd. Tel: 023 999 200 A modern colonial style lobby bar with a fine selection of comfort food, tapas, champagnes, wines, premium spirits and large selection of coffees and teas.

Le Moon Cnr of Sisowath Quay and Street 154 Tel: 023 214 747 Rooftop terrace bar at Amanjaya Hotel has arguably the view of the river of any of the city’s rooftop bars. Full bar and small food menu, while the service is slow enough to afford you sufficient time to soak up the view.

Liquid 3B Street 278.

Tel: 023 720 157 Welcoming open air bar on golden street run by the same owner as Flavours. Has one of the best pool tables in town with happy hour from 5pm to 8pm.

Lobby Lounge 296 Mao Tse Tung Blvd (InterContinental Hotel) Tel: 023 424 888 An elegant lounge situated in the lobby of the Intercontinental Hotel. Reasonable prices and excellent service.

Open daily from 10am – 11:30pm.

Meta House 37 Sothearos Blvd, opposite Phnom Penh Centre Tel: 012 607 465 / 067 867 305 www.meta-house.com Multi-media arts centre established

by German film-maker Nico Mesterham has a very cool bar. Open from 2pm till midnight.

Closed Mondays.

Black Angus Strip-Loin Beef Grilled Black Angus beef strip-loin served with assorted vegetables and pepper sauce.

INGREDIENTS Black Angus strip-loin beef – 220g Salt - ½ tsp Pepper - ½ tsp Green bean - 5 pcs Broccoli - 3 pcs Carrot - 2 pcs Fresh Peppercorn - 2 pcs Butter - 1tsp Garlic - 2 cloves Black pepper sauce - 40 ml ONE Marinate the Black Angus beef with salt and pepper then grill it according to your need.

TWO Pan-fry the seasoned vegetables - broccoli, green beans, peppercorns, and carrots - add salt and pepper.

THREE Prepare the dish quickly with a nice decoration. Tip: The dish should always be warmed when using grilled beef, it may keep the beef hot when you serve it to guests.

Red Wine House, 12 Street 315, BKK1, Phnom Penh. www.redwinehc.com Recipes provided by members of:

Metro Café Cnr. Sisowath Quay & Street 148 Tel: 023 222 275 (see Restaurants International)

and 3 guest rooms upstairs.

Open from 5pm to late, happy hour from 5pm to 7pm.

Closed Sundays.

One More Pub 16E Street 294.

Tel: 017 327 378 English-style bar with comfortable wooden bar stools. No hip hop or techno, only great classic 60s & 70s music. Has terracotta-tiled terrace

Paddy Rice 213-217 Sisowath Quay Tel: 023990321 www.paddyrice.net Irish sports bar on riverside with big screen live sports, serves home cooked western and Asian

DINNER UNDER THE STARS Impress your loved one with an extensive dinner buffet and the enchanting ambiance of Raffles’ Poolside Garden this Valentine’s Day. Executive Chef I Wayan Mawa and his culinary team will prepare dishes especially made for lovers celebrating the most romantic day of the year and complete with surprise delights served on your table.

A live trio of classical music will complement the rhythm of the night in the midst of a 1000 floating candles.

US$ 130 net per couple (Inclusive of a glass of Champagne) Raffles Poolside Garden 14 February 2014 7.00pm - 10:00pm (Bookings essential.)

For reservations, please call: +855 23 981 888 or email us at, www.raffles.com/phnompenh

dining.leroyal@raffles.com

favourites alongside a fully stocked bar including Guinness and a fine selection Irish whiskeys with daily happy hour from 4pm to 8pm. Often has live music events and a weekly pub quiz. Open 7.30am to late.

Rising Sun 20 Street 178. Tel: 012 970 718 English-style pub with reliable breakfast, meat pies and hamburgers.

Has a regular following around the bar at night especially on Fridays.

Great posters of British films and TV classics adorn the walls. Ideal for that touch of nostalgia and good fish and chips – though not wrapped in a newspaper.

Open daily from 7am till late.

Riverside Bistro Cnr. Sisowath Quay & Street 148, Tel: 012 277 882 / 023 213 898 (see Restaurants International) Sharky Bar 126 Street 130. Tel: 012 228 045 , www.sharkybar.blogspot.com Countless pool tables and a large balcony to look out over the street. Guaranteed to be lively – a place where anything can happen, especially if you get a bit too close to the local clientele. Serves good Mexican food, and has frequent live music.

Open 4pm to 2am, take away 5pm til late.

The Bungalows Mekong River. Tel: 077 555 447 Stylish simplicity located within a quick cruise from Sisowath Quay port. The floating bar serves basic drinks and nibbles. Open Saturdays and Sundays from 3pm to 8pm, available for private events if booked at least two days in advance.

The Chinese House 128 Sothearos Blvd. Tel: 023 356 399 Decadent cocktail bar set in beautiful old Chinese house. Has art exhibitions, film nights and parties down stairs and opulence upstairs. Open from 6pm until late, closed on Tuesdays.

The Tap Room Kingdom Breweries 1748 National Road 5. Tel: 023 430 180 www.kingdombreweries.com Sate of the art European brewery specialising in premium pilsner.

Tours of the facility are organised on a regular basis, culminating in frothy cold ones at the brewery’s bar overlooking the Tonle Sap. Zeppelin Bar 109C Street 51. Tel: 012 881 181 Over 1,000 vinyl albums played by stone-faced DJ owner in small bar next to the infamous Walkabout.

Remarkably good food considering the setting, especially late at night. Try the dumplings. Open daily 5pm - 4am.

Wine Bars

Bouchon Wine Bar 3-4 Street 246. Tel: 077 881 103 Sophisticated wine bar with a very French ambience and a wide range of French wines and bar food. Often has music as well as a mellow jazz sound track. Open noon until midnight.

Open Wine 219 Street 19. Tel: 023 233 527 Large wine shop and deli with wellpriced wines from around the world.

Has outside dining area.

Open daily 7am - 11pm.

Zino Wine Bar and Restaurant 12 Street 294. Tel: 023998 519 FB: www.facebook.com/zinowinebar Zino offers a comprehensive wine list by the glass and bottle, professionally made cocktails and a constantly evolving Mediterranean

74 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

and Asian menu. Open for lunch and dinner 7 days a week. Kitchen closes at 11pm.

Gay

Blue Chilli 36 Street 178. Tel: 012 566 353 www.bluechillibar.com This welcoming bar run by Thai national Oak is currently the number one gay bar in town. Chic décor makes this one of the coolest bars in town, even if you’re straight. The drag shows on Friday and Saturday are an additional draw. Open 5pm until late.

The Rainbow Bar 73 Street 172. Tel: 097 741 4187 Intimate bar designed to get to know people better has a range of welldesigned cocktails to make the night go with a swing.

Nightclubs

Bouchon Wine Bar. (see Wine Bars) Occasional performances by jazz bands.

Darlin Darlin NagaWorld Hotel and Casino, Hun Sen Park. Tel: 023 228 822 Top-end nightclub with live music popular among the high-flyers of the city. Semiprivate booths in a chic environment make for an unrivalled experience. Open daily from 7pm until late.

Equinox (see Restaurants – Intrenational) Has regular live music from expat and cal bands at weekends and swing dancing on Thursdays.

Heart of Darkness 38 Street 51. Tel: 023 222 415 The most famous of the city’s nightspots with a good-sized dance floor make this the in-place in town.

Has well priced spirits and mixers and is totally packed out on Friday and Saturday nights. Open 8:30pm to 4am.

Memphis 3 Street 118. Tel: 012 871 263 Only permanent rock venue in town with a house band that plays covers from 10pm til 1:30am, later at weekends. Also has open mike sessions on Mondays.

Open from 8pm til late, closed Sundays. 2-for-1 cocktails everday from 8pm until 10pm.

Nova 19 St 214. Tel: 097 716 5000 Trendy night club with VIP section and dress code (no flup flops, tank tops or shorts!).

Open 9pm-4am.

Paddy Rice (See Bars) Often has live music events.

Pontoon Street 172.

Now no longer the Penh’s floating hotspot, Pontoon still manages to pack in the punters, especially when international DJs are in town.

Riverhouse Lounge 6 Street 110. Tel: 023 212 302 The alternative dance venue for both expats and young Khmers with a self-contained air-con dance room and great balcony to chill out. MonWed, Fri is hip hop, Thu is Ladies night, Sat is house and Sun is dance remix. Open daily 4pm - 2am.

Saint Tropez 31 Street 174 Tel: 077 212 100 / 097 9000 401 Upscale club, complete with fake beach, deck bar, that suggests the French Riviera.

Open daily 6pm - 2am.

LISTINGS

culture Cinemas

The Flicks 39B Street 95. Tel: 078 809 429, theflicks-cambodia.com Local expat oriented movie houses with revolving schedule of international and art house films, screened in comfy air con movie rooms. Also offers potential for movie parties, with option to hire the movie room for a private session (max 30 people).

Minimum two screenings per day. Check the website for the weekly schedule. Cover charge $ 3.50 per day.

The Cineplex 5th Floor Sorya Shopping Centre, Tel: 017 666 210 www.thecineplexs.com International-standard three-screen cineplex featuring the latest Digital 3D technology and the most recent Hollywood and international releases, located in the heart of downtown with ample parking, shopping and eating options. Open 9am - 10:30pm.

Le Cinema French Institute, 218 Street 184 Tel: 023 213 124.

100-seat cinema shows International art house and mainstream movies with occasional films in English. Children’s cinema on Saturday mornings at 10am.

Cinema on Saturday mornings at 10am.

Legend Cinema 3rd Floor City Mall, Monireth Blvd.

Tel: 088 954 9857 www.legend-cinemas.com International quality cinema showing Hollywood releases in air-conditioned environment including 3D. Screenings:10am - 9pm, box office: 10am - 9pm.

Meta House 37 Sothearos Blvd., (opp. Phnom Penh centre). Tel: 012 607 465 Movie shorts and documentaries from Cambodia and the rest of Asia. Movies normally start at 7pm, closed Mondays.

Galleries

Bophana Audiovisual Resource Centre 64 Street 200. Tel: 023 992 174 Preserving much of Cambodia’s audiovisual material, has regular exhibitions.

Open 8am-6pm Mon - Fri, 2pm-6pm Sat. Dori Thy Gallery 12R Street 256. Tel: 012 661 552 Features the black and white photographs of German photographer, Doris Boettcher.

Open Saturday and Sunday 10am-6pm.

FCC Phnom Penh (see Restaurants, International) Phnom Penh’s landmark restaurant has a permanent, rotating exhibition devoted to photography.

French Institute 218 Street 184. Tel: 023 213 124 Formerly the Alliance Française, the French Culture Centre (CCF) offers cultural activities including exhibitions, festivals, and film screenings to promote French and Khmer culture. Onsite shop Carnets d’Asie offers a selection of French books.

Happy Painting Gallery 363 Sisowath Quay. Tel: 023 221 732 www.happypainting.net A must see. Since 1995 this art gallery has been dedicated to showing and selling the work of Stef, a local iconic artist with a very personal and positive insight in everyday life in Cambodia.

Open daily 8am - 10pm Java Café & Gallery (see Restaurants, International) Contemporary art gallery with regular exhibitions of Cambodian and international artists. Has second gallery on the ground floor. Website has details about Cambodia’s contemporary art scene.

Meta House 37 Sothearos Blvd.

Tel: 012 607 465 Multimedia arts centre on three floors has regular exhibitions, interviews with filmmakers and short films, contains the Art Café. Open Tues – Sun, 2pm - 10pm.

Reyum Institute of Arts & Culture 47 Street 178.

Tel: 023 217 149 Gallery with regular exhibitions of Cambodian artists. Part of an NGO established to preserve traditional and contemporary Cambodian arts.

Sa Sa Bassac 18 Sothearos Boulevard, Upstairs.

An expansion of the Sa Sa Art Gallery and a merger with Bassac Art Projects, Sa Sa Bassac is an artist-run gallery for contemporary art. Includes a library, reading and workshop room, and a 60-metre gallery space. Ongoing visual literacy programmes.

Performing Arts

Amrita Performing Arts 128-G9 Sothearos Blvd. Tel: 023 220 424 www.amritaperformingarts.org Performance art company that puts on contemporary & classical music and theatre.

Apsara Arts Association 71 Street 598. Tel: 011 550 302 Organisation that promotes Cambodian arts & culture.

Open from 7.30am - 10.30am Cambodian Living Arts 407 Street 246 Art organisation devoted to the revival of traditional Khmer performing arts that puts on occasional performances.

Chaktomuk Conference Hall Sisowath Quay. Tel: 023 725 119 Designed by master Cambodian architect Vann Molyvann, this under-utilised building is worth a visit. Open 7am - 11.30am and 2pm - 5pm (Mon. to Fri.).

Chenla Theatre Cnr. Mao Tse Tung & Monireth Blvds.

Tel: 023 883 050 www.culturalcenter-cambodia.com One of the capital’s major theatres, it has regular performances of theatre, dance and music.

Epic Arts 1DE0 Sothearos Blvd. Tel: 023 998 474 www.epicarts.org.uk Organisation that uses art to empower people with disabilities.

Sovanna Phum Khmer Art Association 166 Street 99 corner of 484 Tel: 023 987 564 Theatre with performances of shadow puppetry, classical and masked dances every Friday and Saturday at 7.30pm.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 75

LISTINGS

sos

leisure & wellness Amusement

Cambodian Country Club Street 2004, Group 6 Toeuk Thla Tel: 012 231 755 A peaceful heaven providing tennis, swimming, badminton, fitness centre and horse riding, 15 minutes away from the city. Open from 6.30am until late.

Parkway Square 113 Mao Tse Tung Blvd.

Ten-pin bowling alley and dodgem track.

Phnom Penh Water Park 50 Street 110, Tel: 023 881 008 Traditional mix of slides and wave pools is open daily from 9.30am to 5.30pm.

Phnom Tamao Wildlife Park Phnom Tamao, 44 kilometres out of the capital along Highway 2.

Cambodia’s top wildlife centre. All animals are either rescued from traders or bred at the centre.

Many of the animals are critically endangered. Open daily 8am - 4pm.

Boat Cruises

The Butterfly Cambodia Tel: 012 602 955 thebutterflycambodia@gmail.com Cambodian river adventures, sunset cruises, birthdays and events to floating villages, Silk Island. Plan your trip, per hour, half-day and fullday rates available.

Classes

Cambodian Cooking Class Frizz Restaurant, 67 Street 240 Tel: 012 524 801 First and only Khmer cooking school for travellers & expats in Phnom Penh, includes transport to the market and a colourful 16-page recipe booklet. Open 10am - 10pm.

Capoeira Home of English, Building D 10B Street 57, Tel: 012 960 076 Capoeira lessons are held every Tuesday & Thursday 6.30-8pm. All

Clogged Arteries Dr Claire Uebbing levels catered for. Classes are free of charge. For more information visit Facebook page “Capoeira Kampuchea”.

Central School of Ballet Phnom Penh 10 Street 183 (entrance on Street 406) www.centralschoolofballet.com Cambodia’s first purpose-built ballet school offering classical ballet training for children in the afternoons, contemporary dance, ballet and dance conditioning for adults in the evenings. Spacious dance studio equipped with large, custom-made mirrors, barres and a professional, sprung dance floor.

Dance World Cambodia At Hotel Cambodiana. 313 Sisowath quay. Dance studio entrance at Physique Club Gym. Tel: 012634008 danceworldcambodia@yahoo.com.au www.danceworldcambo.wordpress.com RAD ballet, neo classical, modern dance, jazz, tap dance, hip hop and k pop, breakdance, raqs sharqi bellydance, classical pilates. Classes for kids aged 2.5 and up. classes for adults, beginner and intermediate. performance and choreogrpahy group for advanced/ professional level adults.

Equestrian Centre CCC, Street 2004, Group 6 Toeuk Thla Tel: 015 231 755 / 012 704 759 With 31 ponies and horses, an international sized arena and spacious stables, the only horseriding centre in Phnom Penh Tuesdays to Sundays, 9am to 11am and 2pm to 5.30pm.

Global Art 1 Street 181 & Street 475 (nr Chinese Embassy) Tel: 023 222 084/ 087 222 084 World renowned art and creativity program for young children.

Franchisee of Global Art Group.

Available in 17 countries with more than 400 centres worldwide.

Aircon Restaurant Art Exhibitions Dance Theatre German Classes Film School Musical Events Fixed +855 (0)23 224 140 Mobile +855 (0)10 312 333 Homepage: www.meta-house.com Email: mesterharm@gmx.net 76 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Workshop Space Open-Air-Cinema

Do you have high cholesterol?

There is a good chance that you do, but don’t realise it. According to the World Health Organisation, almost 40 percent of the world’s adult population is affected with it. This matters because high cholesterol is a leading cause of heart disease and is responsible for a third of all the deaths due to ischemic heart disease worldwide.

The body uses cholesterol for the structure of cell walls, membranes, and the production of hormones.

In someone with high cholesterol, however, the excess circulates in the bloodstream and lines the inside of blood vessels.

Clogged blood vessels are easily blocked, leading to heart attacks and strokes.

Elevated levels of cholesterol result when a person has a genetic predisposition combined with a poor lifestyle (high fat diet, lack of exercise and obesity).

About 70 percent of the problem is due to genetics, and 30 percent lifestyle.

You cannot feel high cholesterol and there are no symptoms, so the only way to know if your levels are elevated is through a blood test. Doctors check cholesterol levels after you’ve fasted for 12 hours, measuring four parts: total, HDL, LDL and triglycerides.

HDL is what is typically known as the “good cholesterol” because it removes cholesterol from the bloodstream and stores it back in the liver. Having a high HDL (>60 mg/dl) is protective against blood

vessel disease. LDL is “bad cholesterol”, since this cholesterol is deposited along the insides of your blood vessels. LDL of greater than 160 mg/dl is a risk factor for disease.

Triglycerides represent free fat, broken down from the foods you eat, circulating in the blood stream. Levels greater than 150 mg/dl also contribute to blood vessel disease.

If you have a family history of heart attack, stroke or blood vessel disease, you should begin testing early at the age of 20. Everyone else should begin at 30 years of age and repeat yearly if elevated. If your levels are elevated, you can help to decrease them by eating a low cholesterol diet*, exercising and losing weight.

After trying for three to four months, the levels can be checked again. If the levels are still very high, the doctor will often begin medication to lower cholesterol.

Once you have blood vessel disease, it is difficult to reverse it, so an emphasis is placed on prevention.

If you have already had a heart attack or stroke, it is even more important to keep the levels down to prevent progression of the disease.

Visit your doctor soon to find out your cholesterol status. Begin eating a healthy diet and exercise to ensure yourself a healthy, long life free of excess cholesterol! *For an example of a low cholesterol diet plan visit: http://www.nhs.uk/ipgmedia/ national/heart%20uk/assets/ dietsheet.pdf

Dr Claire Uebbing is a doctor at International SOS clinic in Phnom Penh. If you have any enquiries regarding this or any other medical matter, please contact info.cambodia@ internationalsos.com.

Music Arts School 9A Street 370. Tel: 023 997 290 www.music-arts-school.org New NGO school providing music training for Cambodians and expats - of all ages and levels - at affordable tuition fees. Learn guitar, piano, violin, vocals, and tradtional Khmer instruments. Also has a scholarship fund to provide music education to the less fortunate.

NataRaj Yoga Studio 52 Street 302, Tel: 012 250 817 / 090 311 341 www.yogacambodia.com, Welcome everyone to the peaceful yoga studio.

Wide variety of daily drop-in yoga classes & monthly workshops in many styles with international qualified teachers. Your yoga class contributes to our NGO yoga programs for local kids.

Stretch your body while feeling great about reaching out to Cambodian youth.

Photography Tours 126 Street 136. Tel: 092 526 706 www.nathanhortonphotography.com Photography tuition and guided tours to Kampong Chnang and Udong, covering technical and creative considerations in the context of travel photography.

Scuba Nation PADI 5* IDC Diving Centre 18 Sothearos Blvd (near FCC) Tel: 012 715 785 www.divecambodia.com Learn to scuba dive in Phnom Penh. The academic and pool part of the course can be done in Phnom Penh and you finish with 2 days in Sihanoukville on the boat. We conduct refreshers, try dives and kids’ pool parties as well as the full range of courses. Open 9am-6pm, Sat & Sun 9am-5pm.

Simphony Music School No. 243, Street 51. Tel: 023 727 345 / 097 888 8787. www.simphony.com.kh Simphony Music School is the first official music school in Cambodia recognized by the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, Royal government of Cambodia. The faculty is composed by experienced and qualified music teachers from overseas, speaking fluent English, Chinese, and French. Our curriculum is based on USA curriculum following Orff and Kodály music teaching methods.

yoga. Join our great teachers to improve your flexibility, strength, balance, posture and reduce stress. Also offering private 1-2-1 or small group classes ,regular workshops and retreats.

The Tennis Club CCC, Street 2004, Group 6 Toeuk Thla.

Tel: 017 847 802 The two courts are equipped with specially adapted flooring unique in Cambodia, and with quality lightning allowing play past sunset. Skilled English and Cambodian speaking teachers available for private or group lessons.

Open daily.

Counselling Services

Yoga for life 126 Street 19. Tel: 077589458 Learn to release stress and tension, find peace and live a healthy life with yoga classes taught by yoga and massage virtuoso, Azmi Samdjaga from Singapore. Classes every Wednesday from 7:30pm witht more classes starting late June 2012. Healthy food and Wifi are also available.

Yoga Phnom Penh 172z2 Norodom Blvd. (alley nest to Sushi Bean) www.yogaphnompenh.com 012 739 419 / 012 739 284 Daily drop-in yoga asana classes for everybodys body. Classes include Ashtanga, Vinyasa Flow and core power

Chemists

U-Care Pharmacy 26-28 Sothearos Bvd. Tel: 023 222 499 14 Sihanouk Bvd. Tel: 023 224 099 High quality western-style chemist and pharmacy that sells the full range of beauty products, including international brands.

Alcoholics Anonymous 11 Street 420. Tel: 012 813 731 www.aacambodia.org Meets on Friday, Wednesday & Sunday.

Indigo Psychological Services 28 Street 460. Tel: 023 222 614, indigocambodia@gmail.com Professional counselling services in English, French or Khmer for adults, adolescents, children, couples, and families. Assessment and intervention services for children and adolescents with learning and developmental difficulties.

Narcotics Anonymous 11 Street 420. Tel: 012 813 731 NA meets on Monday, Thursday at 8pm and Saturday at 7pm.

Dental

European Dental Clinic 160A, Norodom Blvd.

Tel: 023 211 363 www.europeandentalclinic-asia.com Total dental care, Implant, Orthodontist Treatment by expat dentists. Open Mon Fri 8am-12pm, 2pm-7pm. Sat, 8am-1pm

International Dental Clinic Phnom Penh: 193 Street 208.

Tel 023 212 909 Siem Reap: 545 National Road N6, Banteay Chas, Stor Kram.

Tel: 063 767 618 www.imiclinic.com IMI Dental Cosmetic and Restorative Dentistry Centre has been successfully creating beautiful smiles in Phnom Penh and throughout Cambodia. Open Mon– Sat, 8am-7pm, Sun 9am-12pm.

MALIS dental clinic 445 Monivong Blvd.

Tel: 012 513 222 / 023 964 142 info@malis-dental.com Facebook: “MALIS Dental Clinic” A Japanese dentist provides professional and high-quality service.

Shigeta Dental Clinic 25 Street 294 cnr Street21 Tel: 023 223 225 / 010705083 Email: info@shigetadental.com Faebook: shigetadentalclinic High-end Japanese Dental Clinic that caters your dental needs. Open from Monday to Sunday, 8am - 8pm.

Gyms

The InterContinental Fitness Center 3/F Mao Tse Toung Boulevard, Tel: 023 424 888 ext. 5000 A sophisticated retreat from the crowds, The InterContinental Fitness Center is the place to attain peak performance and wellbeing. Pump up with a full body workout on state-ofthe-art equipment, benefit from the experience and guidance of qualified trainers, and relax all year round in the open-air swimming pool.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 77

Physiotherapy Phnom Penh General Physiotherapy Practice Manual and Rehabilitation Therapy, Medical Taping, Paedriatic Physiotherapy-FitKids* & Acupuncture (TCM) Dick van der Poel Lidwina Niewold Veerle Knoop Naomi McKnight - Certified Physiotherapists -

Tel : +855(0)23 99 63 44 hp : 092 485 593 Street 456, #45C Phnom Penh, Cambodia Email: physiophnompenh@gmail.com * Extended treatments!

TROPICAL & TRAVELLERS MEDICAL CLINIC

Fitness Centre CCC, Street 2004, Group 6 Toeuk Thla.

Tel: 015 704 759 Achieve individual targets whether sports specific or to tone, lose weight, build strength or improve cardiovascular fitness for a healthier and fitter lifestyle.

Open daily 6.30am until late.

Raffles Amrita Spa Raffles Le Royal Hotel. Tel: 023 981 888 Modern gym and pool in Phnom Penh’s most elegant hotel. Use of gym, pool, sauna and Jacuzzi is available to nonguests. Open 6am - 10pm.

Physique Club Hotel Cambodiana, 313 Sisowath Quay.

Tel: 012 810 432 Reasonable selection of equipment in the gym and a pool overlooking the river. Open 6am - 10pm.

The Gym at The Place 90 Sihanouk Blvd. Tel: 023 999 699 Modern establishment featuring a fully equipped gym and weekly classes in dance, yoga and aerobics.

Open 6am - 10pm , Mon – Fri, 8am 10pm Sat/Sun

Hairdressers Dr.Scott BSc.MBChB. DRCOG.DipVen. (U.K.) -20 years of medical experience in Cambodia

Tel: 012 898981 No.88 St.108 Phnom Penh www.travellersmedicalclinic.com

De Gran 19 Street 352. Tel: 023 999 707 Classy yet affordable Japanese-run hair salon in beautiful premises with excellent service.

Open 10am – 8pm, closed Tues The Dollhouse 46AE0 Street 322 Tel: 010 329 999 / 016 620 907 www.dollhousecambodia.com Salon offers cutting, colouring and various treatments, including the Brazilian Keratin Treatment with Collagen to replenish the condition of your hair.

Western hairdresser with international experience. Open Tues – Sat 9am- 7pm, Sun 11am-7pm, closed Monday.

The French Element Himawari Hotel Unit D, 313 Sisowath Quay.

Tel: 077 283 332 www.thefrenchelement.com Over-looking the Tonle Sap, wonderful spot to relax and pamper yourself. Offering all hair services such as highlights, colour, cut, Brazilian Keratin Treatment and more.

International hairdresser. Open 10am 8pm, closed Sun. Tokyo Barbershop 22A St 278.

Tel: 012 590 655 / 087 667 778 tokyo_barbershop@yahoo.com Man centric barbershop conveniently located behind Lucky supermarket.

Provides hair-cuts, shampoos, colours, manicures, pedicures, facial massage, oil body massages, back waxing.

Open daily 8am - 7:00pm.

Medical

American Medical Centre Ground Floor Cambodiana Hotel 313 Sisowath Quay.

Tel: 023 991 863 Led by American surgeon, team of international and Khmer doctors provide general practice services to clients. Can arrange emergency evacuation. 24/7 service.

International Chiropractic Clinic, 67 Bis Street 240, (100m from Monivong Blvd). Tel: 023 223 101 www.cambodiachiropractic.com First and only Chiropractic clinic licensed in Cambodia. Our chiropractors are US trained and we

78 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

provide modern Chiropractic care, physiotherapy and custom made medical grade orthotics. Common conditions treated include neck and back pain, sports injuries, knee pain.

Open Mon - Fri 8.30am-6pm , Sat 8.30am-1pm.

International SOS Medical Clinic 161 Street 51.

Tel: 023 216 911 Global provider of medical assistance and international healthcare. Expat and Khmer doctors offer general practice, specialist and emergency medical services. Appointments 8am - 5:30pm Mon – Fri, 8am - 12pm, Sat. Open 24/7 for emergencies.

Physiotherapy Phnom Penh 45C Street 456.

Tel: 023 99 63 44 General physiotherapy practice specialising in manual therapy, sports injuries and acupuncture Royal Rattanak Hospital 11 Street 592, Toul Kork Tel. 023 991 000 www.royalrattanakhospital.com A Thai owned and run private hospital with extensive services that strives to provide high standard and quality medical care by professional care team.

Optics

Grand Optics 11 Norodom Bvd / 337 Monivong Blvd / 150 Sihanouk Blvd.

Tel: 023 213 585 Modern opticians with the latest equipment including free computerised eye test. Makes prescription glasses and lenses.

Pools

Asia Club 456 Monivong Bvd. Tel: 023 721 766 Beautiful swimming pool at rear of Man Han Lou Restaurant. Members get a discount at both restaurant and Master Kang Health Care Centre.

Spas

Amara Spa Cnr Sisowath Quay & St.110 Tel: 023 998 730 www.amaraspa.hotelcara.com Day spa providing a wide selection of facials, body massages and treatments, arranged in a four-storey modern facility at riverfront. Open 11am-11pm.

Aziadee Spa 16 a/b Street 282.

Tel: 023 996 921 aziadee1@yahoo.fr French-run spa offering a good choice of treatments, a range of massages, scrubs, facials, floral baths, manicures, pedicures and waxing in relaxing and tranquil surroundings. Open 9am-9pm.

Bi Nail Salon 213a E0 Stret 310 Tel: 023 6324 524 / 097 798 1122 Bi Nail is a full service nail salon, for women and men. Japanese-trained nail artists have years of experience and provide expert personal care in a quiet and relaxing atmosphere. Full set care (manicure and pedicure), more than 250 nail lacquers, more than 350 nail design samples. Acrylic and gel nails are available. Open daily 8am – 7pm.

Bliss 29 Street 240.

Tel: 023 215 754 Health spa at back and upstairs in this beautiful French colonial building.

Open 9am - 9pm, closed Monday.

Bodia Spa 26-28 Sothearos Blvd.

Tel: 023 226 199 www.bodia-spa.com Using natural, own-brand products Bodia spa offers body wraps, floral baths, scrubs, facials, aromatherapy, massages and mani-pedies, alongdside Jacuzzi and steam. The peaceful atmosphere is enhanced by scented oils and soft music. Open daily 9am – 9pm.

Nail Holic Street 592, Tuol Kork (next to Indrak Tevy High School) Tel: 012 357 887/ 097 4123 337 Nail polish and pedicure services using products from Korea. Comfortable chairs in relaxing surroundings with professional, hospitable and friendly staff speaking Khmer, Korean and English. Open daily from 8am – 6pm.

Derma-Care Skin Clinic 161B Norodom Tel: 023 720 042 / 012 415 552 Two qualified dermatologists, this professional skin clinic offers a range of beauty treatments using American Derma-Rx products, minor dermatologic surgery, antioxidant boosters, chemical peeling, and lipolysis. Open 9am - 9pm.

Raffles Amrita Spa Tel: 023 981 888 Raffles Amrita Spa offers relaxation and rejuvenation through a wide selection of services and facilities including treatment rooms, outdoor lap and fun pool, Jacuzzi, fitness centre, sauna and steam room.

Open daily 6am - 10pm.

EL Skin and Wellness Centre 115E0 Street 101.

Tel: 012 681 948 Using Dermalogica, L’Oréal, Jane Iredale and OPI products for a variety of face and body treatments, spa provides a professional, relaxed ambience for customers to sample products before purchase.

Open 9am - 7pm.

LA ROSE Spa 164b Norodom Blvd.

Tel: 023 211 130 / 080 900 900 www.larose.com.kh Professional, experienced, qualified therapists offer a tailor-made range of remedial, relaxation and nutritional advice. High-end natural products and a wide range of homeopathic remedies, creams, flower essences and signature organic massage oils.

Master Kang Health Care Centre 456 Monivong Blvd.

Tel: 023 721 765 Health centre next to Man Han Lou Restaurant offers foot massage in public or private rooms, with both Chinese and oil massage. A grand piano is played in the evenings.

Open 10am - 12pm.

The Spa at NagaWorld Hun Sen Park. Tel: 023 228 822 This luxurious spa promises to bring the ancient Cambodian spa therapy to the world, and claims to be the only all-suite unisex spa in Cambodia.

Therapy rooms with sauna, steam and flower bath are inviting, and the spa uses Tomichik flowers as part of its treatment. Open 10am-3am.

So SPA with L’Occitane Sofitel Angkor Phokeethra Tel: 063 964 600 Offers rejuvenating world traditions combined with French cosmetology in the privacy of an intimate setting.

Treatments are provided with international and local high-end products. Open daily: 10am – 10pm

Beeline Arena Sangkat Chroychangva, Phnom Penh Tel: 067 716 565 www.banzaicambodia.com The Beeline Arena is the first multipurpose sports arena in Cambodia with international standards, including Multisurface state of the art FIFA regulation pitch, 2,000 person capacity, VIP lounge and restaurant. Rental for football, basketball, volleyball, events and more.

Open daily 8am until late.

Cambodian Federation of Rugby cambodianfederationofrugby.com Proper 15-a-side rugby league with four senior teams as well as kid’s touch and women’s rugby teams.

Contact Larry: khmer_rugby@yahoo. co.uk for more details.

Cambodia Golf & Country Club Route 4, Kompong Speur Tel: 023 363 666 International standard, 18-hole golf course. Open 6am until dark.

Football: The Bayon Wanderers www.bayonwanderers.com Mixed Khmer and western team. Training at the City Villa court on Wednesday and Friday, 8pm to 10pm, Old Stadium on Tuesday from 4.30 pm. Contact Billy Barnaart on 012 803 040 (available from 11am to 10pm). Sunday play at 2pm.

Grand Phnom Penh Golf Street 598, Phum Khmuonh, Sk: Khmuonh, Kh: Sen Sok, Phnom Penh Tel: 023 997 889. info@grandphnompenh.com Luxury living redefined. Phnom Penh’s finest urban township.

Hash House Harriers 8, Street 360 (cnr. Street 71) Meets at the railway station every Sunday at 2:15pm. An ideal way to see the countryside walking or running.

Tel: 012 832 509.

Phokeethra Country Club Sofitel Angkor Phokeethra Tel:063 964 600 reservation.angkor@phokeethragolf.com International standard 18-hole, 72-par golf. Clubhouse facilities: pro shop, rental equipment, restaurant.

Phnom Penh Ultimate Frisbee A fast paced fun game that is open to everyone, regardless of skill set or gender, Phnom Penh Ultimate has weekly games at ISPP and Northbridge.

Contact CraigDGerard@gmail.com for details on times and locations.

Touch Rugby Mixed touch rugby is played most Saturday afternoons at 3-5pm at ISPP. Contact pptouchrugby@gmail.com.

Villa Spa 456 Monivong Blvd., (cnr. Street 466) Tel: 023 721 765 / 012 357 561 www.asiagarden.com.kh Aromatherapy massage in private boutique VIP rooms (villa and bungalow style) from professional Chinese and Khmer therapists from Master Kang; women customers only.

Sports General

Ball Hockey Played every Thursday night at City Villa, corner of Streets 360 and 71 at 7pm. To play, contact Mike: michaelwarford@ispp.edu.kh

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 79

LISTINGS

family Cafés & Restaurants

Java Café 56 Sihanouk Blvd. Tel: 023 987 420 Kid’s menu includes chicken nuggets and pizza bagels. Colouring pages and crayons to keep the kids amused. Highchair is available on request and babychanging facilities are in the toilet. Open daily 7am - 10pm Le Jardin 16 Street 360. Tel: 011 723 399 This garden retreat has a great kids’ area with playhouse and sandbox, specialises in birthday parties, with cake, decorations, toys and drawing materials provided for children of all ages.

Open Tue – Sun, 8am - 8pm.

Entertainment

Cambodian Country Club Street 2004, Group 6 Toeuk Thla, Tel: 012 231 755 Sports centre and a peaceful heaven providing tennis, swimming, badminton, fitness centre and horse riding in an amazing landscape 15 minutes away from the city. Dedicated to leisure, rest and entertainment, CCC is suitable for children.

Open daily 6.30am until late.

Dragon Water Park Diamond Island (Koh Pich) Tel: 023 45 54 023 / 023 224 776 Clean-Safe-Exciting! Wonderful Water World, the biggest amusement land, fit for all ages. Have fun with Crystal Blue Clear Water, immense pools, giant slides up to 15m high & water toys. Open daily 10:30am until late.

Monkey Business Paragon Department Store, Second Floor. Tel: 023 319 319 Kids can rejoice now that this indoor children’s play centre offers clean, safe facilities. Available for private parties.

Open daily 9am - 8pm.

Phnom Tamao Wildlife Park Phnom Tamao Cambodia’s best wildlife centre. All the animals are either rescued from traders or bred at the centre. Many of the animals are critically endangered.

Open 8am - 4pm.

International Schools

Eton House International School 16 Mao Tse Tung Blvd Tel: 023 22 8818 www.ehis.co Eton House is committed to the pursuit of excellence in education. Eton House is represented in 10 countries with over 56 pre-schools and schools around the world.

In our early years program we offer a playbased, ‘Inquire, Think, Learn” pedagogy.

This programme has been inspired by the I.B program and the Reggio Emilia schools

80 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

of Northern Italy. Ages: 18months - 6years.

Full and Half Day Programs Footprints School 220 Street 430, Tumnub Teuk, Tel: 077 222084 www.footprintsschool.edu.kh Established in 2007 Footprints School offers nursery (age 2) through grade 6 and has 4 campuses. The curriculum is designed for the dynamic needs and interests of our students and the staff are hired for their experience and love for children.

Giving Tree International Elementary School of Phnom Penh 40 Street 334. Tel: 017 997 112 www.thegivingtreeschool.com Established to provide an exceptional, affordable, and unique learning environment, based on small class sizes and a international curriculum incorporating compassion, communication, conservation, contemplation, creativity, conscience and global citizenship. iCAN British International School 85 Sothearos Blvd. Tel: 023 222 416 www.ican.edu.kh iCAN offers affordable, high quality education, using the IPC, IMYC and English National curriculum. Learners are encouraged to be thoughtful, creative, think critically, collaborate and achieve their best. iCAN is the learning environment of choice for parents who value the development of their children emotionally and socially, as well as academically.

International School of Phnom Penh 146 Norodom Blvd.

Tel: 023 213 103 www.ispp.edu.kh Founded in 1989, this non-profit, nonsectarian international school currently has over 600 students from Pre-K to Grade 12. The largest international school with over 70 professional teachers, and a fully-authorized IB programme.

Lycée Français René Descartes Street 96. Tel: 023 722 044 French school offering primary and secondary level education, extra-curricula activities include basketball, football, rugby.

Northbridge International School 1km off National Road 4 on the way to the airport.

Tel: 023 886 000 www.nisc.edu.kh Founded in 1997, NISC is a fullyauthorized IB World School with a growing enrollment of 500 students age 3 to Grade 12. Spectacular purpose built campus unlike any in Cambodia.

Raffles Montessori International School of Phnom Penh 18 Street 294 corner of Street 57, Phnom Penh Tel: 023 993 999 / 011 95 97 79 www. rmispp.edu.kh, info@rmispp.edu.kh International standard school from Singapore is inviting you to bring your children to experience the beauty of an independent education.

You will see for yourselves how the Montessori education will transform your child wonderfully guided by a team of Montessori-trained teachers/directresses with so much love and passion for children. We offer Kindergarten and Primary programmes for children of ages 1.8 to 8 years old.

Zaman International School 2843 Street 3.

Tel: 023 214 040 www.zamanisc.org International school that teaches a full curriculum to children from four to 18. Facilities include basketball and volleyball courts, a football field and a science lab.

Pre-Schools

Canadian International School of Phnom Penh Bassac Garden, Norodom Boulevard Tel: 023 727 788 / 077 503 778 www.cisp.edu.kh Offers a Canadian curriculum in English, certified through the Canadian province of New Brunswick.

DK Schoolhouse No. 7 St. 466 078 777 466 / 095 777 466 www.dkschoolhouse.com DK Schoolhouse is an early learning preschool/kindergarten for children aged 2-6. Established by long time residents of the Kingdom, DK Schoolhouse aims to minimize the gap between quality and cost in education while providing a safe and stimulating learning environment.

Our staff are native English speaking, qualified early childhood educators.

Open Mon-Fri 8:00-4:00pm Sat 9:0011:00am (by appointment only).

Gecko & Garden Pre-school 3 Street 21.

Tel: 092 575 431 www.geckogarden-preschool.org This is a not-for-profit pre-school, established over ten years ago, which emphasises learning through creative play in a supportive environment forchildren aged 18 months to 5 years. Open daily 7:30am - 12pm. An after school program offering a range of fun activities is available 2:30pm - 5pm daily.

The Giving Tree Nursery and Preschool House #17, Street 71, Bkk Tel: 017 997 112 www.thegivingtreeschool.com Preschool committed to providing a nurturing and supportive environment that supports and extends the child’s overall development. With an international, experienced team of teachers the school offers a play-based programme that is fun and motivating.

Sambo’s Tots www.sambostots.com Playhouse and playschool provides fun edutainment experience for babies and toddlers from 3 months to 5 years where imagination comes to life.

Tchou Tchou 13 Street 21 Tel: 023 362 899, www.tchou-tchou.com Kindergarten and pre-school for 18 months to 5-year-olds, open from 7.30am to 12pm (Mon to Fri). French is the main language, although English and Khmer is also practised.

Shops

Monument Toys 111 Norodom Bvd. Tel: 023 217 617 To the rear of Monument Books is a well-stocked toy section. It features an excellent range of well-known board games and toys including Barbie dolls, Transformers, Magic 8 balls and more.

It has to be the best place in the city for brand name toys and games.

Open daily 7.30am - 8pm.

Shade 7 Outdoor Living Co Ltd Showroon; Borey Chamkarmon Tel: 077 962 467 david@shade7.com www.shade7.com www.springfreetrampoline.com Supplier of Shade7 premium aluminium umbrellas and exclusive distributor of original Springfree range. World class products now available in Cambodia!

Stock in country for immediate supply.

Toys & Me 159A Mao Tse Toung Blvd.

Tel: 023 212 081 / 016 808 676 www.toysnme.net Established in 2007, Toys & Me is a leading toys shop in Cambodia. A onestop shop you can trust when it comes to educational needs for your children.

Willi Shop 769 Monivong Blvd Tel: 023 211 652 All products are imported from France, including bébé brand baby products, the range includes prams, baby care, cots and toys. Open 8am - 8pm.

Inspiring Arts

Landmark Season Cambodian Living Arts Since 1998, Cambodian Living Arts has been facilitating the transformation of Cambodia through the arts. We began life as the Cambodian Master Performers Program, founded by musician Arn Chorn-Pond, with the aim of locating and supporting the country’s surviving master artists.

What began as one man’s mission to bring back the country’s traditional arts and culture from the verge of extinction has since blossomed into a robust organisation.

We have commissioned numerous performances and recordings from Cambodian artists, funded scholarships, implemented regular performances at the capital’s National Museum, and initiated both the Cambodian Youth Arts Festival in Phnom Penh and the Season of Cambodia festival in New York City.

This year marks our 15th anniversary and we are holding a series of events to celebrate this landmark, starting with a multimedia exhibition that will run at

our centre on Sothearos Boulevard until Mar. 15.

Called 15 years of Transformation Through the Arts, the retrospective exhibition commemorates our accomplishments thus far, while looking ahead to the future of the arts in Cambodia.

It features a gallery of archival photos and videos and a listening station loaded with recordings from traditional Cambodian musicians.

We will continue the celebrations on Feb. 23 at the National Museum’s Plae Pakaa Theatre. The event will showcase young, up-andcoming Cambodian musicians alongside experienced master artists.

Attendees can take in the mellow timbre of the chapei dang weng, a two-stringed Cambodian guitar, and bask in the pomp and ceremony of Cambodian royal court music as a pin peat troupe takes the stage.

The finale will feature the Waterek Ensemble, led by CLA founder Arn ChornPond, and their unique blend of pop and traditional Cambodian sounds.

Cambodian Living Arts celebrates its 15th anniversary this year. To mark its achievement, CLA will be submitting a regular column to AsiaLIFE to explain the world of traditional art forms to our readers.

82 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

services

LISTINGS

business & services Architecture, Interior Design & Construction

Beyond Interiors 14e Street 306 Tel: 023 987 840 / 012 930 332 ww.beyondinteriors.biz Managed by Australian designer Bronwyn Blue, this interior design showroom can provide the ultimate design solution to your interior dilemma.

All products from Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Cambodia have been treated to withstand any climate.

Open 9am - 6pm Bill Grant Landscape Design Tel: 012 932 225 / 012 738 134 The city’s most talented landscape designer.

Green Goal Ltd 10 Street 296. Tel: 023 223 861 Consultancy offers sustainable and creative architectural and construction services to clients taking into account environmental considerations.

Bikes & Mechanics

Dara Motorbike 43 Street 136. Tel: 012 335 499 Off-road specialist offers repairs, parts and accessories. Tours can be arranged by appointment.

Emerald Garage 11 Street 456 Mechanics specialising in maintenance and repair of vehicles, including oil changing and body painting.

The Bike Shop 31 Street 302.

Tel: 012 851 776 Repairs trusty steeds as well as renting them out in the first place. Also provides dirt bike tours.

Western Service Centre 24 Street 420.

Tel: 012 477 831 www.wmg-cambodia.com A garage with Western and Khmer staff that emphasises communication and trained, attentive skills. Motto is “We don’t know all, we find out all, then we fix.”

Hemisphere Design & Interiors Tel: 012 602 955 william@norbert-munns.com Western managed renovation company specialising in swimming pools and Jacuzzi construction in fibreglass and concrete.

Business Groups

I Ching Decor 85 Sothearos Blvd.

Tel: 023 220 873 / 012 558 000 / 092 660 746, Boutique interior design shop offering advice on architectural work and interior design, as well as providing custommade furniture, home accessories, kitchenware, lighting and bedroom suites. Open 9am - 6pm, closed Sun.

British Business Association of Cambodia (BBAC) 35 Sihanouk Blvd.

Tel: 012 803 891 Contact enquiries@bbacambodia.com

The Room Design Studio 9AB Street 288. Tel: 023 992 620 Interior design and architectural company that has 12 years’ experience of designing flats, villas, offices, shops, homes and offices in Asia.

Australian Business Association of Cambodia (ABAC) 20 Street 114 (cnr. Street 67) For information, contact Derek Mayes.

Tel:012 385 157. abacambodia@gmail.com

Chambre de Commerce FrancoCambodgienne Office 2nd floor, 33 Street 178 Tel: 023 221 453. www.ccfcambodge.org Canadian Cooperation Office Cambodia Commissioner Service .

50 Street 334. Tel: 023 215 496 www.cco-cambodia.org

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 83

services

money matters Don’t Follow The Herd Paul Dodd

If you were a wildebeest, would you choose to wade into a river seething with enormous crocodiles? It doesn’t sound like a recommended course of action, does it? Yet, year after year, scores of wildebeest end up as lunch as they cross the Mara River in Kenya.

Why would the wildebeests do it? It seems counter intuitive, but it is hard-wired into the genetic behaviour of the species. Bizarrely, the act of plunging into a river of ravenous crocs is perfectly rational. The wildebeest herd is being driven by the need to seek fresh pasture. Having exhausted all the food on one side of the river, the herd must cross or starve, with the sheer number of animals meaning that only an unlucky few end up as lunch.

Safety in numbers is a risk dilution technique in which the unfortunate few are sacrificed for the needs of the many.

Despite the human love of individuality, not many of us like to stand out from the crowd or go against the norm.

Herd behaviour has long been recognised by sociologists as common – go with the flow, follow everyone else and you will be okay. This is well noted in the field of finance and investing, but it is not something to be recommended and often results in unwelcome consequences.

Essentially, herd behaviour in existing terms is following market rises. Fund X rises in value so you buy some, or everyone unloads shares in company Y

so you feel that you had better sell too. The problem is that followers of the herd are always chasing the market – buying when it rises and selling at a lower price because others have already exited the investment. You will always be behind the market, and that means getting lower returns.

It is the antithesis of the old maxim “buy low, sell high.”

Even worse is buying in at the top of bubble market just before it goes pop. That can spell disaster for your life savings. There are countless examples stretching right back to the famous 17th Century Tulip Mania Bubble, where the price of a single tulip bulb was equal to 10 years income for a skilled artisan.

Logic would tell you that it was madness, but everyone piled in with higher investments. It seemed no one could lose, until the market finally collapsed. Fortunes were lost; people were ruined. There have been many examples including the relatively recent 1997 Asian Financial Crisis that saw fortunes lost across the region.

This month’s message is that if you want security then don’t follow the crowd, but diversify. Spreading your investments across different asset classes, geographical regions and different sized companies will dilute the risk. Following a strategy, rather than the crowd, is far more likely to result in consistent returns and long-term growth.

Paul Dodd is an area manager at Infinity Financial Solutions.

This company provides impartial, tailor-made, personal financial advice to clients in Cambodia and Southeast Asia. Should you wish to contact Paul, please send an email to info@ infinitysolutions.com or visit infinitysolutions.com.

84 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Malaysian Business Council of Cambodia Unit G21, Ground Floor, Parkway Square 113, Mao Tse Tung Blvd. mbcc.secretariat@gmail.com

Car Rental

ACC Car Rental Services 43 Street 160z Toul Kork Tel. 012 456 003 / 015 456 003.

Professional, prompt and organised rental service that provides vehicles for rent with or without a driver. ACC also rents a range of buses that seat from 12 to 45 people. All vehicles can be delivered to your door.

Asia Vehicle Rental 27 Street 134. Tel: 078 666 557 www.avrcambodia.com With the motto “leave your driving to us”, the rental service offers sedans, pick-ups, SUVs and minibuses in 2WD or 4WD for self-drive or with driver.

Insurance offered.

Larryta Trading & Travel Co. Ltd. 9 Street 310. Tel: 023 994 748 www.larrytacarrental.com.kh Vehicle rental for all types of cars, vans and mini-buses with flexible packages in Cambodia and neighbouring countries by the day, week or month.

Royal Limousine Services Attwood Business Center, Russian Confederation Blvd. Tel : 023 218 808 www.royallimousine.com.kh Fleet of late model Mercedes that provides transport for hotels, embassies and luxury tour operators as well as foreign delegates.

Commercial Banks

Acleda Bank 61 Monivong Blvd. Tel: 023 998 777 www.acledabank.com.kh Specialises in micro, small and medium loans to people throughout the country.

ANZ Royal Bank Main Branch, 20 Street 114 www.anzroyal.com Cambodia’s major commercial bank has brought international standards of banking to Cambodia, with a large number of ATM machines around Phnom Penh. Can arrange money transfers.

CIMB Bank PLC 20AB Norodom Blvd. Tel: 023 988 388 www.cimbbank.com.kh Full range of commercial and consumer banking products and services for both Cambodian and foreign businesses and individuals.

The first Japanese bank in Cambodia.

Maruhan Japan Bank 83 Norodom Blvd. Tel: 023 999 010 First Japanese bank in Phnom Penh.

Bikes & Mechanics

Dara Motorbike 43 Street 136, Tel: 012 335 499 Off-road specialist offers repairs, parts and accessories. Tours can be arranged by appointment.

Emerald Garage 11 Street 456 Mechanics specialising in maintenance and repair of vehicles, including oil changing and body painting.

The Bike Shop 31 Street 302. Tel: 012 851 776 Repairs trusty steeds as well as renting them out in the first place.

Also provides dirt bike tours.

Western Service Centre 24 Street 420. Tel: 012 477 831 www.wmg-cambodia.com A garage with Western and Khmer staff that emphasises communication and trained, attentive skills.

IT & Software

Cresittel Co., Ltd. Office 705, KT Tower, 23 Street 112. Tel 098 518 888 Provides software solutions and systems, point of sales systems for bars and restaurants, website designing and telecoms consulting.

Has showroom at 385 Street 215.

Netpro Cambodia 11 Street 422. Tel: 023 215 141 www.netpro-cambodia.com, IT supports company that delivers high quality and reliable services to home and small to medium size organisations in Cambodia.

Ocean Technology T-20 St Topaz, Sovanna Shopping Centre Tel: 023 211 700 / 010 624 001 www.ocean-tech.biz Technology company that offers GPS navigation systems, an online map directory and vehicle tracking system.

Internet Provider

EMAXX 99 Norodom Blvd. Tel: 023 999 818 EMAXX offers fast internet access via WiMAX, Optical Fiber and Satellite.

Insurance

AG Cambodia Hotel Cambodiana, 313 Sovanna Sisowath Quay Tel: 017 360 333. nfo@agcambodia.com Professional insurance agent offering health, home, car, factory, employee and hotel insurance packages.

Forte Insurance 325, Mao Tse Toung Blvd, Phnom Penh, Tel: 023 885 077 www.forteinsurance.com Forte Insurance is dedicated to providing exceptionally comprehensive and efficient insurance services (Corporate Insurance & Personal Insurance) to all our clients.

Infinity Insurance 126 Norodom Blvd. Tel: 023 999 888 Professional insurance company offers motor, property, home, marine cargo, personal accident, healthcare, construction and engineering insurance.

Group policies can be customized.

Legal

BNG Legal 64 Street 111. www.bnglegal.com Tel: 023 212 671 / 023 212 740 BNG Legal is a leading Cambodian law firm providing comprehensive legal services to foreign and local clients.

We differentiate ourselves by coupling a deep understanding of the local business environment with international professionalism and integrity.

DFDL Legal and Tax Advisors 33 Street 294. Tel: 023 210 400 www.dfdlmekong.com Law firm providing international standard legal and tax solutions with local and cross-border experience with offices in neighbouring countries.

Gordon and Associates Asia 21 Street 214. Tel: 023 218 257 US lawyer works with local Cambodian lawyers to provide international quality advice. Specialises in foreign investment, joint ventures and advising entrepreneurs with an in depth knowledge of the telecoms, agriculture, banking and hospitality sectors.

Sciaroni & Associates 24 Street 462. Tel: 023 210 225 Law firm with a good reputation.

Just the ticket if you get into a spot of bother.

Anon Creative Energy Tel: 089 812 123 anoncambodia@gmail.com Internationally trained advertising talent at your service. Strong, strategic ideas.

Available for freelance art and copy writing projects.

Asia Media Lab Tel: 012 818 917. www.asiamedialab.com Full service video production company specialises in the creation of dynamic visual content to help bring NGO stories to life for fundraising and advocacy.

Miscellaneous

Sunbird Angkor Co. Ltd. 78 Monireth Blvd.

Tel: 023 98 3333 / 023 99 1010 sunbirdangkor@yahoo.co.kr Worldwide Hotel Reservation, Car Rental Service, Worldwide Medical Service, Convention, Marketing.

Open Mon~Fri 8am ~5:30pm & Sat 8am~1pm Sunbird Global Co., Ltd. 78 St. Monireth Blvd.

Tel: 023 98 3333 / 023 99 1010 sunbirdglobal@yahoo.co.kr Insurance Service, Air Cargo, Worldwide Express, Trading.

Open Mon~Fri 8am ~5:30pm & Sat 8am~1pm

Post Office

Main Post Office Cnr. Streets 102 & 13 The place to go if you want to send something overseas or get a PO Box. Open 6.30am -9pm.

Photography

AsiaMotion Tel: 092 806 117. www.asiamotion.net Photographic agency established in November 2008 as a cooperation between local and international photographers.

Nathan Horton Photography Tel: 092 526 706 www.nathanhortonphotography.com Full service professional photographer.

Hotels, bars, restaurants, spas and location work. Call for Travel Photography workshops and tours.

Printing

Sok Heng Printing House 1297B Street Luo 5, Stoeung Mean Chey Tel: 011 939 255 / 012 939 255 Modern print house providing a full range of printing services. Graphic design available.

Real Estate and Property Services

240Condo 50B Street 240.

Tel: 012 271 636 www.240phnompenh.com 240 is the home of 42 luxury serviced apartments set in the most stylish area of the city with spectacular river and city views. The condominium was designed by leading international architects gfab and represents the most contemporary luxury apartment development currently available in Cambodia.

CB Richard Ellis (Cambodia) Co., Ltd. 9th Floor, Hyundai Phnom Penh Tower 445 Monivong Blvd.

Tel: 023 964 099 www.cbre.com.kh The world’s largest commercial real estate services company offering premier quality real estate, valutions, consultancy, investment and property services.

Property Care Services (PCS) 2A Road 7. Tel: 017 555 203 Solution for property support services, including waste management, security, pest control and cleaning. Only company to clean high-rise windows with abseilers.

services

Media & Design

Relocation, Shipping

Crown 115-116 Street 335. Tel: 023 881 004 www.crownrelo.com Global transportation and relocation company with over 150 offices in 50 countries, specialising in expat support and household shipment.

Open 8:30am - 5:30pm Mon - Fri, 8:30am - 12pm, Sat. expat2cambodia Call Sophie: 066 200 767 www.expat2cambodia.com Your personal consultant offering services from expat to expat in the client’s own language: city orientation, house hunting and utilities, health care, cars/motorbikes, recreation facilities, networking, shopping, administration.

Home Connect Cambodia 86 Street 160. Tel: 023 88 56 85 www.homeconnect.asia Home search company, dedicated to making the home search process easy and specializing in finding rental homes for the expatriate community. Best of all for our clients, our services are FREE.

Taxi Services

Choice Taxi Tel: 023 888 023 / 090 882 882 Metered taxi service with rates from US$1 for first 2km.

Giant Ibis Transport Phnom Penh Phnom Penh: 3 Street 106, next to Night Market. Tel: 023 999 333 www.giantibis.com Siem Reap: 64 Street Sivatha, Mondol 1, Svay Dankum.

Travel in “Affordable Luxury” to Siem Reap and other destinations in brand new 2012 buses with comforablt reclining seats, spacious leg room, A/C, Wi-fi, complementary snacks and pick-up service.

Global Meter Taxi Tel: 011 311 888 092 889 962 / 016 680 118 Modern metered taxi fleet with rates from less than US$1 for first two km.

Telecoms

Emaxx Corner St 214 and Norodom Blvd.

Tel: 023 999 818 We provide a national, high-quality, 4G communications network service for Internet and multi-media services including commerce, entertainment and education for development of Cambodia.

Ezecom 7D Russian Blvd. Tel: 023 888 181 www.ezecom.com.kh Internet service provider that promises boundless internet packages suited to everyone’s needs. Good packages for those looking for unlimited downloads.

Mobitel 33 Sihanouk Blvd.Tel: 012 801 801 Largest ISP in the country. Major mobile phone company which issues the 012 SIM card.

Smart 464A Preah Monivong Blvd.

Tel: 010 201 000.www.smart.com.kh www.facebook.com/SmartAxiata One of the most dynamic and fastest growing mobile telecom service in the country, issues the 010, 015, 016, 069, 070, 081, 086, 087, 093, 096, and 098 prefixes.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 85

LISTINGS

shopping Art

Hanuman Fine Arts 13B Street 334, Phnom Penh Tel: 023 211 916 tradition@hanumanfinearts.com High quality, beautiful antiques and objets d’art from all over the Kingdom.

Furniture, ornaments, silverware, jewellery and more are well displayed in a treasure trove of a store. Very helpful and friendly staff.

Open 8am - 5pm.

Happy Painting Gallery 363 Sisowath Quay (nr. FCC) Tel : 023 221 732 www.happypainting.net Established in 1995 this art gallery is dedicated to Stef, a local icon artist with a very personal and positive insight into everyday life in Cambodia.

Open 8am - 10pm

Beauty Products

Angkor Soap 16C Street 374 Tel: 023 223 720 / 015 935 789. www.angkorsoaps.com Specialising in handmade soaps and natural spa products.

Open daily 8am - 5pm Raffles Amrita Spa Raffles Hotel Le Royal. Tel: 023 981 888 www.raffles.com/phnompenh spa. phnompenh@raffles.com Distinctive collection of Raffles Amrita spa private label and international spa products are available for purchase.

Open 6am - 10pm.

Books & CDS

Carnets d’Asie French Cultural Centre 218 Street 184. Tel: 012 799 959 French-language bookshop has sections on Cambodia and Asia as well as general fiction, with a good range of French magazines and newspapers.

Open 8am - 8pm

86 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

D’s Books 79 Street 240 & 12E Street 178 Tel: 012 726 355 www.facebook.com/ ds.books.shops New and used bookshops with over 20,000 original books and some copies, with a great range of best sellers.

Coffee, smoothies and more available all day at Street 240. Open 9am to 9pm.

Le Phnom Shop Raffles Hotel Le Royal.

Tel: 023 981 888 www.raffles.com/phnompenh, Small shop offering books and souvenirs including recipes from the hotel’s pastry chef. Open 7am - 9pm.

Monument Books 111 Norodom Blvd. Tel: 023 217 617 Extensive range of new Englishlanguage books in town including recent releases and sections on Asia, Cambodia, travel, cuisine, design and management. Good children’s section as well as a wide choice of magazines and newspapers.

Open 7am - 8.30pm.

Crafts & Furniture

Art des Lignes 42B Mao Tse Toung Blvd.

Tel: 012 211 520 www.artdeslignes.com This new interior design showroom provides branded products of highquality like luxury leather sofas and LED lighting, as well as furniture and metal artworks in contemporary style.

Upstairs, the architecture and interior design office can offer complete solutions for projects, with a resolutely modern spirit and French Touch.

Open 8:30am - 7:00pm .closed Sun. Artisans Angkor 12AEo Street 13 (in front of Post Office) Open daily from 9am to 6pm Tel: 023 992 409 www.artisansdangkor.com Boutique with a wide range of traditional and contemporary handmade pieces

produced at Artisans Angkor’s workshops in Siem Reap province: silk scarves, clothing and accessories, home furnishings, lacquer paintings and tableware, stone and wooden sculptures, silver-plated ornaments and silk paintings. Special commissions and custom orders welcome.

Artwood 33 Street 302. Tel: 016 934 999 www.artwood.asia Drop in to our showroom to experience modern wooden furniture designed and manufactured in Cambodia. Offers free consultations for both commercial and residential custom-made needs.

DeCosy 219 Street 19 Tel: 023 219 276 Stocking charming knick-knacks and furniture,is the place to find the things to make your house a home. Open daily from 9am to 7pm.

Pavillon d’Asie 24, 26 Sihanouk Blvd Tel: 012 497 217 Antique lovers dream, a large array of well-restored furniture and decorative objects. Wooden cabinets jostle for space with Buddha statues and old wooden boxes. Upstairs are pieces from the French colonial era. Open 10am - 7pm, closed Sun.

Fashion

Ambre 37 Street 178.

Tel: 023 217 935 The high-end fashion designs created

by Cambodian designer Romyda Keth are popular all over the world, this beautiful colonial building makes the perfect setting for the city’s most glamorous design shop. Also has men’s fashion.

Open 10am - 6pm, closed Sun. A.N.D. 52c Street 240.

Tel: 017 854 726 artisandesigners@gmail.com The designers at A.N.D. work with many local artisans, giving a fashion twist to traditional skills: look for generously-sized ikat wraps in pure cotton, innovative up-cycled bags, and covetable jewellery combining hand-carved hardwoods with silver and vintage porcelain.

Bambou Indochine 7 Street 178.

Tel: 023 214 720, Facebook: bambouindochine High-quality T-shirts, Polo shirts and comfortable clothes in original designs.

A full-range of sizes for men, women and children. Open daily 8am -10pm.

PhalyCraft 37 Street 113. Tel: 016 485 857 www.phalycraft.com Located near Tuol Sleng Museum, PhalyCraft makes scarves, bags, gifts and accessories. Custom orders available.

Beautiful Shoes 138 Street 143.

Tel: 012 848 438 Family-run business measures your feet and designs the shoe exactly as you wish. The shop also caters for men. Open from 7am to 6.30pm.

Renature Aquarium Shop 35AE Street 288. co.operating7@gmail.com Tel: 012 664-381 (Khmer-English) / 088 3335-338 (Japanese) High quality aquarium products including fish, tanks, lighting systems, filters, water grass, rocks, Japanese soil and much more. Open Mon-Fri 12pm to 6pm. Sat-Sun 10am to 7pm.

Bliss 29 Street 240. Tel: 023 215 754 A beautiful colonial building houses this exquisite shop with funky patterned cushions, quilts and an excellent clothing line. The health spa at the back of the shop also sells Spana beauty products. Open from 9am to 9pm (closed Mondays).

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 87

Color Vintage 168 Street 13 Color Vintage is Phnom Penh’s premiere shop for refined vintage styles for men and women. We source authentic articles from around the world and offer free alterations for a perfect fit! Buy, sell or exchange.

Tel: 023 640 5047 Vibrant vintage shop offering a selection of interesting, handpicked secondhand dresses, handbags, belt, purses and other accessories. Men’s clothing available too. The collection is constantly changing and the attractive prices already make it popular amongst expats.

Couleurs D’Asie 33 Street 240 Tel: 023 221 075/ 099 499 478 www.couleursdasie.net info@couleursdasie.net Established in Cambodia for more than 15 years, Couleurs d´Asie has developed a full range of textile products for home decoration, clothing and fashion accessories. Jewellery, essential oils, soaps and more are on offer. A custom service for existing products is also available.

Luna Boutique 8E1Street 278.

Tel: 023 220 176 www.lunaboutiquephnompenh.com Original and stylish fashion designs for men and women, from work suits to evening dresses. The tailor-made creations, designed by modern Cambodian stylist Mengchou Kit, are fit for any occasion. Luna Boutique is located in the heart of Phnom Penh, in front of Anise Hotel, while its sister shop - Luna Shoes - is just next door and hosts a large selection of shoes, bags, and women’s accessories to complement your style.

Open daily 8am - 9pm.

Dara Shoes 10 Street 166, near corner Street 107.

Tel: 012 855 173 / 097 8097 143 Good quality shoes, boots, bags, belts and leather products made to order since 1993.

Jasmine Boutique 73 Street 240.

Tel: 023 223 103 www.jasmineboutique.net Established in 2001 by Kellianne Karatau and Cassandra McMillan, this boutique creates its own collection of designs twice a year using hand-woven Cambodian silk. Open 8am - 6pm.

Khmer Attitude Raffles Hotel Le Royal.

Tel: 023 981 888 Fashion boutique that offers the finest Khmer silk clothing for men, women and children, including designs by Romyda Keth, and exclusive jewellery that complement the limited edition outfits.

La Clef de Sol 10 Street 208. Tel: 012 394 915 A design boutique offering home decor, women’s fashion, kids clothes, bags, accessories and continually updated design surprises. Near KFC on Norodom Blvd. Open 9am - 6pm Monday - Saturday Lim Keo 9 Street 222.

Tel: 012 941 643 Pret a porter by Lim Keo, son of Sylvain Lim, the master of Cambodian fashion.

Lost‘N’ Found Vintage Store 321 Street 63 cnr Street 322

88 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Promesses and Kaprices 20 Street 282.

Tel: 023 993 527 Lingerie shop stocked with exclusive French and Thai undergarments. Chic, new prêt-à-porter shop Kaprices is located upstairs. Open 9am - 7pm.

SentosaSilk Uniform 33 Sothearos Blvd, cnr Street 178 Tel: 012 962 911/ 023 222 974 sentosa@online.com.kh Well known for its professional management ability, SentosaSilk gives clients efficient and reliable service through quality systems and procedures that consistently enhance product quality and reliability.

Sobbhana Boutique 23-24 Street 144/49 Tel: 023 219 455/ 023 219 452 www.sobbhana.org, A not for profit organisation founded

by Princess Norodom Marie, offering a range of colourful, handwoven silk products. Profits fund training, medical care and education of weavers.

Smateria 8Eo Street 5.

Tel: 023 211 701 7 Street 178.

Tel: 023 214 720 www.smateria.com Boutique specialising in accessories made from recycled materials including a range of bags and wallets made from old fruit juice cartons, plastic bags and mosquito nets.

Subtyl 43 Street 240.

Tel 023 992 710 www.subtyl.com Up-market boutique selling Cambodian handmade women’s clothes, scarves, shoes, bags and other accessories in contemporary and interesting designs, the Subtyl collection combines class with colour. ChilliKids children’s clothing is also stocked at the shop.

Open 9am - 7pm.

Food & Wine

AusKhmer – The Pantry Shop 125 Street 105 Tel: 023 993 859 /023 214 478 This small deli features a variety of well priced wines, Australian beers, and French delicacies, cheeses, antipasti, and cold cuts. Open 10am - 8pm.

Camory – Premium Cookie Boutique 167 Sisowath Quay.

Tel: 023 224 937 Makes cookies using produce from the provinces such as cashews from Kampong Cham and Mondulkiri honey.

A portion of the profits fund education for a local orphanage.

Open 9am - 8.30pm.

Celliers d’Asie 62B & 98 Street 432.

Tel: 023 986 350 Wine supplier with the largest quantity of retail stock in town, has been providing wine to most of the top hotels and restaurants for over ten years. Open 8am -12pm, 2pm - 6pm, closed Sun. Comme a la Maison 13 Street 57.

Tel: 012 951 869 Decidedly sophisticated French restaurant has a small delicatessen and bakery at the back of the restaurant ideal for that morning baguette or croissant with your coffee. Open from 6am - 10.30pm.

Dan Meats 51A Street 214.

Tel: 012 906 072 Phnom Penh’s man of meat, Lanzi, supplies his strictly non-vegetarian products to many restaurants around town. Open7:30 - 6:30, closed Sun. Kurata Pepper Cnr. Streets 63 & 322.

Tel: 023 726 480 Selling organic Koh Kong pepper and associated products, Kurata is one of the more unusual shops in town.

Open daily 8am - 7pm.

Open Wine 219 Street 19 Tel: 023 223 527 Aircon wine shop and tasting gallery sells wines, severac, calvados and meat. Open 7pm - 11pm.

Red Apron 15-17 Eo Street 240 Tel: 023 990 951 Home of wine enthusiasts in Phnom Penh is both a wine boutique and tasting gallery. With around 300 wines, the boutique has more range than the supermarkets.

Open 9am - 9pm.

Supercheap Cambodia 87 Street 360. Tel: 023 631 3668 336A Monivong Blvd. Tel: 023 977 779 www.supercheap.com.kh Budget shop claims to offer the biggest variety of wines and spirits in Cambodia as well as the cheapest prices.

Open 8am - 10pm.

The Deli

13 Street 178 Tel: 012 851 234 Café and bakery with take away breads, sandwiches and pastries. Now has a second outlet on Street 51.

Open 6.30am - 6.30pm, delivery service (within 30 minutes) 7am-11pm.

Silks & Accessories

Friends ‘n’ Stuff 215 Street 13 Tel: 012 955 722 Colourful shop with unique products designed by Mith Samlahn/Friends students and parents of former street kids.

Range includes cclothes, necklaces, purses and second hand goods. Has a nail bar run by students from the beauty class.

Open 11am - 9pm.

Mekong Quilts 49 Street 240 Tel: 023 219 607 www.mekong-quilts.org Outlet for NGO Mekong Plus, stocks a large range of hand-crafted bed covers, home accessories, gifts and decorations.

Benefits Mekong Plus, which promotes health initiatives in Svay Rieng Province.

Open 9am - 7pm.

Sentosa Silk 33 Sothearos Blvd, cnr Street 178 Tel: 023 222 974 www.sentosasilk.com Using a colourful range of Asian silks, Sentosa creates men’s and women’s clothing, accessories and soft furnishings. Sentosa employs disadvantaged people.

Open daily 8am - 7pm.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 89

.1

11

St. 278

St. 115

) 17

St. 260

St. 248

St. 242

St. 232

ar Ch

St. 198

de l es

St. 190

( St lle u Ga

St. 143

St. 236

.2

St. 141

1

64 1

St. 161

St.

St. 119

St. 127

St. 129

St. 151

St. 153

St. 157

St. 159

Sihanouk blvd.

Olympic Stadium 84

.1

34

St. 322

89

Legend Cinema 8 29 0 31

8

31

01

32

8

St

.1

93

.2

8

St. 336

St. 326

St. 261

ie (A

6 4 36

St. 346

St. 316

4 37

7) ire

St. 218

24

on M

St. 210

St. 204

St. 202

th

(S

t

1 .2

St. 182 St. 186

St. 160

St. 156

St. 146

St. 251 St. St. 270

irp

St. 116

oad ort R Russ

600 St. 311

8

.3 St

36

St. 272

St. 234

St. 217

St. 194

St. 156

St. 150

St. 146

St. 138

St. 188

St. 162

6 t. 5

Tin Tin Cafe Tango

de la

6

St. 247

9

St.

St. 259

St.

269

255

St. 388

St. 372

St. 362

St. 344

St. 336

St. 324

St. 314

St. 230

)

St. 257

St. 261

on erati

5

56

St. 309

St. 604

St. 33

St.

St.

4

St. 602

90 AsiaLIFE Cambodia 54 St.

St. 305 90

17

88

.3

2

St. 5

54 St.

St. 5

St

0

)

80

54

84

8

St.

St. 5

53

Blvd. (St. 128

592

86 St. 5

01

07

Kampuchea Krom

St. 3

6

St.

St. 3

99

St.

St. 2

NailHolic

82

St. 5

St. 5

66 St. 5

St. 5

54

78

52 St. 5

13

IFL: Brown Coffee St. 122

50 St. 5

.3

St. 247

253 St.OPPOSITE

97

03

3 t. 5

St. 136

St. 608

46 48

St. 5

St. 5

St

95

2 St.

St. 3

S

8

St. 5

52

Chenla Theatre

Blvd.

St. 253

St. 2

ed

28 St. 5

15

St. 150

St. 618

St. 614

St. 612

St. 610

6 51 St.

St. 291

93

St.

To Airport approx. 6 km

St. 2

.3

Mao Tse Toung

Home Connect

Forte

11

St. 243

St. 241

AT THE AIRPORT: 89 St. 2 Bambou Indochine Smateria

03

InterContinental Friends ’n’ Stuff

St. 239 St. 237

(St. 289)

.2

St. 231

St. 233

Grand Phnom Penh Golf Penn Nouth

St. 227

St. 229

Royal Rattanak Hospital

St. 566

St. 564

St. 562

St. 55

St. 556

St. 528

2 St. 52

St. 524

16 5 St.

St. 225

3 8

28

5

St. 560

St.

28

St. 134

St.

St. 616

1

St

St. 182

52 28

St. 230

St. 223

St.

75 St. 2 St.

St

St. 226

St. 220

St. 122

St. 221

St. 206

608

1

6

St. 2

St.

St. 202

St.

99

05

Sunbird

St. 192

79

73

2 St.

32

St. 118

77

St. 112

St. 221 2 St.

.1

St.

St

St.

St 5) d. (St. 21 Nehru Blv

St.

35

St. 213

St.

St.

34

29

0

St. 211

St.

33

8

St.

.2

St.

.3 St

St

St.

36

St. 18

2

St.

St.

28

6

St. 171 St. 175

St .2

. 169)

St. 320

St. 163

St

vaquie (St

St. 304

St. 117

St. 125

14

St. 310

St. 292

St. 300

St. 280

St. 288

St. 276

St. 278

St. 113

St. 113

Orussey Market St.

St. 310

St. 306

St. 302

St. 288

St. 294

Sihanouk Blvd.

St. 282

St. 214

17 St.

St.

St

St. 152

St. 118

St. 122

v Jok Dimitro

(Pochentong de la Russie

Confederation

Wat Lang Ka

2

St. 26

2

St. 105

St. 111

Wasabi

Tchecoslo

Supercheap

The Flick

St. 107

0

109 St.

16

8

St. 6 16

St. 140 St. 134

St. 25

St. 24

St

. 240

Malis Dental Clinic

St. 149

St. 165

Crosstown Cafe Pasta and Vino

Lucky Kids City

International Chiropractic Clinic

g Blvd.

St. 182

d. (St. 128 a Krom Blv

)

St. 139

St. 161

St. 57

Oknha Noukan

St. 137

d) Airport Roa

St. 308

St.

56 St. 2

4

Monivon

Dara Shoes

EL Skin

Raffles Montesorri

Luna Boutique

Le Rit’s

St. 107

St. 109

Sihanouk Blvd.

Suramari

264

St. 244

8

2

St. 22

St. 22

CCF St. 81

St. 312

St. 266

St. 258

St. 246

4

St. 180

Hair & Nail Studio International Le Cafe Dental Clinic

St. 158

Cineplex

Kampuche

St. 126

St. 86

SOS

St. 63

St. 67

Le Biz

St. 70

Bo

rd uleva

St. 242

St. 200

St. 184

St. 17

8

St. 174

2 St. 17

Romdeng Do It All Bar

Cabaret

St.93

n

St. 2

Seibur

ISPP Malis Derma-Care

Infinity

t umen

Blvd

Blue Pumpkin U Care Smateria ArtWood Mega AQVARIVM Events Ninja Udon Ocean Kurata Cafe Villa Paradiso Fresh Salad Bar La Reine Artillery 2 Lost’n Salon Yi Sang Renature Aquarium Sunrise Tacos Bi Nail Salon Queen Boutique Hotel Byrd

8

Le Librairie

St. 154

St. 136

St. 126

r asteu . 51 (P

Almond Ho

The V The Taste Beyond Villa Samnang Le T Interiors The Common TEAE Tiger Villa Srey The Blue Pumpkin Lotus Blanc Patio Hotel Monument Books Brown Steve’s Steakhouse Dosa Corner De Coffee Terrazza Petra The Dollhouse Taqueria Equinox Corona

om orod

Circa 51 ) Street

St. 21

St

mey Psar Th

N

La Clef de Sol

Sobbhana

St. 53

St. 29

240 Phnom Penh endence Mo Indep A.N.D

LimKeo

EMAXX

nce

side

o Re

h Th

St. 49

Market

g Blvd.

Monivon

Raffles Hotel Le Royal

St. 240

40

St. 2

84 St. 1

78 St. 1

2 St. 17

St. 154

8 St. 136 )

St. 118

110)

ar (St. 114

duong (St.

Kramuons

St. 108

St. 106

Central

British Embassy

St. 80

St. 14

4 St. 14

6

0 St. 13

St. 118

St. 108

St. 106 St. 102

Preah Ang

St. 92

Stella

5

Huyn

Central Mansions The Shop St. 96

yal Hotel Le Ro

Tell

St. 90

St. 86

St. 84

St. 13

10 02

St.

.1

00

St

.1 St Oknha Sa

St. 102

nthomok

krong Cham Baksei 90 St.

88 St.

80 St.

78

St. 61

St. 88

St.

82

St.

84

United States Embassy

Exchange

St. 2

3

InStyle Spa La Marmite

.4

French Embassy

St. 2

Nathan Horton Photography

Wat Phnom

St. 75

St. 76

Sharky’s

Monkey The Plantation

Toto Ice Cream

t. 19

U Care

St.

S ce

S

Latin Quarter

9

16

n Fra

St t. (

Giant Ibis Transportation Van’s

y ua

The Chinese House Brasserie du Port Hotel Cara Doors 7)

Red Apron Yves Rocher Mekong Quilts The Shop Jasmine Business

St. 1

Botanic

Kan Ji

St. 9

Zino Splash Inn Lime 9 Vego Quinapenas Shigeta Dental One More St. 21 Vegetarian Public House Pub Villa Borann Mumoo’s / Java Café & Gallery Bar Sito Royal Palace Emergency Room Samba Luna Irina’s Artillery The Warehouse St. 29

on

4

Maos

Meta House The Duck

M

so

hQ

St. 7

7)

Si

t wa

Vietnam Friendship Monument

Reyum Institute of Arts & Culture

3

Sunbird 2 Fox

Dolce Italia

) ion

.3

St. 1

l tra e Cen Offic t Pos

hm

o-K

he

ns Ma

21

Limoncello

es

er R

(t nce ide

Sothearos Blvd.

t.

d.

Backstage Sin

St. 5

Q

(S

pR

ow

Rising Sun Bodia Spa Sentosa Silk U Care K West Amanjaya St. 13 Color Vintage National Museum Friends

Paddy Rice

Keo’Kjay La Cita Amara Spa

S is

at h

h

Beirut Indian Delight iVIVA! Gloria Jean’s Stone Grill Sa

Bambou Indochine FCC Smateria Cafe Fresco Cantina

y ua

Australian Embassy

Mind Body Practice

Eriq Amtalla Salon

St

Mayura Resort Office

nle

kto

a Ch

Pop Café

Chow Riverside Bistro Metro Café The Blue Pumpkin

Comme a la Maison

H ce en fer

St. 20

Phnom Penh Central

n Co

Naga World Darlin Darlin

t Blvd.

all

k mu

i re t

To

Himawari Hotel Cambodiana French Element Hotel & MW Medical AG Service

1 l Road

0

2 St. 64

St. 64

9

St. 36

3

St. 63

8

St. 36

9

g ivon

Blrid

ge

L’imprevu

7

St. 36

6 St. 62 0 St. 63

St. 620

St. 622

St. 62

8

Dragon Water Park

assy

9

St. 35

St. 64

4

Nationa St. 35

mond Hotel

Soth

earos

Mon

Sofitel Phokeethra B

I Ching lvd. iCAN

Nati

onal

Road

2

St. 21 St. 394

Canadian International School

Topaz

Monivon

71) t. 2 (S lvd. in B k Ph

47 St.

7

4

Ts e

8

ao

38

87

M

.1

93

2

lK ap o

S

12 t. 5

510

St.

S

06 t. 5

St.

502

St.

St.

500 496 St.

S

94 t. 4

92 4 St.

St.

St. 457

St. 448

. (St. 27

St

40

1)

91

St.

.1

min Blvd

St

.1

95 19

7

arak Ph ou

St.

.1

99

0

St.

ol Khem

41

4

40

St

4

30

St

St.

.1

St.

k

71)

St

To u

85

38

.1

St.

43

St

.2

05

To Choueng Ek Killing Fields approx. 12 km

St

.2

M

on

ire

th

(S

t.

2

St.

43

4

Yothap

St.

ara

t. 2

St

ng

Bl

vd .

83

4

.1

37

em

d. (S Blv

St

6

81

35

.1

St.

St

4

75

36

.1

St.

l Kh

min

St

St.

17

Global Art School of Ballet Dancing

apo

u Pho

St.

tinental ’n’ Stuff

75

St. 4

93

The Way Cafe

St. 4

St. 432

173

5

St.

St. 424

Singapore Parkway Salon

7

St. 442

3

h Yot

St. 438

St. 16

St. 17

430

St. 486

St. 480

St. 476

St. 478

St. 163

Physiotherapy

St. 167

St.

St.

488

490

St. 147

St. 472

Hahahoho

St. 470

St. 155

St. 145

St. 444

Toul Tom Pong

Indigo Counselling St. 468

St. 450

St. 440

St. 432

St. 426

St. 418

St. 408

Russian Market

St. 482

Cando Craft

504

St. 488

St. 454

St. 446

St. 432

St. 440

St. 428

St. 408

St. 135

St. 460

Toys & Me

St. 132

St. 464

St. 143

.1

Celebrate the New Year of the Horse with Elegance

St. 105

St. 454

St. 121

SupercheapSt. 133

St

Yoth

St. 508

St. 101 St. 103

St. 456

PhalyCraft Toul Sleng Museum

St. 420

Mao Tse Toung Blvd. (Street 245)

St. 396

St. 390

St. 386

St. 368

St. 376

St. 350

St. 360

St. 330

St. 99

St. 99

Art desLignes

WSC St. 348

St. 97

Nature Wild

The Terrace The Flicks K’NYAY

St. 310

Smart

g Blvd.

St. 484

Rambutan Resort

St. 95

St. 320

ROCK Entertainment Club

Man Han Lou

St. 95

113

ara hem

St. 73

St. 436

St. 71

iOne

T-Bone

rd

DK Schoolhouse

St. 474

Eton House

CIAPP

leva

St. 63

Sambo’s Tots

e

Bou

oum

St. 422

St. 400

St. 398

St. 392

St. 380

The Little Garden

St. 63

Lost’n’Found

ail Salon

Thida Salon New York Steakhouse

St. 450

Kurata Pepper

St. 370

St. 322

St. 334

St. 352

VI Bar

St. 360

57

dom

levard

Irrawaddi

e

Noro

St. 466

Norodom Bou

Le Temps des s cafe Cerises StreKiriya et) ey r St. 51 (Pasteu Blanc The Governor’s Simphony House De Gran

St. 466

The Village

La Rose

St. 462

Euro Dental Clinic

St. 498

Lost Room

07 St

St

.2

17

EXCLUSIVELY DISTRIBUTED BY

Phnom Penh (855) 23 986 350

Sihanouk,Cambodia Kep & Kampot91Battambang Siem ReapAsiaLIFE (855) 34 934 155 (855) 63 964 409 (855) 53 953 855

.2

09

Opening @ Code Red

Photography by Anna Clare Spelman, Conor Wall and Charles Fox

92 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Relaunch @ Shanghai

Launch @ Our City Festival

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 93

soundfix album review

by Mai Lynn Miller Nguyen

KEVIN MORBY

ANGEL HAZE

EJECTA

HARLEM RIVER

DIRTY GOLD

DOMINAE

SHARON JONES AND THE DAP-KINGS GIVE THE PEOPLE WHAT THEY WANT

The Harlem River is a strait that divides the boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx. It’s also the namesake of Kevin Morby’s solo debut, an EP created as an ode to New York City. Rather than salute the frenetic nature of the Big Apple, Morby’s soothing acoustic captures that sensation of feeling alone in the middle of a crowd. His lyrical content can seem melancholic, but his delivery denotes bittersweet acceptance, a sense of freedom gained from introspective wanderings. Bassist for Brooklyn-based bands Woods and the Babies, Morby is a seasoned indie musician. ‘Slow Train’, a duet with Cate Le Bon, highlights a gift for combining his talents with those of others.

But the rest of his album proves that he can also go it alone.

94 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

When Angel Haze’s label delayed the sale of her debut, the rapper used social media to leak the album and force the label into bumping up the release date. Thus, the Detroit-raised 22-year-old, born Raykeea Angel Wilson, established herself as someone who breaks rules. Yet although her rhymes are dexterous and some lyrics have pointy edges, Wilson doesn’t come across as too hardcore. Confessional voiceovers appear throughout the sprawling collection of tracks, with sound bites like “I’m making it for people who just wanna get lost,” and “my home is the music”. Anthemic choruses show off her singing voice, which is decent but suffers in juxtaposition to vocalist Sia’s appearance on ‘Battle Cry’. The girl’s got talent, but for the moment, she may be better described as having potential.

It took me a few times to listen to Ejecta’s ‘Eleanor Lye’ before I realised why it sounded so hauntingly recognisable.

Remember Diana Ross’s ‘If We Hold On Together’, featured in 1988 animated dinosaur film The Land Before Time? Layered with a discotheque-targeting production, Ejecta’s chorus has an eerie resemblance to Ross’ ballad. A collaboration between Leanne Macomber of Neon Indian and producer Joel Ford, Ejecta showcases poignant electronic pop on debut Dominae. Macomber writes the songs and provides wispy vocals, whereas Ford contributes bubbly synthesised rhythms. A good comparison is disco project Sally Shapiro, along with myriad New Wave influences. There’s a familiarity to many of the record’s tracks, which doesn’t mean Ejecta is dull. Au contraire, any album that makes me both want to dance and reminisce about my favourite childhood classic is destined for repeat play.

Behold an artist who recognises that gratifying an audience comes by being herself. With her fifth album, soul singer Sharon Jones sets out to Give the People What They Want. What Jones’ fans want is exactly what she delivers: ten timeless tracks, filled with emotion that will both warm and break hearts.

Her songs are fun because of how much she seems to be enjoying herself, even when she’s singing a woeful ballad.

The release was stalled by Jones’ pancreatic cancer diagnosis and subsequent treatment and the record’s recent distribution shows the force of her indomitable spirit. Jones’ irresistible vibrancy comes through in recordings, but the stage is where she shines – and fortunately, her illness isn’t stopping her from an upcoming tour schedule. That’s even more reason to celebrate the celebratory quality of her music.

topten

endorsed

Official 97.5 Love FM Phnom Penh Top Ten 1 The Monster 2 Let Her Go 3 Timber 4 Story Of My Life 5 Alone Together 6 Unconditionally 7 Do What You Want 8 Slow Down 9 Royals 10 Marry Me

Eminem feat. Rihanna Passenger Pitbull feat. Kesha One Direction Fall Out Boy Katy Perry Lady Gaga Selena Gomez Lorde Jason Derulo

UK Top Ten 1. Happy Pharrell Williams 2. Timber Pitbull feat. Kesha 3. Hey Brother Avicii 4. Trumpets Jason Derulo 5. Million Pound Girl Fuse ODG 6. How Long Will I Love You Ellie Goulding 7. Control Matrix & Futurebound 8. The Monster Eminem feat. Rihanna 9. Animals Martin Garrix 10. Drunk In Love Beyoncé

US Top Ten 1. Timber 2. Counting Stars 3. The Monster 4. Royals 5. Say Something

6. Dark Horse 7. Let Her Go 8. Wake Me Up! 9. Wrecking Ball 10. Demons

Pitbull OneRepublic Eminem feat. Rihanna Lorde A Great Big World & Christina Aguilera Katy Perry Passenger Avicii Miley Cyrus Imagine Dragons

House of Cards Chris Mueller I rarely like TV shows, movies or books about fictional politicians. For me, the real thing is far too entertaining, and it’s hard for any fictional account to top the likes of drug-using Toronto mayor Rob Ford or the temper tantrums of morbidly obese New Jersey governor Chris Christie.

But after watching the first episode of American political drama House of Cards, I was hooked. The show is set in present day Washington DC and follows Frank Underwood, brilliantly played by Kevin Spacey, a leading Democrat in the House of Representatives.

In the beginning of the first episode, Underwood is passed over for appointment as secretary of state. Feeling betrayed, Underwood and his equally power-hungry wife vow to take revenge on the president, not through any sort of violence, but through strategic political maneuvering.

In the first season, Underwood ruthlessly wields his power and knowledge of the very corrupt and easily manipulated American political system.

Step by step, he moves the right players into the right positions in order to get exactly what he

wants. From using a fellow congressman who has a drug and alcohol problem to taking advantage of a young political reporter’s desire to get a good story at any cost, Underwood slowly and diabolically stacks the cards for his own gain.

What makes the show so exciting to watch is that it constantly feels like Underwood’s plan could come tumbling down at any moment. And what is more interesting is how most viewers don’t want to see him fail. Underwood is the personification of everything wrong with politics the world over. He is a corrupt liar who is only concerned about gaining more power and will use anyone or anything to get what he wants. But the character is fascinating nonetheless, perhaps because it is one of the few honest portrayals of a modern-day politician.

Throughout the show, Underwood speaks directly to the camera to both explain why he is doing something and how the political system works.

If you aren’t very familiar with American politics, all you’ll need to do is keep Wikipedia handy and you should be fine. The entire second season will be released on Feb. 14.

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 95

bookshelf Adam Klein

The Gifts of the State and Other Stories: New Writing from Afghanistan Disquiet Experience Afghanistan beyond the conflict scenes shown on the evening news. In this collection of stories, Afghan writers reveal the complexities of their country through their own voices. The anthology emerged from creative writing workshops run by Adam Klein, an English professor at the American University of Kabul. Encouraging young writers to share stories that non-Afghans wouldn’t know, Klein gathered together a selection of bold and original writing. These are tales of horror, hope and humanity, narrated through a variety of literary genres.

In the midst of war, the line between life and death can be close in Afghanistan. These writers show the many dimensions of what it means to live in their country.

Lara Vapnyar

The Scent of Pine: A Novel Simon & Schuster Approaching the age of 40, Lena finds herself feeling adrift. Her marriage to a fellow Russian émigré is in a state of stagnancy and mutual irritation. Her career reaches a plateau with a position as an adjunct professor at a community college. While attending an academic conference, Lena becomes intimate with another lost soul, Ben. As the affair progresses, she begins to open up about her coming of age in the Soviet Union, recalling a summer spent as a camp counsellor 20 years earlier. The secrets of Lena’s past come to light, while the present reaches a point of no return.

96 AsiaLIFE Cambodia

Joshua Greene

Moral Tribes: Emotion, Reason, and the Gap Between Us and Them Penguin Press Combining philosophy and psychology, Joshua Greene explores how our brains deliberate moral behaviour. As the director of Harvard University’s Moral Cognition lab, he incorporates neuroscience findings to explain the brain’s processes. Greene likens our minds to cameras, with automatic settings for instinct and emotions and manual mode for consideration and reasoning. The automatic functions push our brains to focus on serving a select community, creating an Us versus Them mentality that may manifest in racism, sexism, homophobia and other sources of conflict. But, Greene argues, by switching on our more nuanced manual mode, we can use reasoning to make moral decisions that benefit the greater good.

Chang-rae Lee On Such a Full Sea Riverhead Books

The America of Chang-rae Lee’s On Such a Full Sea is a harsh place. Set somewhere in the near future, the novel envisions a country torn apart by class division, excessive capitalism and climate change. Fan is a young fish-tank diver, part of a community of labourers brought over from China to sustain wealthy villages. When her boyfriend disappears without a trace, Fan sets out to find him.

Her journey takes her on a tour of the Open Counties, where she encounters a cast of unusual characters. As Fan becomes a symbol for the people she left behind, her story also serves as an allegorical folk tale for readers.

boxoffice

THE RAILWAY MAN

ENDLESS LOVE

SNOWPIERCER

POMPEII

Based on an autobiography, The Railway Man tells the story of a British Army officer captured during the Second World War. After defeat in Singapore, Eric Lomax (Colin Firth) is taken prisoner by the Japanese forces and put into a labour camp to construct the Thai-Burma Railway. Decades later, Lomax remains traumatised by his experience as a POW. By chance, he discovers that the Japanese officer responsible for his torment is still alive.

Lomax travels to Asia to confront Takashi Nagase (Hiroyuki Sanada). As Lomax embarks on a path of revenge, his beloved wife Patti (Nicole Kidman) must decide how far she will support her husband.

What fun is youthful romance without some parental disapproval? Yet another version of the classic Romeo and Juliet situation, Endless Love is a remake of the 1981 teen romance of the same name. Gabriella Wilde takes the role of Jade Butterfield, played by Brooke Shields in the original, the young daughter of a prosperous family. Jade falls in love with David Axelrod (Alex Pettyfer), a handsome heartthrob with a mysterious past. When the relationship becomes more and more passionate, Jade’s protective father becomes determined to end their love affair. As secrets emerge, the young couple’s love is put to the test.

Snowpiercer takes place on a train hurtling around the world, with the remaining human population as its passengers. Like last year’s Elysium, this science fiction thriller envisions a future with an extreme gap between rich and poor. After a failed global warming experiment killed most living creatures, the Snowpiercer holds the last human survivors. The lowest class of people are relegated to the back of the train, whereas the wealthy elite ride comfortably in the front cars. An uprising led by Curtis (Chris Evans) sets up to seize control of the engine and challenge the hierarchy upheld

by Mason (Tilda Swinton).

If you’re counting down the days until the next Game of Thrones season premiere, here’s a film to tide you over. Not only does Pompeii feature actor Kit Harington, who plays Jon Snow on the television series, but there’s also similar battle scenes, skimpy costumes, and plenty of drama. The story takes place in the legendary city of Pompeii in 79 A.D., during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. Milo (Harington) is a slave turned gladiator, who must battle in order to save his beloved Cassia (Emily Browning) in the midst of volcanic disaster.

COMING SOON FEBRUARY MOVIE RELEASES Platinum Cineplex, Sorya See platinumcineplex.com.kh for screening schedule The Railway Man Feb. 14 Endless Love Feb. 18 Snowpiercer Feb. 18 Robo Cop Feb. 20 Pompeii (3D) Feb. 27

Legend Cinema See legend-cinemas.com for screening schedule Police Story Feb. 3 The Railway Man Feb. 14 Endless Love Feb. 18 Robocop Feb. 20 Pompeii Feb. 27

AsiaLIFE Cambodia 97

pub quiz

spotted

Lovers

Missing 29?

1. Where did Shakespeare’s “star-crossed lovers” live?

2.

In Arthurian legend, who became Queen Guinevere’s lover?

3.

Whose lover was Oliver Mellors?

4.

According to Paul Simon, how many ways are there to leave your lover?

5. Who wrote Sons and Lovers?

21. Which couple got married on Jul. 29, 1981?

22. What happened on Black Tuesday in 1929?

23. Which Australian cricketer score 29 test centuries and averaged 99.94?

24. Which now annual race first took place on the River Thames in 1829?

25. On Apr. 29, 1945, whose dead body was hung upside down from an Esso petrol station in Milan?

Roses 6.

Which film, written and directed by Roman Polanski, starred Mia Farrow?

7.

Which English county is represented by a red rose?

8.

The Rosetta Stone provided the key to the modern understanding of which writing system?

9.

The Rose Bowl hosted the 1994 Fifa World Cup Final. In which city is it?

10. The Mary Rose, raised from the sea in 1982, was part of the navy of which English king?

Can you see five differences between the two pictures?

Literalisms What phrase or saying is represented by these pictures?

26

27

Red

Blue 16. What was in White Satin according to The Moody Blues?

17. What colour was opposite blue on the original Rubik’s cube?

18. In which Australian state are the Blue Mountains?

19. Who came out of retirement with the 1973 album Ol’Blue Eyes is Back?

20. Which blue cheese from France is made from ewe’s milk?

6

3

6

4

3

9

7 6

28

1

9

3

5

8

8

1

4

2

9

6 7

5

9 8

1

29

30

1. Verona 2. Sir Lancelot 3. Lady Chatterley 4. 50 5. D. H. Lawrence 6.

Rosemary’s Baby 7. Lancashire 8. Egyptian hieroglyphs 9. Pasadena 10. Henry VIII 11. Greenland 12. Red admiral 13. Mao Tse Tung 14. Red Star Belgrade 15. 15 16. Nights 17. Green 18. New South Wales 19. Frank Sinatra 20. Roquefort 21. Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer 22. The Wall Street Crash 23. Sir Don Bradman 24.

The (Oxford and Cambridge) Boat Race 25. Benito Mussolini 26. All thumbs 27. A woman’s work is never done 28. A bed of roses 29.

Sitting Duck 30. Between Jobs

11. According to the sagas, Erik the Red founded the first Norse settlement on which island?

12. How is the butterfly Vanessa atalanta better known?

13. Whose thoughts were contained in the Little Red Book?

14. How is the sports club Crvena Zvezda Beograd known in English?

15. How many red balls are used in a game of snooker?

pub quiz answers 98 AsiaLIFE Cambodia