AsiaLIFE Cambodia July

072013 ISSUE79

Best of both worlds 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

Group Creative Director: Johnny Murphy johnny@asialife.asia

Editor-at-Large Cambodia: Mai Lynn Miller Nguyen Siem Reap: Rhi Quinn Sales Director Cambodia: Sorn Chantha chantha@asialife.asia sornchantha@yahoo.com

Ellie Dyer Cultural identity is a very personal issue. Over the years, I’ve met many individuals who — due to growing up as an expat or away from their parents’ place of birth — find it hard to say just where ‘home’ is.

In Cambodia, where huge numbers of people fled the chaos that ravaged the country during the civil war and Khmer Rouge rule, it is a particularly pertinent subject, especially for those returning to the Kingdom after being raised abroad. This month, our writer Marissa Carruthers has been delving into the issue by meeting members of this unique community to find out what challenges and emotions living in Cambodia raises.

Personally, I think ‘home’ is — to borrow a well known phrase — where the heart is. It can be where your family is based or wherever you feel the most comfortable, whether it is an apartment in Phnom Penh or a penthouse in Paris, or both. Either way, there’s that certain warm, fuzzy feeling that comes with returning home. In essence, I think it’s a sense of belonging, and I hope many people have found that in Cambodia.

For expats who don’t yet feel comfortable in Phnom Penh or Siem Reap, learning Khmer is an essential tool for better integrating into the community and fostering cultural understanding. This month, enthusiastic language student Charles Fox has tested out four methods of learning to help readers pick out the right class for them.

But remember, there are plenty of options out there for fluent Khmer speakers to diversify their horizons too. The French cultural centre offers lessons in the language of love, also known as French, while MetaHouse holds German classes. Others have studied Chinese dialects and Korean in the capital.

Elsewhere in this issue, we’ve looked at the plight of a rare breed of giant turtle and efforts to save them in Kratie province, and the history of the martial art bokator and a father and son team who are fighting to preserve it. I’ve also visited a unique co-working space that provides a good chance for fledgling entrepreneurs to kick start their careers without huge overheads. So, whether it’s home or not, Cambodia is a country full of opportunity, if you know where to look.

4 asialife Cambodia

Art Director Cambodia: Hilary Fastier Photographers: Charles Fox & Dylan Maddux Social Media and Marketing: Kate Burbidge kate@asialife.asia

Sales and Accounts: Seang Seyha 012 581 455

Distribution: Sorn Chandara 096 9999 351

Accountant: Seang Satya

Printing: Sok Heng Printing House

For advertising enquiries call Chantha on 012 576 878.

Special thanks to: Darren Gall, Gemma Mullen, Mary Kozlovski, Rebecca Lauria-Phillips, Clothilde Le Coz and David Preece - for their contribution to this issue.

On the Cover Pictured: Anida Yoeu Ali Portrait Photography: Dylan Maddux Art Direction: Hilary Fastier 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

072013 ISSUE79

front

14 Picks of the Month 16 Openings

food

42 The Organic Revolution 44 Van's 45 Udon CafĂŠ Green Bowl

18 Dispatches 20 Phnom Penh Calendar 22 Photo Essay 26 Q&A: Peter Gilks

getaway

46 24 Hours in Kuala Lumpur

on the cover

28 Best of Both Worlds

style & design

48 Behind the Design

storyboard

34 A Lesson in Khmer

back

55 Listings

36 Celestial Fighters

50 Day > Night

99 Phnom Penh Map 100 Pub Quiz

38 Entrepreneur Incubator 40 Protecting Giants

38 6 asialife Cambodia

40

46

50

July 2013

Krishnamurti. On Jul. 11, a reading and discussion with Grey will be held at 7pm. It will be moderated by curator Yean Reaksmey.

For more information, visit thisdogbarking.com.

Australia Pledges Money to Court

Graphic Novel to Launch

A new graphic novel called This Dog Barking – The Strange Story of UG Krishnamurti is set to launch at JavaArts in Phnom Penh on Jul. 9, a date that coincides with the birthday of cult thinker UG Krishnamurti.

The book, created by Cambodia-based expats Nicolas C Grey and James Farley, tells Krishnamurti’s story through highly detailed drawings and storytelling.

An exhibition, running until Sep. 1, will feature a selection of framed drawings

by Grey and materials on

8 asialife Cambodia

Australia has made a new pledge of AU$3.25 million to the international component of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, its government announced on Jun. 18. "The ECCC hearings play a vital role in delivering justice for the Cambodian people, who endured unspeakable suffering at the hands of the Khmer Rouge,” foreign affairs minister Bob Carr said in a statement. Kranh Tony and Knut Rosandhaug from the war crimes court said the cash ”will ensure that the international component of the ECCC will be able to continue its operations without interruption.”

Dedication Reaps Rewards

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)

awarded certificates to 26 mid-career professionals for the successful completion of a Program Evaluation Short Course in Phnom Penh. The objective of the six-month course was to strengthen the skills of Cambodian professionals in monitoring and evaluation practices in agriculture, food security, and nutrition. USAID Mission Director Rebecca Black acknowledged the hard work and joint efforts of the teams from Michigan State University and the Royal University of Agriculture, and commended the participants for their dedication and commitment.

KeoK’jay Gets New Home Fashion favourite KeoK’jay has moved from its former location on Street 240 to a new home on Phnom Penh’s riverside, near the junction of Street 110. The ethical label’s move was celebrated at a party on Jun. 20, which saw the city’s fashionistas come out in force to its new airy surrounds. "The space already had a really interesting design, so we were able to move in without changing too much, just adding our own KeoK'jay touches," says owner Rachel Faller. To see more of the celebrations, please turn to AsiaLIFE’s Spotlight section.

Alleged Threat to Monster Fish

Damming the mainstream of the Mekong River could pose a significant new threat to the survival of the Mekong giant catfish, according to a new study commissioned

by WWF. While the exact population of monster beasts is unknown, there could be as few as a couple of hundred adults left. According to the study, the Xayaburi dam in northern Laos would prove an impassable barrier for the migratory giant catfish, capable of reaching up to three metres in length and weighing as much as 300kg.

“A fish the size of a Mekong giant catfish simply will not be able to swim across a large barrier like a dam to reach its spawning grounds upstream,” said the study’s author and associate research professor at the University of Nevada, Dr Zeb Hogan.

Time for Tea

Tea fanatics will have a new venue in which to indulge from Jul. 9 when Public House on Street 240½ launches its High Tea. Tables need to be booked one day in advance and the venue will serve up scones with cream and jam, naughty sweets and finger sandwiches, all topped off up with a choice of nine delicious teas. High Tea is available from Tuesday to Friday, from 3pm to 5.30pm, for two or more guests. Call 017 770 754 to reserve a table. High Tea starts at $9 or can be upgraded to include either a glass of sparkling wine ($14), a bottle of sparkling ($30) or a bottle of Champagne ($50).

PPAWS Pet of the Month

Eight puppies, aged two weeks at the time of going to press, will be available for adoption in about six weeks' time. They are a mix of male and female and will grow to be roughly medium sized. They are mostly black with some white flashes, such as on the feet and tips of tails.

The puppies were abandoned by the mother after she killed two of them. They are being hand reared by Nicky and Ben. If you are interested in adopting one, contact nicola. scales@gmail.com or ring 017 293 654 for a future viewing. asialife Cambodia 9

July 2013

British Embassy Celebrates

The British Embassy in Phnom Penh held a double celebration at the InterContinental Hotel on Jun. 21 to mark the birthday of Queen Elizabeth II and the 60th anniversary of UK-Cambodia diplomatic relations. Ties were formally established in 1950 and the Embassy first opened in 1953.

The reception, attended by Ambassador Mark Gooding, was organised by the British

10 asialife Cambodia

Filipino Expats Mark Independence Embassy, with the support of Jardine Matheson, Prudential and Quantum Apparel.

On Jun. 12, Filipino expats based in Phnom Penh celebrated the 115th Philippines Independence Day at Memphis Bar on the

capital’s riverside. The event, called INDIE PH, aimed to promote Filipino identity in Cambodia and help the tourism programme of the Philippines. Acts on the bill included alternative rock band Adobo Conspiracy, indie post punk band Jaworski 7 and musician photographer Leonard Reyes. Michael Coronel played Filipino classical music, known as kundiman, and Koro Pilipino, a choir that sings Filipino pop and traditional songs, joined the event.

July 2013

Keep The Reap Clean!

On Jun. 25, between 10,000 and 20,000 people from hotels, schools, shops and other institutions in Siem Reap were set to unite in an effort to clean the city.

The scheme is being run

by Siem Reap’s My Home Campaign in preparation for the arrival of delegates from the 37th UNESCO world heritage committee meeting.

Siem Reap’s My Home is founded by the Union of Youth Federation of Cambodia and has the slogan “of Siem Reap, by Siem Reap and for Siem Reap.” They hope

12 asialife Cambodia

to raise awareness among youths and local residents about the importance of environment, cleanliness and hospitality, and how these factors benefit tourism.

Selantra Restaurant and Lounge

Set in two renovated shop houses, Selantra — formed from the Spanish word for cilantro, or coriander — on Wat Bo Road is benefiting from new management. Featuring high ceilings, a dramatic skylight and lounge area, the restaurant offers authentic Khmer cuisine for all palettes. It is being

managed by a former general manager of the Angkorw Group of Restaurants, Chan Saryroth, and accommodates groups of up to 100 people for lunch or dinner. The menu balances wines, drinks, branded alcohol and cocktails, with dishes including Khmer curry and amok.

Style Infusion Strikes

The bad boys of Siem Reap, Tim Betts and Olivier Roulin, have opened a secondary shop alongside their main store, Infusion in Angkor Night Market.

Stocked with T-shirts, vests and dresses that you will be

unable to find anywhere else in the city, this is the place to shop to stand out from the crowd. “We travel to Bangkok to get most of the stock as it isn’t available in Cambodia,” says Betts. Jewellery, such as skull bracelets and ear expenders, are available with prices ranging from $3 to $10. The shops are linked to the Infusion Kart, which is conveniently placed outside X Rooftop Bar for all your intoxication-fuelled spending needs. You can also check out Roulin’s tattoo designs in store thanks to a brochure from his shop, Lex Roulor.

asialife Cambodia 13

picks of the month Watch: The Imposter

Visit: Bigthink.com

A British documentary demonstrating that life can be stranger than fiction, The Imposter tells the fascinating story of an American boy who disappears on his way home. Years later, the lost Texan is said to have been found in Spain. In fact, it is a man in his 20s impersonating the family’s son. Featuring interviews with both the eccentric ‘imposter’ and the family itself, it is a well-produced investigation into a real life cuckoo in the nest.

If you ever feel overwhelmed by the sheer vastness of information out there, Big Think focuses on new ideas that will last and are therefore worth our time. Much of the site digs into science and technology, but also ethics, with such discussion topics as ‘should we be monogamous?’ and videos by experts in their fields. Neurologist Oliver Sacks, for instance, has clips up about everything from hallucinations to the iPod.

Try: Bodia Nature The beauty buffs behind Khmer brand Bodia Nature have upped their game, bringing relaxation to the masses in new, innovative ways. The expanded range of products now contains scented turmeric and ginger rice scrubs, essential oils, sesame and lemongrass massage oils and herbal teas and balms. If you are in Siem Reap, visit the new store near Psar Chas to see all its offerings, which are also being sold in China.

Play: CambOpoly The Kingdom has its very own property board game. Thanks to a small team of volunteers with a shared love of games, you can now enjoy buying and selling well known Cambodian streets, hotels and markets.

Show off your wealth by parking luxury cars at properties, and be careful not to be sent to the medical centre. The game is available at Smateria on Street 57 for $55 with all proceeds going to SCIP, a Hagar project that supports the children of incarcerated parents. For more information, email cambopoly@yahoo.com.

Celebrate: Cambodian-American Friendship Two special events are being held to mark US Independence Day thanks to Cambodia Living Arts and the InterContinental hotel. On Jul. 2, the Boston Children’s Chorus will perform a selection of songs, including some Khmer classics, at the InterCon. At 7pm on Jul. 3, it’s the turn of the New York New Music Ensemble, which will feature works from respected Cambodian composers including Him Sophy and Sam Ang-Sam along with some American numbers. Tickets are available from Java, the InterCon and CLA and cost $10 in advance or $15 at the door. For more information, call 023 986 032 or email info@cambodianlivingarts.org.

14 asialife Cambodia

North West The world’s most famous baby, at least until Kate Middleton’s child arrives, enters the world with Kim Kardashian and Kanye West for parents Instagram Photo app owned by Facebook aims big by adding 15-second video clips to its user repertoire. We can’t wait The British Embassy Great Britain’s bastion in Cambodia marks its 60th anniversary along with its Queen’s birthday in a double celebration Flooding Waters rise across northern Europe as rivers swell after heavy rainfall, causing mass evacuations and swamping historic towns Landmine Fight Good news in the fight against landmines, as Cambodian casualty numbers plunge 48 percent year on year

GOING UP GOING DOWN Berlusconi Former Italian leader Silvio Berlusconi faces seven years in the slammer after being convicted of paying for sex with a minor and abuse of office Chubby Policemen Banteay Meanchey military police turn to fat fighting after parading with their tops off in front of media to highlight what The Cambodia Daily has dubbed “the battle of the bulge” Sydney Morning Herald Aussie newspaper heralds the discovery of Cambodia’s “lost city” of Mahendraparvata, but haven’t we known about it all along?

Rafael Nadal Hunky tennis icon with arms of steel crashes out of Wimbledon in the first round after losing in straight sets to Belgian player Steve Darcis Singapore Weather A smoky haze from Indonesian fires chokes the Southeast Asian city state, leading to record pollution levels

openings flying high

The Common Tiger Though the Common Tiger is an oft-spotted type of butterfly, there is nothing typical about the new restaurant in Phnom Penh that takes its name. Set in a refurbished house on Street 294, the venue has solid timber tables, cushiony chairs and a wooden outdoor deck. It offers a small menu that the owners plan to change regularly, with main dishes featuring prawns, sea bass and beef when AsiaLIFE visited. Co-owner and chef Timothy Bruyns, former executive sous chef at Song Saa, says The Common Tiger actively seeks local produce for its dishes. “I wanted to create a sense of community,” he adds. “We don’t want to be tourist-focused.” For diners wishing to sample multiple dishes, the venue offers a five-course taster menu.

20 Street 294, Phnom Penh. Tel: 023 212 917. Open daily from 12pm to 3pm for lunch and 7pm to 9:30pm for dinner. www.facebook.com/ TheCommonTiger

Recycled Glamour

Lost ‘n’ Found Vintage

Everything old is new again at Lost ‘n’ Found, the latest vintage fashion outlet to take up shop in the capital. Offering women’s and men’s clothing and accessories, including shoes, belts and bags, Lost ‘n’ Found handpicks its items from markets across Asia. Co-owner Kauv Ly Yann, who was raised in France and opened the store with two friends after moving back to Cambodia, says that many selected clothes are made of cotton and linen so that wearers can breathe easily in the tropical heat. “In Cambodia it’s hard to find good quality clothes for a reasonable [price],” she adds. Lost ‘n’ Found also sells selected new jewellery, watches and sunglasses.

321 Street 63, Phnom Penh. Open daily from 9am to 8pm.

Tel: 023 640 5047. http://lostnfoundvintagestore.weebly.com, lostandfoundvintagestore@gmail.com

Hit The Deck

The Skate Shop Skateboarders no longer have to look abroad for top quality gear, with the arrival of The Skate Shop in Phnom Penh. The store sells international standard skateboards, shoes and clothing, provides repairs and serves as a hub for enthusiasts to watch the latest footage from around the world. Owner Sam James, a former competitive skateboarder and a professional photographer, says that a skate shop is not just a business. “I’m a firm believer that skateboarding should belong to skaters,” he adds. James says that The Skate Shop was designed with skaters in mind and will help to support and promote emerging talent in Cambodia.

9 Street 7, opposite Wat Botum park, Phnom Penh. Open daily 10am to 6pm. Tel: 077 472 550

16 asialife Cambodia

Big Playground

Kids City

Kids City’s candy-coloured exterior panels reach up to the waist of the unfinished Gold Tower 42 on Sihanouk Boulevard. The selfdescribed ‘edutainment’ facility is packed with several floors of fun, including an ice-skating rink, laser tag, climbing apparatuses, a birthday party service and a forthcoming scientific discovery centre.

Though the city caters primarily for kids aged five and above, it has a playground to accommodate younger children, and there is an in-house Gloria Jeans and Blue Pumpkin for coffee, sweets and ice cream. Kids City is a child’s dream and, with all manner of activities to keep children occupied, it isn’t bad for parents either.

162A Sihanouk Boulevard, Phnom Penh. Open 8am to 9pm on weekdays, and until 10pm on weekends and holidays. Tel: 012 523 218 or 023 220 088. www.kidscityasia.com, info@kidscityasia.com

Health Emporium

Feel Good With a café, yoga sessions, dance classes, a line of natural body products and more, there is almost nothing Feel Good doesn’t offer to patrons seeking a fitter lifestyle. Feel Good is the brainchild of four separate businesses that banded together with the hope of boosting health awareness through their products, according to marketing manager Scott Griffin. The emporium winds its way up several floors, each offering something different to customers. If you’re not yet converted to yoga or dance, the café has fresh and affordable breakfast and lunch menus, with special house blend coffee for up to $2.50 a cup, various teas for up to $3, and a range of sandwiches, salads and tortillas.

79 Street 136, Phnom Penh. Tel: 017 497 538. Café open daily from 7.30am to 4.30pm. info@fgb-partners.com, www.feelgood.com.kh

Into the Groove

Terrazza

Any Italian restaurant opening in Phnom Penh faces stiff competition, but new venue Terrazza is poised to meet the challenge. The restaurant has an impressive menu — “like a book”, according to wholesale manager Giampaolo Chiarion — featuring food from all over Italy including wood-fired pizzas and every pasta under the sun, with an emphasis on northern Italian dishes. In a nook at the front of Terrazza, a deli shop has an extensive selection of pasta, cheese, cold cuts, wine and biscotti, all of which are imported from Italy. Once you’ve finished your dinner or shopping, the intimate Groove music lounge upstairs has live music every night of the week except Sunday.

1C Street 282, Phnom Penh. Tel: 023 214 660. Open daily from 12pm to 10.30pm. Shop open daily from 9am to 10pm. info@terrazza.asia

asialife Cambodia 17

DISPATCHES

Travel news from around the region and beyond

Bali Bliss

By the end of this year the 261-room Chedi Sakala will open on Bali’s pristine Nusa Dua Peninsula. The resort is set to feature 247 suites and 14 private oneand two-bedroom pool villas, two swimming pools, a wellness spa, health club and lagoon bar. A Kids’ Club will provide fun for children while their parents explore the island’s famed coast, water sports and local attractions. The resort will also be able to host major events, with a large ballroom, high-end catering service and four private dining areas with beachfront views.

The Chedi Sakala’s premier restaurant, the Sakala Bali, is already open and specialises in contemporary French cuisine. For more info visit ghmhotels.com.

Secluded Romance

The Angsana Balaclava, situated on the northwestern coast of Mauritius, is a romantic, exclusive hideaway set on a pristine bay. The resort features 52 luxuriously appointed suites and villas, a number of dining options, an infinity pool, numerous water sport activities, and the awardwinning Angsana Spa. Guests can also visit the Balaclava Conservation Centre, where they will learn about the Mauritian ecosystem, plant coral and go on guided snorkel trips. Currently the resort is offering a honeymoon package that includes a tandem sky dive. Visit angsana.com/en/ balaclava/ for further details.

Going Trendy

Located in Bangkok’s hip Thonglor area, with its colourful array of art galleries, funky boutiques, eateries and nightclubs, the new Bangkok Marriott Hotel Sukhumvit fits right in with the trendy environment. Officially opening this month, the 296-room hotel is all about lifestyle, as demonstrated by its stylishly decorated interior, intimate steakhouse and seafood grill called The District. The Octave Rooftop Lounge and Bar, located on the 45th floor, will undoubtedly become a hit with hotel guests and locals alike, thanks to its spectacular views of the Bangkok skyline. The Thonglor sky train station is a short walk away.

For more information, visit bangkokmarriott.com or call +66 27 97 00 00.

18 asialife Cambodia

asialife Cambodia 19

Have an event coming up?

Send information and dates to k8bluesky@gmail.com

CALENDAR PHNOM PENH JUL

The InterContinental hosts Phnom Penh Nights with the Boston Children’s Chorus from 6pm.

The dynamic young choir will present an energetic programme showcasing the best of American choral music along with some Khmer songs. All proceeds go to supporting the work of Cambodian Living Arts.

Tickets are $10 in advance or $15 at the door. Reservations and information: 023 986 032 or info@cambodianlivingarts.org

02

JUL

The Best of Cambodia by the New York New Music Ensemble is held at the InterContinental from 7pm.

The renowned New York New ensemble will present a combined programme at the hotel. Tickets are $10 in advance or $15 at the door.

Reservations and information: 023 986 032 or info@ cambodianlivingarts.org. More information can be found at www.cambodianlivingarts.org.

03

JUL

The Cambodian Tigers will host Brunei for two games in the HSBC Asian five nations rugby tournament 2013 from 3pm at the Old Stadium, Phnom Penh. Get there early to enjoy children’s and grassroots rugby.

Entry is free.

JUL

Omid 16B play live at Pontoon. DJ and producer Omid Nourizadeh showcases cutting edge electronic sounds, from 9pm until late. $6 entrance.

Pontoon, 80 Street 172.

05 05 JUL

Show Box presents Return of the KP (Khmer Punk) from 7pm, featuring AntiFate and A.O.A. The $2 entrance fee includes a beer and there’s a free shot for anyone dressed as a punk.

Pogo your cares away at Show Box, 11 Street 330.

06

JUL

Memphis pub’s ninth birthday bash unleashes live music and one dollar beers and sangria on to the capital’s partygoers. Celebrate almost a decade of one of the capital’s music institutions at 3 Street 118. Tel: 012 871 263.

06

JUL

The Hotel InterContinental’s Regency Café will provide a specialist Ramadan Iftar menu until Aug. 7.

It features a special Halal menu with favourites such as Kofta Halakuyeh, Lahme Meshwi and hot and cold Mezze. $26 plus taxes for two people minimum, advanced bookings only. Regency Café, Hotel InterContinental, 296 Mao Tse Tung Blvd. Tel: 023 424 888, www.ihg.com

07 JUL

Java Arts presents an exhibition and the first public showing of the completed graphic novel This Dog Barking – The Strange Story of UG Krishnamurti, by Nicolas C. Grey and James Farley, from 6pm. The exhibition runs until Sep. 1. Java Café & Gallery, 56 Sihanouk Blvd. Open daily from 7am to 10pm. More information can be found at www.javaarts.org or www.javacafeandgallery.com

09

20 asialife Cambodia

JUL

The Insider Gallery at Hotel InterContinental hosts the Royal University of Fine Arts’ summer show, Continuity.

The exhibition of the students’ work runs until Aug. 25.

Insider Gallery, Hotel InterContinental, 296 Mao Tse Tung Blvd. Tel: 023 424 888, www.ihg.com.

JUL

Java Arts presents a reading by James Farley and a discussion with Nicolas Grey of their completed graphic novel This Dog Barking – The Strange Story of UG Krishnamurti, from 7pm. Java Café & Gallery, 56 Sihanouk Blvd.

JUL

Amrita Performing Arts will premiere a new work at the Bophana Centre at 6.30pm. There will be an exhibition and cocktails on the ground floor. The piece is a major new work of dance/theatre based on the Mahabarata with Japanese choreographer Hiroshi Koike. This collaboration is a long time coming and involves musicians, dancers and visual artists from Cambodia and Japan. For more information visit www.amritaperformingarts.org or www.bophana.org.

11 11 12 13 JUL

A Season of Cambodia gathering will be held at Bophana Audiovisual Resource Centre on Jul. 13 at 10am. Organisers, participants and artists from the New York arts festival will share stories and presentations about their experiences in the United States with the arts and culture community of Cambodia.

Refreshments will be served.

13

JUL

Sofitel's La Coupole restaurant celebrates Bastille Day with French Sunday brunch and a decadent buffet of French specialities and Gallic themed entertainment.

Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeetra, 26 Old August Site, Sothearos Blvd. Tel: 023 999 800

14

JUL

MetaHouse presents a screening of feature film Rose of Bokor, directed by HRM Norodom Sihanouk, at 4pm. From 6pm, there will be an evening of evening of cinema, poetry and music in homage to Irish writer Oscar Wilde with the movie Dorian Gray (starring Colin Firth and Ben Barnes) as its centre piece. Meta House, 97 Sothearos Blvd. Tel: 012 607 465.

21 JUL

MetaHouse presents presents Norodom Sihanouk’s feature Shadow of Angkor.

From 7pm, two shorts on Sbaek Thom shadow puppetry will be screened.

Meta House, 97 Sothearos Blvd. Tel: 012 607 465.

28

JUL

For The Love Of Wine And Cheese, the renowned InterContinental’s wine and cheese night, will be held from 6.30pm to 9pm. A selection of high quality world wines and cheeses awaits discovery. $35 per person.

31

EVERY DAY

Yoga classes at Yoga Phnom Penh, close to BKK market. For more information, please visit yogaphnompenh.com or enquire at 012 739 419.

Every afternoon Sofitel in Phnom Penh serves a red-themed afternoon tea from 3pm to 5pm.

Tickets cost $25 for sparkling rosé wine, abundant fruits and delights.

Every evening except Sundays and Mondays at Le Bar, Sofitel Phokeetra Phnom Penh, DJ Lady Bluesabelle plays soul, jazz, world music and tropical beats from 6pm until late. No cover charge.

Sofitel Phokeetra Phnom Penh, 26 Old August Site, Sothearos Blvd. Tel: 023 999 200, www. sofitel.com/phnompenh.

EVERY MONDAY

Mad Monday at The Empire, 6pm.

Yoga at Yoga Phnom Penh.

Sweat and Samadhi at 8am, Slow Flow at 12.15pm and Deep Flow at 5.45pm. See yogaphnompenh.com

EVERY WEDNESDAY

Drink & Draw at ARTillery, 7pm.

Get your creative engines going with a live model, a couple of drinks and a whole lot of creative fun.

Latin Fever at The Latin Quarter.

Trivia in the garden at The Willow, $2 entry and 7.30pm start.

Salsa Classes at Ebony Tree on Street 29. Beginners class from 7pm to 8pm. Intermediate class from 8pm to 9pm. $5 for expats, $2.50 for locals.

Salsa with DJ Jimmy at Equinox on Street 278.

EVERY THURSDAY

Open Mic at Paddy Rice Irish Sports Bar. Art House Sessions at 8.30pm at The Flicks Community Movie House. Rare art house and foreign films. Enjoy the secret treasures of the big screen for $3.50.

EVERY FRI. & SAT.

Cultural performance at the National Museum at 7pm.

Tickets on sale at the door, price for foreign adults $12, $5 for Cambodians. For booking and information call 017 998 570 or email events@ cambodianlivingarts.org.

EVERY SAT. & SUN.

Fishing trips on the Tonle Sap river from 3.30pm to 6.30pm. For more information, visit fishinginphnompenh. wordpress.com or email fishingboattrip@yahoo.com.

Kids Sessions at 2pm at The Flicks Community Movie House. $3.50 for adults, $2 for under 18.

Steak Night at The Empire.

Weekly special at a big discount.

Swing dancing at Equinox on Street 278, Phnom Penh.

Women’s Night at The Riverhouse.

EVERY FRIDAY

Special happy hatha yoga classes at Yoga Phnom Penh, 5.45pm discounted happy hour class.

EVERY SATURDAY

Regular yoga workshops, Sweat and Samadhi lessons, and lunch delivery from ARTillery Cafe at Yoga Phnom Penh. For more information, please visit yogaphnompenh.com.

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. Sessions held in a private home close to the national museum, all religions welcome. yogaphnompenh. com.

Phnom Penh Hash House Harriers’ run. Meet at 2.15pm at the railway station.

asialife Cambodia 21

The documentation of the ever-changing landscape of a city from a bird's eye view was the simple goal of Toronto-based photographer Neil Ta when he began this ongoing photo project three years ago. The perspectives, sometimes vertigo-inducing, are rarely seen by those who remain on ground level. Canada's most populous city is undergoing a massive construction boom, unmatched by any other North American city, making these views only temporary.

asialife Cambodia 23

To see more of Neil's work, visit www.neilta.ca or his blog at www.iambidong.com.

24 asialife Cambodia

asialife Cambodia 25

Peter Gilks The director of Bruntys Premium Cider was born and bred in Bristol, southwest England. After helping to launch Cambodia’s first locally made cider earlier this year, the 52-year-old Brit talks more about the ancient tipple. Photography by Charles Fox. Cider has a rich history. Tell us more about the drink.

I’ve been drinking cider nearly all my life. I had my first taste when I was 12 years old, back when it was brewed on farms in barns. It’s evolved over the past 30 years to become one of the leading alcoholic drinks in the UK. Scrumpy is cider in its raw form — it’s a nickname for cider — and that’s what I used to drink. The stuff I was drinking back then though, it was too strong, alcohol wise. It used be about 10 percent alcohol, not the average five percent we now know. Back then, two drinks and you were done. Traditionally, it was also a summer drink, but now people drink it year round.

Today, it has been refined from the cloudy blend I first drank, when they used to squeeze the juice out and the drink was just full of lumps. You can still get traditional cider in Bristol, but now there are very few places left that produce cider in this way. Now I prefer a refined cider, which is what we produce. I still drink scrumpy, but trust me scrumpy would not sell here — it would look like something bottled from the Mekong River.

What makes the perfect brew?

Cider is a natural product like wine. If you make your cider from cheap apples then it makes a cheap tasting cider. Needless to say, we source the best fruit available. Bruntys cider is still traditionally made. When I say that, I mean the fruit is pressed

26 asialife Cambodia

down the same way scrumpy was made, but technology has come a long way. After the fermentation process, our cider is filtered to remove the bits and pieces that would otherwise make a cloudy brew, and that’s how we get the clear, more refined product.

Why did you choose Cambodia as a base?

Fundamentally, the Bruntys brand was born because I wanted to drink cider in Cambodia, but I couldn’t find it. If I did manage to find a place that stocked it, it was incredibly overpriced and it just didn’t taste like a traditional cider should. You should be able to smell and taste the fruit when you’re drinking a cider. Cambodia is where I first had the idea, and it is also the crossroad to the rest of Southeast Asia, and that is ultimately our target market.

What potential does the Asian market hold?

It’s hot here and we’ve had an overwhelming response from locals that the sweet flavour is particularly appealing — these are key to market success.

Wherever cider has gone, it’s become extremely popular. Take Australia for example, over the past four years cider has just boomed in the country. We’re tapping into a market that has unlimited potential, but at the same time we’re constantly learning about what will and won’t work here.

Was it a long process to get the product right?

The product’s always been right, because we’ve used the same product and the same recipe as we have done in the UK for years. What we did have to adjust was entering the market with a full range of flavours. We wanted to add another flavour to the traditional apple and increasingly popular pear. Originally I was going to go with mango, but strawberry was the top choice.

It took our brew master 12 months to refine the strawberry flavour, and it was developed specifically for the local market.

It’s quite fitting actually when you think about it for an English product. Strawberries are traditionally very English — think strawberry and cream, strawberry and Pimms.

Do you import the fruit?

All our ingredients are imported from the UK and Europe.

Getting this off the ground was no easy feat though. In 2011, it was an incredibly wet year and it produced the worst apple crop in 30 years. We were preparing to launch and we couldn’t buy any apples, so it was an incredibly stressful time. But we managed to secure enough apples to ensure production of the cider in 2013.

Our next harvest comes in September. This year is going to be a bumper — you can see the trees blooming now. My apple trees back in England are just bursting with apples, it’s great to see.

What does the cider making process involve?

To create a premium cider it takes 25 days, whereas a commercial, mass-produced cider, which is what we’re increasingly finding on the market, takes half that time.

In terms of the process … well, that’s a little like asking someone how to make CocaCola. We like to think our secret recipe and process is key to our future success. But what I can say is there are three important ingredients in making a quality cider. One: you have to have a good brew master. Our brew master has won multiple awards in the UK for his blends. One year he made a Christmas pudding flavour, it was amazing. Two: the quality of the fruit. Three: the time you allow for the cider making process. It takes a Bruntys batch 25 days.

We assume you are a cider fan, but what do you think about beer?

If you’ve been brought up drinking your country’s local beer, you grow up to drink what you’ve always known. I haven’t been brought up in Cambodia, so my taste isn’t to the liking of the local beer brew. I’m in a great position where I’ve been able to bring a quality beverage that I love and crave in the hot climate and have it distributed across the country, so when I walk in to a bar I know that there will always be premium cider available. What more could an Englishman want?

asialife Cambodia 27

Bestof bothworlds Hundreds of Cambodians who were born or grew up abroad are returning to their motherland. Marissa Carruthers finds out why they are returning to their roots.

Photography by Dylan Maddux and Charles Fox. During the Khmer Rouge regime's rule and in its aftermath, an estimated one million people left Cambodia to escape conflict and political turmoil. The mass exodus led to a generation of children born in Thai refugee camps or abroad after their parents resettled. Too young to recall the country their families called home, for them Cambodia existed only as a place lived through their parents’ memories.

The tables are turning as the Kingdom welcomes home growing numbers of people rediscovering their roots.

Reasons for stepping on Cambodian soil vary from wanting to help rebuild the country to launching a business venture or carrying out aid work. Whatever the impetus, they have one thing in common — a desire to connect with their homeland and find their identity.

“Over the years, more and more foreign born or raised Khmers are accepting the challenges of staying here to live, work and help,” says Cambodian-French Soreasmey Ke Bin, president of The Anvaya Initiative, which offers support and advice to overseas Khmers and those considering moving back.

“This is very different from the previous 28 asialife Cambodia

generation because we're totally Westerneducated and most of us have never lived here,” he adds. "It’s an exciting time and will help to move the country forward."

Why We Returned

Cambodia remains close to the hearts of many. A member survey carried out by The Anvaya Initiative last year revealed that the top reason for moving was "because it's my country." Other causes ranged from helping their country of origin, family reunification and looking for an adventure.

Experts say that in recent years there has been a noticeable shift. The global economic crisis has taken its toll on the West, draining the job market dry and pushing people to turn to alternative markets. This has resulted in men and women, especially those in their 20s and 30s, flocking to the Kingdom to snap up job opportunities and build businesses.

“It wasn’t always like this,” Ke Bin says. “Because of Cambodia’s history, a lot of people who came back in the 90s had political motives. Then there was my time when people just wanted to rediscover their roots. Now you find a lot

"We're totally Westerneducated and most of us have never lived here.

It’s an exciting time and will help to move the country forward."

Soreasmey Ke Bin

asialife Cambodia 29

30 asialife Cambodia

it’s because they can’t find jobs or there are no opportunities in Europe so they look to Cambodia, where there are a lot of opportunities to be had.”

One woman whose move was partly sparked by economic concerns is 33-yearold Marie, who was born in a Thai refugee camp and first set foot in her ancestral land during a holiday in 2010. A lack of job opportunities in Paris and the chance to add international work to her CV led to her quit an accounting role to move to Cambodia with her husband and son.

"It was important that I discovered my original country because I don't know Cambodia," says Marie, who asked to be referred to by her first name only. "But I also decided to move because in Europe there weren’t very many jobs for me or anything that was interesting. Also, in Cambodia, there is a lack of qualified professionals so I feel that’s where I can maybe help."

A business deal that was too good to refuse led Kyoto, co-owner of Italian restaurant Le Duo, to move to Cambodia permanently in October after leaving for France at the age of two. “I fell in love with the country while I was here,” he says. “Then the opportunity with the

"I’ve always had a definite sense of Khmer pride. I was proud to be Cambodian without really having any idea what Cambodia was."

Kosal Khiev

restaurant came up and the chance to invest in my original country was too much to turn down.”

For others, the desire to learn more about Cambodia comes from the warm memories evoked by their parents. Kanha Paula, 34, had never visited the Kingdom until a backpacking trip four years ago, having been born in a refugee camp in Thailand before living in America.

“My parents would paint a very vivid picture of life there and they always spoke so well of it,” she says. “This made me really interested and I wanted to try and learn more about my culture.”

A Modern Identity

For the majority the return is a positive experience, but it can be coupled with challenges as they struggle to integrate into the traditional Khmer way of life.

Despite feeling an affinity with their motherland and sometimes speaking the language fluently, they are often treated like foreigners by locals, which can lead to an identity struggle.

“We often find one of the problems is at first a lot of people try to hang around with locals,” Ke Bin says. “When I first came, I wanted to immerse myself in Khmer culture but found after a while I didn’t have that much in common with them, and that was difficult.”

Artist Anida Yoeu Ali was born in Cambodia and raised in Chicago, where she lived for more than three decades before returning to the Kingdom in 2011 as part of a Fulbright Scholarship. Now running Phnom Penh-based Studio Revolt, she recently took part in a conference in America on issues faced by those who choose to return to Cambodia.

“There’s the diaspora dilemma,” says the artist. “There is often a feeling of unbelonging and this sense of: where is home and what does it mean? After such a long period of disengagement, growing up in a culture somewhere else while longing

for what it means to come back to your motherland. These are common issues.”

Marie was confronted with this challenge on the first day that she landed in Cambodia. Walking down the street, she was unnerved by the number of people staring at her and feared that they may be hostile towards her because her family had fled.

“I started talking to them and found out it’s just because they’re interested. I look Cambodian to them, but then I’m not Cambodian,” she says. "In France, people think I’m Asian, even though I think and dream in French and have spent most of my life there. That was when I said to myself I’m not Cambodian and I’m not French. I’m really a French person with something from here.”

Paula, who runs events company Seduction, has also been met with confusion from locals eager to find out more about her background.

“Cambodians think of me as a foreigner and I think I interest them because I look like them but don't act or dress the same,” she says. “I will often get stopped when I’m in a shop or at the market and asked by locals where I’m from. They don’t mean harm, they’re just curious.”

Termed ‘anecachon’ in the Khmer language, the community has gone on to forge its own unique identity. In the Anvaya survey, 84 percent of those quizzed classed themselves as a "Khmer from abroad."

First Impressions

As parents painted pictures of a lost land destroyed when the Khmer Rouge took control, many of the diaspora generation were submerged in Khmer culture as they grew up, fuelling their desire to discover more about Cambodia.

For some, reality is far from the idyllic images conjured up by their elders, and can initially be hard to handle.

Varabott Ho, who is in his early 40s, moved to France with his family at the age asialife Cambodia 31

of four. “My parents would always talk fondly of it and tell me stories of when we lived there, which made me feel like I knew it," he says.

Desperate to discover his birthland, he came on holiday to the Kingdom in 2003 with his parents in a trip that left him with mixed emotions. "It was the first time we’d travelled to Cambodia since we left, so it was very emotional and personal. It was nice to hear stories and see where I lived,” he remembers.

"It was also bad because it wasn’t the image I had of Cambodia that my parents gave me. They were used to the Cambodia of the 60s when it was the dreamland.

It has changed a lot since then and that dreamland was gone," he adds.

Yet in some ways, the reality is better than the ugly picture often painted of a country still ravaged by war. “I thought because Cambodia is a developing country, and from what I had been told, it would be quite backwards," Kyoto says. "I was really surprised. It’s a lot better than I imagined.

There are great restaurants, shops, bars, clubs and people.”

Although returning is not always a choice, many feel that Cambodia brings with it a sense of opportunity.

Born in a Thai refugee camp and raised in America, poet Kosal Khiev was forced to rediscover his roots. After serving 14 years in prison for attempted murder, he was deported to Cambodia in 2011 — a country he had never set foot in before.

“I’ve always had a definite sense of Khmer pride,” he says. “I was proud to be Cambodian without really having any idea what Cambodia was.”

When he first landed, Khiev was overwhelmed by the chaos of the capital and decided to seek solace in the provinces with long-lost relatives. “That came with its own problems because many 32 asialife Cambodia

of them saw me as a dollar sign and that was hard," he says. "I decided to make my way back to Phnom Penh and that’s when I saw Cambodia’s potential. I suddenly felt I can be part of this. I am part of this.”

For others, stepping foot in the country felt like coming home. Varabott, managing director of investment boutique LMV Capital Asia, returned to Cambodia from France twice before moving permanently in March 2012.

"The first time I came back to Asia was to Singapore and it was like coming back home seeing Asian people. I got the same feeling when I came to Cambodia; that feeling of being home somehow," he says.

Why We're Staying

Whether it’s down to a sense of belonging, doing good or furthering a career, many returnees have no plans to leave any time soon.

Stephanie Seng has lived in Cambodia since moving from France in 2005 after an initial visit in 1999.

Now aged in her 30s and the owner of clothing boutique Couleurs d'Asie, she says, "I have a big family here who I'd never met and I got to meet them. We weren't very close yet they welcomed me so much. It was beautiful. The people here are beautiful but I saw a country that needed help and felt it was up to me to do what I could."

Life is also good for Kyoto, who has pledged never to return to France. As well as running a successful business, he claims the ease of life is enough to keep him here.

“I never want to go back to France. It was very stressful,” he says, smiling. “I love it here. I love the warmth of the people and I love the way of life. It’s stress free and there’s much more freedom.”

Meanwhile, Khiev has inspired a new generation through his work as a spoken

word poet and his pivotal role in the city’s thriving arts scene, which has seen him travel the globe to perform.

This artistic growth has helped strengthen his passion for Cambodia and his determination to help bring about change.

“I always knew I could make a difference in Cambodia and that’s what I feel I’m doing.

I think I can challenge this generation and educate them as well,” he says.

Along with Cambodians being curious about their overseas counterparts, many locals appreciate the benefits returnees can bring, with most being well-educated and possessing skills that are lacking in the Kingdom.

Vanra Ry, who was born in Phnom Penh and works in Siem Reap as a travel guide, says he welcomes back foreign Cambodians but fears many are put off by the country’s poverty. “I think they can fit into Cambodia easily because it’s a very welcoming place, but may find it difficult because they have adopted a different culture," he adds. "In my opinion, if they move to Cambodia it can only help the country because they have a good education.”

"The people here are beautiful but I saw a country that needed help and felt it was up to me to do what I could."

Stephanie Seng

asialife Cambodia 33

The decision to study a language can be motivated by curiosity, personal development, or a simple need to say “hold on, I think we are going the wrong way.” Whatever the reason, one thing is certain: not all people learn in the same way. Luckily, a plethora of study options offered in Phnom Penh have been explored by photographer and writer Charles Fox. Take a seat, open a notebook and we shall begin …

Fast and Furious Flash Cards

Total Immersion 34 asialife Cambodia

"In one hour a student can learn 45 words,” says Srey Nim, over a coffee in one of BKK1’s many cafés. For seven years, the tutor has used a system of flash cards and intense repetition to teach Khmer. She developed the idea while struggling to learn Japanese in a formal classroom environment.

Thundering through a case of flash cards during a one-on-one lesson, Srey Nim fires questions at students, testing their level of comprehension, speaking and writing before giving them new words on cards to take away and learn.

The tutor says her system is good for those who need to learn quickly and have a

busy schedule, though she encourages students to record lessons and listen back to them.

Students can reach a basic level in 20 hours.

“A lot of my students are in Cambodia on short-term contracts, but also many of my students work in embassies and businesses,” she says.

“They don't have much time, so when you’re busy and have a few minutes you can quickly pull out some cards and study".

Srey Nim will visit workplaces, but can also be found teaching in Fresco in BBK1. Classes cost $14 per hour and are paid for 20 hours in advance. Email song.sreynim@ hotmail.com or call 012 342 315.

Opened a year ago, the Language Institute of Khmer (LINK) uses a method of learning developed by American linguist J Marvin Brown. The classes are taught purely by listening to teachers speak in the local language.

The lessons feel a little surreal at first. Students sit in front of two teachers who point to objects and draw on a board to help the audience understand. At times, classes play out like a pantomime, as tutors tell a story and become characters in the tale.

By watching them act out scenes from everyday life, such as shopping at a market or negotiating with a moto dop, they communiate aspects of daily language and culture that

you might not often see. As you progress, the context becomes more in-depth, with advanced classes discussing society and politics. The most exciting class is daily news, where the teachers take a look at Khmer language papers and discuss the headlines of the day.

"The entertainment value helps students to engage with the teachers,” says teacher David Jacobs, who suggests that pupils should attend classes two to three times a week.

Classes at the Sovannaphumi School on Street 200 are held from 7am to 12pm and from 3pm to 6 pm on weekdays, and from 9am to 1pm on Saturday. Sessions are $4 per hour and the first class is free. Call 012 293 764 or e-mail contact@naturalkhmer.com.

If your taste is for more formal study with added flexibility, then Y Socheat might be the teacher for you. A former translator during the UNTAC era, he has been teaching Khmer to foreigners, including overseas NGO staff and PhD students, since 1993.

The teacher ’s system is heavily based on understanding the language structure. "I have many students who have lived here for a long time and are self taught, but they have poor structural understanding," he stresses. "They can communicate but often it’s

just not clear."

Socheat throws in little gems of Khmer culture throughout, keeping the mood light and fresh. “After 60 hours a student will be able to speak Khmer in most daily circumstances,” he says, adding that students should continue to learn to read and write, which should take another 60 hours.

By that time they can start to read the local press.

Socheat suggests studying three times a week. Each class costs $7 and can be taught at home, work or in a public place. Call 012 594 298 for more information.

Structured, Formal Learning

If you crave formal classroom study, the Royal University of Phnom Penh offers a oneyear long intensive Khmer language course. Soeung Phos leads the programme at the Institute of Foreign Languages and says it was designed in order for foreign exchange students to be able to study at the university in the 1980s.

Each module lasts for three months, costs $200, and requires that students study for one and a half hours every weekday.

“We want our students to have all four skills: speaking,

comprehension, reading and writing,” he says. “Many students just want to speak and listen, but we teach all here.”

The course is by far the most demanding of the methods of study. The one year commitment might be out of some people’s range, but the results are potentially staggering, with the aim being fluency. While that might not be everyone’s goal, it is indicative of what can be achieved through study.

For further information on enrolment contact soeungphos@ yahoo.com or call 012 866 826.

Intensive Classroom Environment asialife Cambodia 35

Celestial Fighters With the opening of a new school for Khmer arts in Phnom Penh, journalist Clothilde Le Coz investigates the ancient martial art of yutakhun khöm, commonly known as bokator, and finds a family fighting to keep tradition alive. Photography by Dylan Maddux.

Don’t tell Chan Rothana he’s a bokator boxer. “People call it bokator, but that’s not the right name. It’s an art, not just a sport,” he smiles.

The 27-year-old has fought more than 80 times in the ring, has never been knocked down, and knows 500 moves since his father began teaching him yutakhun khöm — often known by the simpler term bokator — 10 years ago.

“Yutakhun khöm is unique and nobody really deeply knows what it is about,” he continues. “I got it from my father, who got it from his father, and it has been going that way for generations.”

In Khmer, yutakhun khöm means ‘martial art of the moon’ while bokator, meaning ‘the lion move’, is just one of the fighting style’s 9,953 techniques, most of which refer to animal hunting moves.

Known since the creation of the Angkor Kingdom, the art was meant to protect and defend borders. Fighters knew how to kill with their bare hands. Every strike and move learned could take a life away.

It still can.

“This is why the Angkor Kingdom was the most powerful of the region in the ancient times after China and India,” says Rothana’s father, Lok Kru Chan Bunthoeun, who is one of only two yutakhun khöm masters left in the country. “Khmer could fight Thai, Vietnamese, Koreans and Lao that way and protect the Kingdom.”

Historically, yutakhun khöm was a military strategy and 36 asialife Cambodia

foreigners could not learn its techniques. Some fights were put on as shows for the king and ended with the death of one of the fighters.

To remember them, each fight now begins with a melody to celebrate the deceased.

A fighter can chose the ‘kropeu ha’ (attacking crocodile), the ‘kla kap’ (bending tiger) or any other animal to act as a ‘totem’. The beast becomes a symbol and a lifetime ‘mentor’, inspiring the fighter to act like the animal.

“Fighters used to train like their totems,” explains Chan Bunthoeun. In ancient times, they would reach to the sky by climbing trees like monkeys, or sharpen their claws on bark like tigers. “To win, the only secret was to be able to become the animal; live, hunt and eat like it,” he adds.

Generally, fighters chose to act like the tiger or the lion in order to become invincible.

“My animal is the magic eagle [called a Keno] and I should train with only three fingers on each hand to learn every move and strengthen my body,” says Rothana, who is known as the “flying feet and fists.”

Mixing technique, mind and spirit, his name is a legend among fighters. It is said that his grandfather, a fighter too, trained with bags of sand while stones were thrown at his jaws to strengthen them and allow him to endure every strike.

Being the son of a master requires discipline, belief and strength. But such strength is nothing without spirit. Chan Rothana has had several

tattoos drawn on his skin with incense by both a monk and his father. “They are protecting me even if you do not see them,” he says. “And it seems to be working.”

Scoring invisible tattoos on the skin before each fight is a ritual that hasn’t changed since Angkorian times. “We draw invisible and magic tattoos on the sole of the foot with the name of the enemy, pray for the fighter and wish the opponent to lose,” says Chan Bunthoeun, who has performed the tradition on his son’s feet since his first fight.

“This is what will change everything during the fight.

If you really believe in it, it will work. Otherwise, it won’t,” he explains.

For Chan Bunthoeun, a lack of such belief can be the only reason for his son to lose. “He knows much more techniques and strikes than any of his opponents. If he loses, it means he did not believe enough in the power of his tattoos.”

Tired of seeing people watching yutakhun khöm like a television soap opera, Rothana has taken on a new challenge by opening a club to teach the techniques, but also the spirit of the art, to students.

After crossing paths with Apsara teacher Sen Pich, they gave birth to the Selapak living arts school in Phnom Penh, which opened in mid-June.

Even if foreigners were not originally supposed to learn fighting moves, opening the doors to others may be the only way to protect the art.

“People have a tendency to

forget”, Chan Bunthoeun says, sharing his pride of seeing his son launch the school.

“When he was a kid, [my wife and I] did not want anything — not even an ant — to touch him... we are proud. It is important for our country,” he concludes.

The Selapak School is located at 117 Street 110.

Rothana and Sen provide Yutakhun Khöm and Apsara classes all week. For more information, call 089 793 239 or email selapak. cambodia@yahoo.com.

Chan Rothana (right) with one of his students. asialife Cambodia 37

38 asialife Cambodia

Entrepreneur

Incubator “I used my kitchen as my office, an Internet cafe outside as a communication room, and hotel lobbies were my meeting place for clients."

Writer Ellie Dyer visits a unique house in Phnom Penh and finds that young entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in the Cambodian capital. Photograph

by Charles Fox. On the spacious balcony of a large villa in leafy Toul Kork, a group of students is hard at work. With oddlyshaped plastic parts, metal components and wheels strewn around them, the futuristic scene is, at first, somewhat hard to decipher.

A quick peek into an adjoining room reveals all. A robot, inspired by film character Wall-E, sits happily on a high shelf, illustrating that these unassuming youngsters form fledgling technology group ArrowDot — one of a number of enterprises that have made their home at an unique entrepreneurial hot house called Small World.

“The space is available for us at any time,” says ArrowDot’s Tep Sophatra, a 20-year-old fourth year student at the Institute of Technology of Cambodia, as she helps make a robot designed to pick up rubbish. “We can call it a free space with fresh air, so we can enjoy working here.”

Launched in 2011, Small World provides basic needs for start-up businesses, explains its co-founder Rithy Thul. An entrepreneur himself — he launched a real estate consultancy aged just 19 — his early experiences demonstrate the challenges that many young Cambodians face when entering the commercial sphere for the first time.

“I used my kitchen as my office, an Internet café outside as a communication room, and hotel lobbies were my meeting place for clients,” recalls the 27-year-old businessman, who now runs an adventure tour company. "When my clients

asked where my office was... I didn’t have an office."

“Starting Small World, it’s a good feeling to be able to provide young people with this,” he adds.

The peaceful, sprawling space provides room to work, electricity, water, a low-priced food service, meeting rooms and internet facilities in one centre — saving burgeoning enterprises much-needed cash. “They can use the whole house as their business address and then they can rent one or two tables for their team,” Rithy says.

Since its launch, the friendly environment has proved adept at bringing business people of the future together. Small World holds regular sessions with guest speakers in order to share ideas and experiences.

ArrowDot has been based at the centre for 10 months, while a successful tour business was launched at the villa last year.

And although other start-ups have fallen by the wayside, Small World provides the opportunity and flexibility for youngsters to attempt to fulfil their ambitions.

“Most young people today are looking to start or invent something new and to participate in moving the developing world,” says Rithy, who believes the Internet has given young business people an easily accessible education resource, while cheaper travel enables them to gain inspiration and experience.

“The idea is to inspire young Cambodians to say ‘if we start something, we can market it to the world.’”

For more information about the space and its events, visit smallworldcambodia.com. asialife Cambodia 39

40 asialife Cambodia

Protecting Giants

The game was almost up for the Cantor's giant soft shell turtle but, thanks to a pioneering Cambodian conservation project, life is looking up for the rare breed. Marissa Carruthers and photographer Charles Fox travelled to Kratie to find out more.

A group of monks chant a blessing moments before a sea of tiny turtles waddle into the water. Within seconds they bury themselves beneath the sand to start their new lives in the wild, as part of a project that is fighting to give the critically endangered breed a chance of survival.

It is hoped the button-size babies will happily live out their potential 100-year life span in the Mekong River, but the future wasn’t always so bright for this rare breed. A decade ago, fears were raised that the Cantor's giant soft shell turtle had been wiped off the planet after decades of poaching. The reptiles and eggs are eaten by both humans and wild animals, and are used in traditional medicine.

A shock 2007 survey of the Kratie to Stung Treng section of the Mekong River revealed a surviving pocket of freshwater turtles, which can grow to up to six feet in length and are called the ‘frog head turtle’ in Khmer. The reptiles, which look like they’ve been squashed by a bulldozer and have large, flat shells, broad heads and eyes set close to the tip of their snouts, had last been spotted in 2003.

Since then, the NGO Conservation International (CI) has made preserving one of the largest freshwater turtles on earth one of its top priorities and has sought to boost one of the only remaining wild populations in the Mekong.

"Cantors are recognised globally as critically endangered species, which

means they are under severe threat of extinction and they may disappear from the earth altogether without strict conservation intervention," says Tracey Farrell, technical director for CI in Cambodia.

The Mekong Turtle Conservation Centre (MTCC) was launched in 2011 to house a ‘head-starting programme’, where hatchlings are reared in captivity, protecting them from predators and other threats in the wild. "This way, they have a much better chance of surviving when they are otherwise typically most vulnerable," Farrell adds.

Housed in the 480-year-old 100 Pillar Pagoda in Kratie province, MTCC is a hub of activity. Inside sit more than 40 baby turtles flapping about happily in tanks filled with water and sand, which the shy animals spend 95 per cent of their lives buried beneath.

Kept in the safety of the warm water, they are fed for 10 months before being released into the wild.

The project has also protected more than 100 nests from potential pillaging through a programme that offers villagers an incentive to protect eggs, by giving them a small sum of money for each nest that successfully hatches. The babies are then taken to the centre.

More than 4,000 turtles have been raised and released into the wild so far, including some from eggs produced in a breeding pond full of giant adults.

The release of the 100 baby turtles in May celebrated the centre’s second anniversary

and was the first event of its kind to be opened to the public, adding to Cambodia’s eco-tourism map. The centre has also been working with the local community to educate them on the dangers of poaching the rare turtles.

"Many of the eggs and baby turtles are poached either for food or for use in medicine, and this practise was rampant when we first started," Farrell says. "This is traditional behaviour and we had to be sensitive because we didn't want to barge in and say what you're doing is wrong, so it has taken time."

CI and MTCC have launched an educational programme, visiting schools and teaching children about the importance of the turtles — a message the organisations hope will be passed onto parents and other relatives.

"We wanted locals to understand that if they want their children to live alongside these fascinating turtles, then they need protecting," Farrell says.

"CI, together with the monks, who donated the land to house the centre, have been working with the community to educate them about conservation and to reduce their impacts on these species,” adds Yoeung Sun, CI's Mekong project leader. “Over time, local turtle consumption has reduced, so we believe this message is spreading."

Between May and June, visitors can attend hatchling releases in Kratie. For further information, visit: www.mekongturtle.com/ index.html asialife Cambodia 41

The Organic Revolution Rebecca Luria-Phillips examines the world of natural farming to discover exactly what makes a fruit and vegetable ‘organic’.

The journey of an organic vegetable from the Cambodian countryside to your table begins long before the seed is planted. “With organic, you have to get it right before the seed goes in,” says Winfried Scheewe of German development agency GIZ, an advisor to the Cambodian Organic Agriculture Association (COrAA).

Improvements to soil quality, investments in green manure — where crops are planted to add nutrients and organic matter to the soil — and assurances that there is no cross-contamination from non-organic crops must all be in place. Planting and growing comes next, along with harvesting, processing, transport and marketing.

Provided each stage conforms to Cambodian organic industry standards, the product is then classified ‘organic’ or ‘chemical-free’ by one of two groups offering independent certification — the Cambodian Organic Agriculture Association and the Centre d’Etude et de Développement Agricole Cambodgien (CEDAC) — with norms and standards based on the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements.

Both organisations employ an inspection and certification system in which independent auditors — free from conflict of interest — perform scheduled and unscheduled visits to applicant farms and farm groups.

Inspectors ascertain 42 asialife Cambodia

conformity to organic or chemical-free standards, including looking at producers' understanding of organic farming techniques, checking the property and household for banned substances, analysing the presence of insects such as butterflies and bees, and reviewing how the farmer manages pest control, soil fertility and contamination risk.

Certification by both organisations is paid for by farms and farm groups, but members all receive technical assistance from GIZ to improve agriculture practices and certification protocols. Given the small scale of chemicalfree and organic production in Cambodia, external certification by an international agency is cost-prohibitive. Industry practitioners would like to see, and are working towards, certification occurring at a Southeast Asian regional level.

Nevertheless, Scheewe says the number of farmers interested in organics is growing. “One big challenge is to get smallholders to adopt more sustainable practices which require learning new techniques,” he adds.

“Hopefully, they will be able to learn from the advanced larger firms.”

One test for would-be organic farmers is that the price of certified vegetables and fruits generally don’t reflect their improved pedigree, in contrast to the West where organic products are more expensive. This is due to a lack of awareness and faith on the part of producers,

retailers and consumers that it’s a distinction worth promoting and paying for.

Consumers can become wary of organic and chemicalfree claims in a place like Cambodia, where anyone can write or print the words ‘organic’, ‘chemical-free’ or ‘natural’ on their product without recourse. Currently, if volumes of organic vegetables coming from the provinces aren’t sufficient to make transport worthwhile, they are sold in the local market alongside conventionallyproduced vegetables and their distinction is lost.

Talmage Payne, a board member of COrAA and coowner of Discovery Farms, believes that “commanding 10 to 15 percent more for organically produced vegetables is likely enough to convince farmers to conform to organic practices.”

It is hoped that seeing demand in the cities will also help “convert” farmers to improved and ecologicallysound agriculture practices and, if they wish, organic certification — a move which leads to environmental sustainability and reduced pesticide consumption by consumers.

Experts say that chemical and synthetic materials are often used to fertilise and control insects on vegetables from both Cambodia and Vietnam.”Farmers in Cambodia don’t understand the proper application of pesticides due to most instructions being in Thai or Vietnamese,” explains Scheewe.

A 2010 study of pesticide residues in Cambodian market vegetables by Doug Graber Neufeld, Biology Professor at Eastern Mennonite University in the United States confirmed that consumers are regularly exposed to traces, although levels vary depending on the vegetable, farm condition and pesticide used.

“Some of the most toxic pesticides are banned from use [by the Word Health Organisation] but still available in the [Cambodian] marketplace. There is very little government enforcement and regulation about their application and usage,” adds Christian Fink, a GIZ technical advisor to CEDAC. In the meantime, when shopping for organic produce, consumers can look for the COrAA labels and remember it is the product that is certified, rather than a store. The farm should also be identified. If a retailer or restaurant is claiming organic, ask to see certification.

At CEDAC shops consumers can believe that the products for sale conform to its organic, chemical-free and natural principles. If shopping at the market, ask the seller about the origins of the vegetables and production methods used. There are chemical-free products available, but they’re likely not labelled.

Certified chemical-free and organic vegetables and fruit can be found most plentifully at Natural Garden, CEDAC shops and the soon-to-open Digby’s Market.

Grown in safe soil Remain separate from No use of synthetic pesticides, conventional products petroleum-based fertilisers and sewage sludge-based fertilisers Inputs like compost and water are safe Farm sustainably managed Conversion period: must be No genetically modified organically produced for crops used 2 years (annual crops) and 3 years (perennial crops) Produced under strict food safety guidelines Contains some organic ingredients as well as other ingredients not available organically in Cambodia Part of the “wild� collection, such as honey

Labels Demystified...

No chemical substances applied to crops prior or during production No conversion period Can indicate product is in-conversion to being certified organic

asialife Cambodia 43

Van's The dining room at Van’s is a study in colonial glamour.

Housed in the 150-yearold former Indochina Bank building on Post Office Square, the high ceilings, tiled floors and stained-glass windows create a sense of elegant sophistication.

Formerly the residence of the Van family — who lived in the building in the 1960s and now manage the eatery — the venue’s interior is matched by the high-end French fare served in its recently refurbished dining room, where spotlights and grey drapes give its old-school surrounds a modern lift.

“It is gastronomic food,” explains Van’s talented chef Nicolas Malherbe, who hails from Perpignan in southern France. The cook worked in 44 asialife Cambodia

Writer Ellie Dyer and photographer Dylan Maddux talk fine dining with the team behind Van’s restaurant in Phnom Penh.

Gooey pan-fried duck foie gras ($21) rests on a bed of homemade gingerbread, complimented by a sweet raspberry sauce in a decadent, coronary-inducing starter.

Siem Reap and the Caribbean before moving to Phnom Penh three and a half years ago, where he savours his “freedom in the kitchen.”

Creativity is evident in the à la carte menu, which is rich and unashamedly indulgent, and comes with prices to match. Gooey pan-fried duck

foie gras ($21) rests on a bed of homemade gingerbread, complemented by a sweet raspberry sauce in a decadent, coronary-inducing starter.

Salty Japanese scallops are served with a shot glass of sunshine-yellow saffron sauce, with a delicate block of yellow and squid-ink tinged rice ($24) on the side. Shoots of asparagus and three juicy sunblushed tomatoes cut through the rich flavours.

Simpler fare is offered on its barbeque menu, launched earlier this year, where diners can choose from choice cuts of meat displayed in a cold cabinet on the lower floor. The menu highlights the quality of the produce, including marbled Australian wagyu beef and a Black Angus beef burger containing Emmental

cheese and smoked bacon.

The tender 250g US prime cut ($40) is served thin on a wide piece of slate, and is so huge it could easily serve two. Though not as indulgent as some of Van’s offerings, it still comes with four sauces — mushroom, mustard, pepper and an unexpected vibrant curry sauce.

Van’s also offers a wellpriced business lunch menu at $15 per head for two courses.

A drink, along with coffee or tea, is included and it has been expanded to offer four options for each course. “Now we give more choice to the customer,” says Malherbe.

5 Street 103, Place de la Poste, Phnom Penh. Tel: 023 722 067 or email contact@ vans-restaurant.com.

Udon Café Green Bowl If you think slurping while eating is rude, then you'd better get over it fast before heading to Udon Café Green Bowl. Start practising your chopstick skills, because this quaint Japanese eatery has tradition stamped all over it.

The converted shophouse opened its doors late last year and has become a popular haunt, with diners often experiencing a short wait for a table at lunchtime. Paying testament to the quality of the food is the fact that Japanese diners can be found slurping soup at the tables like pros, alongside a healthy mix of tourists and expats.

In keeping with Japanese style, the café boasts a simple, minimal look that merges cool shades of mint and cream with delicate floral paintings. The

two rooms have a light, calm atmosphere and those brave enough to take on the heat can indulge in alfresco dining on the leafy, shaded patio.

For those not in the know, udon is an ancient Japanese noodle, first introduced to the country by a Buddhist priest called Kukai around the ninth century. Since then, the Japanese have been serving up the thick noodles — made by kneading wheat flour, salt and water — in cold or hot soups.

The simple but extensive menu offers a range of Japanese delights from salted plums ($0.50) to a selection of udon soups, including beef ($3.50 for medium, $4.50 for large) and egg ($3.75/$4.75).

If you fancy something other than udon dishes, there are rice offerings from inari-

Putting her chopstick skills to the test, Marissa Carruthers tries out some traditional Japanese udon soup.

Photograpy by Dylan Maddux. sushi ($2) to tuna mayo rice balls ($1.25).

Being udon newbies, we had no choice but to opt for the hot beef udon soup with tempura prawns, a chicken and rice soup and miso soup to share. Despite ordering the medium dishes, huge bowls of steaming soup, filled with handfuls of thick noodles, meat and vegetables, were delivered to our table within about 10 minutes.

Here's where learning to slurp comes into play. The noodles were soft, having taken in the combination of flavours thrown in the pot.

The portion of sliced beef was generous and, despite being slightly fatty, was tender in the mouth. The two tempura prawns were of a reasonable size and the batter was cooked

to crisp perfection, making it perfect to dip into the soup.

The chicken soup was a hearty mix of rice, broth, meat and vegetables. The rice had slowly absorbed the cooking juices, creating a tasty kind of porridge.

The salted plum was a different story. If you're not into super sour and tart tastes, then steer well clear. To say it is sharp on the tongue is an under-estimation.

Full, we paid the bill, which came in at a very reasonable $15.25. As I haven't quite got my chopstick and slurping technique up to scratch, I will be returning to hone my skills.

29b Street 288, Phnom Penh. Tel: 089 831 007. Open Monday to Tuesday and Thursday to Sunday from 11am to 3pm. asialife Cambodia 45

24

Hours in

Kuala Lumpur

Often seen as a gateway for Asian travel, Kuala Lumpur contains some unique attractions of its own. Ellie Dyer ventures out of her usual Malaysian haunt — the confines of KL’s budget airline terminal — to explore the cultural side of the mega-city for 24 hours.

9am – The National Museum Rise bright and early to beat the crowds at the National Museum, or Muzium Negara, for an insight into Malaysia’s past. Information provided in the historic building, which dates back to 1936, can be a little confusing for those unfamiliar with the country’s past. A series of galleries leads visitors through Malaysian history — from pre-historic settlements, to the rise of Islam, the highs and lows of Portuguese and British colonisation, and the Second World War. A notable exhibit is the skeleton of Perak Man, who lived more than 10,000 years ago and was unearthed in the Lenggong Valley in 1991. Outside the museum sits a selection of classic cars, rickshaws and a 1920s steam locomotive that provide ample photo opportunities for cheesy tourist snaps. www. muziumnegara.gov.my 46 asialife Cambodia

10.30am – Islamic Arts Museum A 15-minute walk away — passing by the imposing Moorish architecture of the Malaysian Railway Headquarters, designed in 1913

by Britain’s A B Hubbock — stands the excellent Islamic Arts Museum. Set within sprawling gardens, it is a beautiful structure where large windows and airy white interiors contrast with intricately-patterned blue rooftop domes. Exhibits include detailed replicas of worldfamous mosques and a selection of illuminated Qur’ans and manuscripts. Perhaps the most impressive is the top-floor textile section, which highlights the wealth of beauty in the Islamic world. It explores the traditional dress and extraordinary materials produced by societies through time, including those of central Asia. If you’re a fan of weaponry and uniforms, the nearby Police Museum,

which details the history of the country’s force, is a quirky place to spend half an hour — but be warned, it has niche appeal. www.iamm.org.my 12pm – Little India Malaysia is a melting pot of different ethnicities and religions, so head to ‘Little India’ for lunch. Brickfields, found next to the major transport hub Sentral Station, is a vibrant area decorated with unusual and ornate lampposts. Malaysia’s tourist board highlights the area’s culinary prowess, especially banana leaf rice and thosai — an Indian pancake made from fermented rice flour.

2pm – Butterfly Park Take a taxi to the Lake Gardens, passing the modernist National Mosque, to visit the city’s butterfly park. Beneath a mesh canopy is an 80,000-squarefoot tropical paradise, housing

more than 5,000 winged insects.

Huge swallowtails — with black and azure tribal markings — flap through the air like bats, before settling on lush flora. Smaller orange and white species are drawn to bright flowers in this steaming oasis, which is a joy for budding wildlife photographers.

KL’s bird park is also a quick stroll away and is purported to be the world’s largest walk-in aviary. www.klbutterflypark.com 4pm – Afternoon Tea The 1930s Majestic Hotel lies on the outskirts of the Lake Gardens and is best experienced at tea time. A hot-spot of colonial history, the landmark has recently been restored and now hosts afternoon teas that bring back the glory years of the British Empire. Head to the hotel’s original wing to stuff yourself with a selection of cakes and pastries, plus a small selection

of Asian-inspired delicacies, including spicy curry puffs.

The terribly English scones and jam, best eaten with lashings of clotted cream and washed down with a swig of tea, are a particularly delicious and indulgent treat. www.majestickl.com 7pm – Petronas Towers Rest a little and, if you can still move, journey to KLCC to see KL’s most famous landmark — The Petronas Twin Towers.

Rising 415.9 metres into the sky, the iconic buildings are lit up at night. The towers themselves are open until 9pm, but the issuing of tickets begins at 8.30am on a first-come first-served basis, so it’s best to visit in the morning if you want to ascend to the viewing areas. Another option is to walk around the landscaped park at the base and stare up at this symbol of modern Asia. www.petronastwintower.com.my asialife Cambodia 47

48 asialife Cambodia

BEHIND the

DESIGN

INTERCONTINENTAL

DA NANG

With resorts a dime a dozen in Vietnam, this new property in Da Nang stands out for its location and odd design. Words and photos by Jonny Edbrooke.

The first cliff-side resort in Vietnam certainly lives up to its reputation. With each room or suite affording a sea view, private beach and excellent amenities, the InterContinental Da Nang Sun Peninsular Resort is a stunning venue.

Designed by Bangkokbased architect Bill Bensley, the property reflects an eye for precision often missing in five-star resorts in Vietnam.

“We pride ourselves on our attention to every detail, from the architecture and gardens down to the napkin rings and signage,” Bensley told me while I visited the resort with my family last month.

Every aspect of the design has been painstakingly thought through in order to create a real sense of luxury.

After a few hours at the resort you start to notice something different, something a bit odd.

“My philosophy on design has always been ‘lebih gila, lebih biak’, which in Indonesian means ‘the more odd, the better,’” Bensley said.

He has put the philosophy in to practise here. While lounging around the resort, I would constantly get a strange sense of something familiar, déjà vu if you will. It took me some time to figure it out, but eventually I realised much of the design reminded me of films, though Bensley said his inspiration came from Vietnamese culture.

The Long Bar, with its black and white stripes and the

huge suspended table and oversized chairs, had a definite Beetlejuice effect. Hanging from the bar’s ceiling were slowly wafting fans driven by a system that easily could fit in a Terry Gilliam film.

Citron, the main restaurant with upside-down ngon la hats as balconies, large ceiling fans and a giant teacup stuck above the bar reminded my colleague of The Hunger Games set.

Then there are the toilets.

Bensley spent a lot of time turning these normally forgotten rooms into an experience. At Citron there was a lounge waiting room before the toilets, which has been fitted with Vietnamese water jugs as washbasins and ceramic stove tops as wall decorations. The ladies’ cubicles at the Long Bar washroom are completely mirrored, creating an infinite number of 'yous' that watch while you do your business, again a device used in a number of movies.

As this is a cliffside resort, a funicular railway has been installed from the aptly-named Heaven (top) to Earth (ground) levels.

Avoiding the obvious, Bensley used small wooden boats in place of carriages.

While the natural beauty of the hotel is probably enough to keep most guests happy, the odd design makes the whole thing that much more memorable. asialife Cambodia 49

Top: La'Or Neclace: Bambou Indochine Sunglasses: Russian Market Bracelets: Bambou Indochine Previous page Top: Bambou Indochine Head wrap: La'Or Sunglasses:Top: Russian Market Eric Raisina Necklace: Water Lily Bag: Models own

Top: First Floor Skirt: Eric Raisina Top necklace: Stylists own Bottom necklace: Paperdolls Dress: Ambre Bracelet: Paperdolls Bracelet: Stylist's own

asialife Cambodia 53

Pantsuit: Ambre Bracelet: Ambre Belt & earrings: Model's own Photography: Dylan Maddux Model: Vichka Vantha Hair & Makeup: Syna Styling Stylist : Sophear Ouch

54 asialife Cambodia

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

Battambang

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.

Riverside Balcony Bar & Restaurant West bank of river. Tel: 012 437 421

Traditional wooden house with great views of the river and good food, ideal for a sunset cocktail lounging over the river. Open Tues – Sun, 4pm - 11pm.

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 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.

asialife Cambodia 55

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.

56 asialife Cambodia

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: 078 888 557 www.knaibangchatt.com An exclusive resort offering personal service and modernist style. Lush and private grounds house a collection of remodelled 1960’s

style colonial villas. With 18 unique rooms the resort includes an infinity pool, full 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 Kep, Tel: 011 964 181 www.leboutdumondekep.com Individual and separate bungalows in traditional Khmer architecture located at a top of a hill with good views and nice gardens. Serves French and Khmer cuisine. Rooms have hot water, mini-bar, 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.

Veranda Natural Resort Tel: 033 399 035, 012 888 619, www.veranda-resort.com Traditional wooden bungalows set in the hillside. Settle down 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.

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 wellequipped 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. Facilities include infinity swimming pool, tennis court, gym and children’s playhouse, 24 hour security, housekeeping, internet and complimentary shuttle to the city.

Studio to 3 bedroom units available.

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 Welcome to The Governor’s House Colonial Boutique Hotel in Phnom Penh. 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.

Imperial Garden Hotel 315 Sisowath Quay Tel: 023 219 991 Large hotel and villa complex next to the Cambodiana. Has a swimming pool, gym and tennis court.

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.

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. Beautiful gardens with a separate swimming pool for kids plus reasonably priced apartments for long stays. The rooms at the front are particularly special.

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. Along with 201 luxurious rooms and suites with Mekong or Bassac river views, are chic restaurants and bars, an upscale spa, two swimming pools, a sports club and the finest conferencing facilities in Cambodia.

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.

AQUA Boutique Hotel 2 Street 278. / Tel: 012414596 info@aqua-pp.com Modern Indochina villa offers 7 rooms in a stunning Art Deco building, All en-suite with A/C. and on-sight pool, sun bed, wine bar and tapas restaurant.

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 and you can have drinks and food delivered from 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.

FCC Phnom Penh 362 Sisowath Quay.

Tel: 012 253 222 www.fcccambodia.com Phnom Penh’s landmark restaurant has seven rooms with balconies offering views of the river. Each is individually designed and meticulously outfitted with high-speed Internet access and the latest mod cons.

Hotel Cara 18 Street 47 & 84 Tel: 023 430 066 / 023 998 422 stay@hotelcara.com www.hotelcara.com Just north of Wat Phnom, this stylish boutique hotel has well-fitted rooms at very reasonable rates and a great sushi restaurant.

Lebiz Hotel & Library 79F Street 128. Tel: 023 998 608 / 610 info@lebizhotel.com www.lebizhotel.com Luxury accommodation with a competitive edge and 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.

Paddy Rice 213-217 Sisowath Quay Tel: 023 990 321. www.paddyrice.net Former Hope and Anchor has newly refurbished rooms with solar hot water, cable TV, air conditioning, WiFi and great views of the river from its balconies. Downstairs restaurant offers full western and Asian cuisine 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. All rooms boast handmade furniture, en-suite bathroom, flat-screen LCD TV, DVD, Wi-fi, fridge and mini-bar.

asialife Cambodia 57

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.

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.

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.

Phnom Penh - Budget

The Plantation Urban Resort and Spa 28 Street 184. Tel: 023 215 151 http://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.

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, aircon, security box and great beds.

Also has two apartments, an Asian restaurant and a Café Sentiment coffee house.

The Pavilion 227 Street 19. Tel: 023 222 280 www.pavilion-cambodia.com Beautiful boutique hotel set in a colonial building with large, unique rooms, each with either a small balcony or garden. Outdoor swimming pool, free WiFi and a small poolside restaurant.

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.

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.

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.

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.

The restaurant has a European set lunch menu and serves authentic Khmer food a la carte for diner.

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.

Tonle Sap Guest House 4-6 Street 104. Tel: 023 986 722 www.tonlesapguesthouse.com Clean, well-kept guesthouse upstairs with 15 rooms, with air-con, fans, hot water, cable TV. Downstairs Pickled Parrot bar open 24 hours.

58 asialife Cambodia

Sihanoukville

Club RED 25 Tola St., Ochheuteal Beach Tel: 068 319 481 Located in the very heart of the city, this unique nightclub, bar, and lounge is open every night of the week. Great music, dance shows and live entertainment. Enjoy exclusive drinks and cocktails served in stylish surroundings by our friendly staff.

Open 8pm till late.

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.

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 with draught and imported beers.

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 Spanish-born 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.

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.

asialife Cambodia 59

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.

Fresh at Chilli Si-Dang East River. Tel: 012 723 488 Riverside dining, balcony views, a relaxing lounge downstairs, and a pool table. Fresh food, including traditional Khmer cuisine, cheese, sandwiches, a generous selection of vegetarian food.

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.

Little Pari The Lane, off Pub Street, The newest and bluest bar in town! Very sweet, very stylish little jewel of a bar, much like the eponymous owner herself, Pari. This jazz/wine bar serves delicious Asianised cocktails, wines and beers.

Open from 7pm until closing.

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: 017 925 181 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

60 asialife Cambodia

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.

siem reap

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

FCC Angkor Pokambor Avenue Tel: 023 992 284 www.fcccambodia.com Boutique hotel with 31 contemporary Asian-designed rooms spread around the garden and swimming pool. Free WiFi for guests both in rooms and around the pool.

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.

Siem Reap - Leisure

Angkor Silk Farm Puok District (20min from Siem Reap downtown) Open daily from 8am to 5pm

Girl with the Feather Earring Rhi Quinn Strolling through the arts and crafts stalls of Siem Reap recently, you may have spotted a girl with something a bit different about her. Anouk Von Gytenbeck cuts an Amazonian silhouette thanks to her Dutch heritage, while her jewellery has a native feel to it too.

New to Cambodia, “wanderlust” sparked her move. She was originally planning to stay in Ghana, and instead ventured to Laos, but felt it lacked the connection she was searching for. This led her to follow a friend over the border to Vietnam, from where she hopped over to Cambodia.

“Originally I had only planned to stay a week here, now I’m staying indefinitely,” she smiles.

Anouk’s chief passion is creating statement jewellery, usually containing Native American or tribal elements.

Back in Holland she struggled to find this style, which led her to start making her own wares.

“I was searching for Bohemian accessories that were native in style but they were difficult to find in Holland,” she states.

Her artistic flare grew when she gave a Ghanaian bracelet to a Laotian woman.

In return she was rewarded with a bouquet of feathers.

She then began collecting feathers from the areas she visited, including some from parrots in Venezuela. “One girl in Holland bought an earring out of my ear for 40 Euros,” she laughs. “I became known as the girl with the feather earring.”

Anouk has created her own label, Bfeathered, which she describes as more of a ‘lifestyle’ than a name.

The slogan “be focused, be fearless, be free” is reflected in Anouk, who sports a large feather tattoo that glides down her arm. “Let your style reflect your personality,” she says.

Currently creating a variety of large handmade earrings, she hopes to extend her collection to feather flip flops, belts, headdresses and ankle cuffs. Anouk has always taken the less trodden path as she finds it more interesting, and believes that feathers are spiritual. “Feathers have helped me travel, where the wind blows me I shall go,” she says. We predict that the wind will be blowing this young craftswoman to new heights very soon.

For more information, visit the Bfeathered Facebook page.

Tel: 063 5555 768 www.artisansdangkor.com Enjoy Cambodia’s countryside while admiring the skills of the silk workers.

During a free guided tour, learn about the meticulous process of silk-making, from the mulberry trees which nourish the silkworms and unwinding the cocoons to the tie-dyeing of threads (ikat technique) and the 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.

Trapang Thmor, a day-trip from Siem Reap, or combine bird watching with temple trips to Koh Ker and Beng Melea.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

Siem Reap - Medical

Siem Reap - Restaurants

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.

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.

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.

Siem Reap - Shops

Le Malraux Street No. 7.

Tel: 063 966 041 Beautiful French restaurant offering alfresco, café and brasserie style dining 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.

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.

L’Oasi East River Road. Tel: 092 418 917

De Silk 18 Oum Khun Blvd

Tel: 063 761 198 / 011 775 168 www desilk.com Boutique offering 24/7 tailoring services using 100% Khmer traditional silk, that has expertise in making clothes and accessories.

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.

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.

Siem Reap - Spas

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

With 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, Sokkhak Spa is a Cambodian owned and managed business with over 16 years experience in the spa industry throughout Cambodia, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and South America.

Open daily 11am - 10pm.

asialife Cambodia 61

Listings

food & drink 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 25K Suramarit Blvd. (Street 268) Tel: 023 225 225 / 092 665 225, www.knyay.com knyay@hotmail.com Modern Khmer restaurant tucked away down an alley off Sihanouk 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 12pm - 9pm (Mon - Fri), 7am 9pm (Sat), closed Sunday.

Malis 136 Norodom Bvd. Tel: 023 221 022 www.malisrestaurant.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. 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.

62 asialife Cambodia

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

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.

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: 012 607 507 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 restaurant’s comprehensive wine list.

Open daily, 8am – 11pm.

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 homecooked 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.

Kitsch meets tradition at this

up-scale restaurant. 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).

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.

asialife Cambodia 63

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.

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

AQUA Modern Eatery Reservations: info@aqua-pp.com New location opening soon, Sacha’s 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.

64 asialife Cambodia

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.

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 eLYXIR 3 Street 466 (near Thai embassy), Tel: 023 211 711 Elyxir is dedicated to wine, luxury and gastronomy. Each course was dreamed up in order to marry perfectly the wines on our menu.

Elyxir includes a swimming pool, champagne bar, private rooms & all our wines are available at our Wine Shop. Open Tuesday - Sunday, 10am 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, split-level 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.

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

asialife Cambodia 65

Flavours 158 Street 63 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.

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.

Gastrobar Botanico 9b Street 29 Tel: 017 873 101 info@gastrobarbotanico.com Located in its own habitat with over 2,000 plants. Open-air.

Offers tapas, salads, sandwich, and straightforward food, yet with character, in lush garden setting.

Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and in between. Espresso bar. Cocktails, wines, fruit shakes.

Open daily 8am - 9:30pm.

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.

66 asialife Cambodia

Kandal House 239 Sisowath Quay Tel: 023 986 803 Very friendly riverside established serving good and reasonably priced homemade pasta and a variety of Asian dishes. Open 8am - late.

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.

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 Phnom Penh’s one and only Spanish tapas bar. It 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.

dining

n sushi

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 from 10.30am to 10.30pm.

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.

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.

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 TEL 023 21 51 79 Russian Blvd, inside Sokimex

eryday

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.

book.com/RahuMetro

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 15pm -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) 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.

asialife Cambodia 67

Sonoma Oyster Bar 159 Street 278 Tel: 023 223 617/ 077 723 911 Phnom Penh’s first and only independent oyster bar has drawn a crowd of expats and Cambodians seeking high-quality oysters in a cosy setting.

Open daily 10:30am – 2:00pm, 5:00pm - 11:00pm.

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.

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

68 asialife Cambodia

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.

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.

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.

asialife Cambodia 69

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.

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.

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.

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.

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, 6pm10:30pm Luna d’Autumno 6C Street 29. Tel: 023 220 895 Beautiful courtyard or stylish interior air-con restaurant, whichever you choose, Luna has more classical pizzas, both red and white, to choose from than most restaurants.

Also serves excellent pasta and other up-market Italian food. Good wine cellar on view in the restaurant.

Open 11am - 2.30pm, 5.30pm 10.30pm.

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 9pm. Open daily 11.30am 2.30pm, 6pm - 10pm.

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.

70 asialife Cambodia

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.

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 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 11:00-14:30 and 17:3021:00 Closed every 2nd Wednesday.

Yumi Restaurant, Bar and Grill 29a Street 288 Tel: 092 163 903 Elegant but inexpensive English-run Yakitori restaurant nestled in a quiet street in BKK that serves top-notch Japanese nibbles, hot and cold sake, plum wine, wine and beer. Don’t leave without trying the salt and chilli squid.

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 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.

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.

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/ 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, cochinita pebil, 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.

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.

Lunch: 11:30 am – 2:00 pm Dinner: 6 pm – 10 pm

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 two locations in Phnom Penh, serving breakfast sets, Asian and Western entrées and an array of ice cream flavours. Open daily from 6am - 11pm.

Botanic Cafe-Art gallery 126 Street 19 Tel: 077589458 botaniccafe@yahoo.com, www.botanica-gallerycafe.com Cafe and food inside over 80 year old building, with garden is display art works, pot plants and premium souvenirs. First floor exhibition and event space is for promote local artists. We have special lunch and dinner set 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.

asialife Cambodia 71

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, ground-floor restaurant and on the streetside terrace.

Open 6.30am - 10.30pm.

Café Fresco 363 Sisowath Quay, Tel: 023 217 041 Cnr. Streets 51 & 306, Tel: 023 224 891 The FCC’s café chain sells strong Illy coffee and mix-and-match sandwiches. Interiors have a slight retro 70s feel to it and there are pleasant outside seating areas.

There are currently four outlets in town Open 6am to pm.

Café Namu 28b Cnr Streets 30 & 57, Tel: 023 220 074 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.

Chill Ice Cream & Coffee Lounge 219d Sisowath Quay Tel: 092 547 534 Pretty, casual lounge on the riverside offering coffee, sandwiches, cocktails, and some of the best homemade ice cream in town, as well as inventive ice cream cocktails.

Open 11am - midnight.

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

72 asialife Cambodia

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 in three differences area BKK 1, on the riverside and inside the commercial building Canadia Tower.

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. Opening Nov 1.

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

Open daily 6am - 2am.

Morning Café 32C Street 592. Tel: 023 982 109 Cosy air-conditioned coffee house with relaxed atmosphere, located in Toul Kork district serves Khmer, Thai and European cuisine. Open every day for breakfast, lunch and dinner from 6am to 9pm.

Renature Aquarium café 35AE Street 288 near corner Street 83 Tel: 095 930 313/017 827 766 Enjoy your coffee surrounded by the gentle glow of beautiful aquaria and relaxing fish.

Open from 10am – 10pm.

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.)

asialife Cambodia 73

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!

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.

74 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.

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 twofor-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.

Metro Café Cnr. Sisowath Quay & Street 148 Tel: 023 222 275 (see Restaurants International) 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 and 3 guest rooms upstairs.

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

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 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.

imbibe Vinous Perfection: Penfolds Grange Darren Gall “We must not be afraid to put in effect the strength of our own convictions, continue to use our imagination in winemaking generally, and be prepared to experiment in order to gain something extra, different and unique in the world of wine,” said Max Schubert, founding winemaker of Penfolds Grange.

When Schubert returned to Australia after World War Two, having served in North Africa, it was to a wine market that was changing rapidly as soldiers came home and new immigrants settled in Australia.

He later returned to Europe to investigate winemaking.

Though his mission was to learn about sherry production, a side trip to Bordeaux led to an experiment with a long-lived red wine, which he called Grange.

Schubert looks back on the 1950s Grange years as exciting years of discovery, faith, doubt and ultimately triumph. In contrast, the 1960s was a period of vindication, as Grange set a national benchmark for wine longevity, concentration and balance.

In August 1995 Robert Parker, the world’s most influential wine critic, wrote in The Wine Advocate that Grange was “a leading candidate for the richest, most concentrated dry table wine on planet earth.” That same year, the 1990 Penfolds Grange was awarded ‘Wine of the Year’ by influential publication The Wine Spectator, creating

unprecedented global demand and pricing.

The latest release of Penfolds Grange, the 2008 vintage, has been awarded the highest possible score of 100 out of 100 by Parker.

Again, this created a frenzy among wine buyers and a whopping 25 percent price increase on the previous vintage. Such is the demand in China for Penfolds wine that a source at the company said the city of Shanghai alone would buy the entire production of Grange unless its allocation was restricted.

Respected Australian wine critic Tyson Stelzer hints at the wine’s pedigree in his first tasting notes on the new release: Yes, this is still Grange as we know it, with its backdrop of high cocoa dark chocolate, its hints of coal steam and its definitive, monumental intensity. But there’s a newfound overlay of brilliantly precise black fruit definition here, with perfectly ripe black plums, black cherries, blackberries and black pastilles all perfectly laid out in their gloriously intricate detail. Grange tannins are here to behold, charged with great endurance, yet super fine and somehow more lacy than ever.

Perhaps more extraordinary is the fact that several of the winemaking team at Penfolds and many growers and producers in South Australia have already declared that the 2010 — to be released in a couple of years — can only be better!

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

asialife Cambodia 75

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.

Elyxir 3 Street 466 (near Thai Embassy) Tel: 023 211 711 Elyxir is dedicated to wine, luxury and gastronomy. Each dish was dreamed up to marry perfectly with the wines on our menu. Elyxir boasts a swimming pool, champagne bar and private rooms. All our wines are available at our Wine Shop.

Open 10am until late, closed Mondays.

Open Wine 219 Street 19. Tel: 023 233 527

76 asialife Cambodia

Large wine shop and deli with wellpriced wines from around the world.

Has outside dining area.

Open daily 7am - 11pm.

Rubies Cnr Streets 240 & 19. Tel: 015 670 024 Intimate wood-pannelled wine bar that is a mainstay of the female expat population with well-priced wines.

Often has parties at the weekend.

ZINO 12 Street 294 Tel: 023 998 519 Zino wine bar and restaurant provides a comprehensive wine list and cocktail menu and a regularly changing Mediterranean menu while providing its customers with a friendly and very atmosphere.

Zino is open for lunch and dinner from Tuesday to Sunday. Closed Mondays.

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.

K2 25k Street 268. Tel: 093 665 225 www.fb.com/K2Bar.PhnomPenh Classy addition to the Phnom Penh scene and it’s first straight-friendly, chill-out bar. Contemporary design and LGBTIQ artwork. Secluded space, attracting a socially conscious, Khmer crowd who mix easily with expats/visitors.

Open 6pm 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. Semi-private 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.

Mao’s Cnr Street 106 & Sisowath Quay Tel: 023 992 726 Chairman Mao has been reconstructed into one of Phnom Penh’s liveliest nightspots with djs and occasional live bands. Open 5pm - 2am.

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.

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.

Aircon Restaurant Art Exhibitions Dance Theatre German Classes

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 - 2pm.

Sharky Bar 126 Street 130. Tel: 012 228 045 www.sharkybar.blogspot.com Has regular live gigs at weekends involving local and expat bands with an emphasis on heavy rock.

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

Workshop Space Open-Air-Cinema

asialife Cambodia 77

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.

78 asialife Cambodia

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.

Listings

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: 012 242 396 Lessons in this rhythmic Brazilian cross between dance and martial arts are held every Tuesday from 6.30pm to 8pm.

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.

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 Center 52 Street 302. Tel 012 250 817 www.yogacambodia.com Daily classes in yoga and pilates, check website for schedule and prices.

Photography Tours 126 Street 136. Tel: 092 526 706 www.nathanhortonphotography.com Weekend 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

asialife Cambodia 79

sos

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.

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.

Hitting the Road Dr Nelson Velez One major form of transportation in Phnom Penh comes in many colours, gets you where you want to go fast, can carry a single person or the entire family, generates toxins in the air and numbers in the thousands in the city.

This is especially noticeable at intersections. There are so many motos in such a small amount of space!

Have you ever noticed how many riders wear helmets and face masks?

Unfortunately, while weaving in and out of crowded streets, often at high speeds and overloaded with passengers or customers unprotected on the back, accidents can occur. Serious accidents can kill or maim riders.

There is the ‘moto tattoo’ — a nasty burn mark on a rider’s leg from the exhaust pipe — or small scrapes and cuts. But there are also those accidents in which heads hit the asphalt or curb, causing severe head trauma. Broken bones and ‘road rash’ are common.

Road rash is when pieces of asphalt become embedded in a large laceration and must be removed. It is not a pretty sight.

Motorcycle related accidents account for more

than 77 percent of road fatalities in 2009, according to the Asia Injuries Prevention Foundation, and the problem is getting worse. The World Health Organisation reported 1,717 deaths among motorcyclists, pedestrians and cyclists in 2009, with 75 percent of fatalities the result of severe head injuries.

The initial management of the injured is truly important.

This includes transportating them to a trustworthy medical facility, a detailed examination, and a thorough cleaning of scrapes and lacerations. X-rays or a CT scan might be needed, along with the immobilisation of dislocated or broken bones and tetanus prevention.

Can you imagine how awful you would feel if your girlfriend or two year old fell off a moto and received severe injuries?

We all need transportation, so it’s important to do what you can to prevent major injury. An obvious suggestion is to wear your helmet.

But go further and also wear protective clothing so that the skin is covered. Do not overload your motorbike with too many people, and most definitely do not drive as though you are in a race.

Dr Nelson Velez is a senior medical officer at International SOS clinic. If you have any enquiries regarding this or any other medical matter, please contact info.cambodia@internationalsos.com.

80 asialife Cambodia

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 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.

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.

Counselling Services 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 www.imiclinic.com Siem Reap 545 National Road N6, Banteay Chas, Stor Kram.

Tel: 063 767 618 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.

SOS Dental Clinic 161 Street 51. Tel: 023 216 911 International standard dental clinic providing family dental care, from routine cleanings and fluoride treatments to crowns and root canals. Dr. Deborah Moore is a UK dentist with a gentle manner suitable for children and nervous patients.

Open 9am - 12pm, 2pm - 6pm Mon – Fri, 9am - 12pm Sat. Open 24/7 for emergencies.

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.

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

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.

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 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 Comprehensive 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 both women and men. Our Japanesetrained nail artists have years of experience. We provide expert personal care in a quiet and relaxing atmosphere.

Full Set Care (Manicure and Pedicure) More than 250 Nail Lacquers and More than 350 Nail Design Simples. Acrylic and Gel Nail (Gel Colors) are available.

Open daily 8am – 7pm.

asialife Cambodia 81

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.

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.

Derma-MK Skin Center 183 Street 63. Tel: 023 452 5626 Focused on Dermalogica products, this care facility offers facial treatments, including anti-aging and brightening, as well as body treatments such as body scrubs and massage.

Dermal Spa 4C Street 57 Tel: 023 720 042 / 012 415 552 Spa offering beauty salon, foot massage and body massage servies, specializes in Dermalogica skin and beauty products.

Open daily 9am – 9pm.

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.

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.

Sports General

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.

TROPICAL & TRAVELLERS MEDICAL CLINIC 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

Passion Spa & Salon 29 Street 302 Tel: 081 998 227 / 089 998 227 Dedicated to helping you celebrate a happier, healthier lifestyle. Your Day in a healthy, beautiful way.

Open daily 9am – 10pm.

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.

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 Villa Spa 456 Monivong Blvd., (cnr. Street 466)

82 asialife Cambodia

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 Beeline Arena Sangkat Chroychangva, Phnom Penh Tel: 067 716 565 www.banzaicambodia.com Located on the Chroy Changvar peninsula, facing the city of Phnom Penh, the Beeline Arena is the first multi-purpose sports arena in Cambodia with international standard, including Multi-surface state of the art FIFA regulation pitch, 2,000 person capacity, VIP lounge and restaurant. Rental for futsal, 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.

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.

Listings

family Cafés & Restaurants

Café Fresco II Cnr. Streets 51 & 306 Tel: 023 224 891 Let your children play with puzzles and Lego on beanbags, watch films like the Lion King looked after by a trained staff as you enjoy your cappuccino.

Open daily 6am - 9pm.

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 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 International School 85 Sothearos Blvd.

Tel: 023 222 418 www.ican.edu.kh Offers affordable, high quality education to 330 children, aged 2-12, from 31 different nationalities, using British curriculum. iCAN is a contemporary, purpose-built school and is the first in Cambodia with interactive whiteboards in every classroom.

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.

asialife Cambodia 83

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.

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

84 asialife Cambodia

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.

kids corner TV Nightmares Gemma Mullen

A toddler’s imagination can run wild at the best of times, largely because at a young age children can’t distinguish between fantasy and reality due to their lack of life experience. This can lead youngsters to imitate what they see, which is a pretty solid reason for parents to steer them away from cartoons or other programmes with fighting or bad language.

Television violence in particular begs to be imitated, as it often shows that you can get what you want in fun ways.

Many programmes show ‘good guys’ performing violent acts such as kicking, hitting and pushing. This can be confusing for children, as they are taught to emulate the good guys, and it may even lead to difficulties in understanding right from wrong.

From the age of two and a half, children are likely to pay more attention to the TV. The American Academy of Paediatricians recommends that kids under two years old should not watch any TV, while those older than two should consume no more than one to two hours of quality programming a day.

Although children enjoy fast-moving characters, this will likely lead them towards cartoons, which have a higher proportion of violence.

Educational programmes, while not as thrilling, will usually reduce a toddler’s exposure to violence and may benefit

them later on in life, as many viewing habits are formed at a young age.

There are so many tips for introducing good TV habits among the little square-eyeds, but here are some of the best: • There is no reason to have a TV in a child’s bedroom.

Having one in their private space will only mean you cannot control what and when they are watching.

• Do not allow the TV to be on during meal times or when children are doing homework. TV can be a big distraction and you don’t want to take their concentration away from educational activities.

• Allow TV to be earned, such as after completing homework or helping to clean dishes.

• Check the TV listings so you know what is on when your child is watching, and never be afraid to recommend appropriate programmes for them.

• Watch TV together, setting aside some family TV time, with everyone gathered around. It will make it more fun and gives children a sense of security.

As with everything, the key is moderation. Children can benefit from watching TV, as long as it does not involve being barraged by hours of intense programming. And never forget — there is this place they call outdoors, and children love to explore it.

Gemma Mullen has been working in child care for more than 10 years. She holds an NNEB diploma in nursery nursing and is currently a creative writing teacher at Zaman International School in Phnom Penh.

asialife Cambodia 85

services

money matters

business & services

The Silent Assassin Vanessa Vrdoljak Saving is good, right? From an early age we are told that to save for a rainy day and having something to fall back on in difficult times is reassuring. But beware, there is a silent enemy at work that risks devaluing your savings and it goes by the name of inflation.

Remember the good old days when you could buy a loaf of bread for 50 cents. Now the same loaf will cost you $1.60.

That’s inflation for you. It’s a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.

But it’s not just relevant to the past. The future value of your savings is under serious attack from inflation, a fact often overlooked by savers.

Published interest rates can look attractive, but it is easy to forget that there can be a big difference between these rates and the real rate of interest. That difference is the rate of inflation. If you subtract the rate of inflation from the published interest rates, that is the real rate you are getting. It is quite possible for this to be negative and the unpalatable truth is that in real terms, you are losing money.

To take a very simple example: if you saved $100 at the beginning of the year at an interest rate of 2 percent and inflation for that year was 5 percent, your savings have effectively been reduced in value by $3. Scale this up for the possible thousands of dollars that you have invested for retirement and you can see how serious an enemy inflation is.

The good news is that there

Architecture, Interior Design & Construction are certain safeguards you can take to beat this silent enemy. One imperative is to start saving as early as you possibly can in order to benefit from compound interest. By consistently reinvesting the interest and dividends on your savings, you can win the war on inflation.

A second weapon in the armoury for expats in Asia is the availability of tax efficient saving and investment opportunities that minimise taxation on the annual returns on your investments.

Again, this will allow you to consistently reinvest higher amounts and benefit from compound interest.

A third tactic is to avoid putting all your savings in one basket. For many, the idea of investing in stocks, bonds, commodities or property is alien, but sticking your money in the bank is just not going to win you the battle. Instead you need to spread your investments over these different asset classes to create a balanced portfolio in which losses in some areas can be offset by gains in others.

Navigating your way through the financial landscape alone may seem daunting, which is why it is advisable to seek professional help. A qualified financial adviser is invaluable in helping you put together a personalised investment plan which will protect your savings, and ensure that they are not eroded by your deadly foe — inflation.

Vanessa Vrdoljak is a senior financial consultant 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 Vanessa, please send an email to info@infinitysolutions.com or visit infinitysolutions.com.

86 asialife Cambodia

Listings

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 - 7pm 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.

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.

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. 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.

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 admin@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.”

Business Groups

Australian Business Association of Cambodia (ABAC) 20 Street 114 (cnr. Street 67) For information, contact Derek Mayes.

Tel:012 385 157 abacambodia@gmail.com British Business Association of Cambodia (BBAC) 35 Sihanouk Blvd. Tel: 012 803 891 Contact enquiries@bbacambodia.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 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 go-anywhere packages to all areas of 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.

Dara Motorbike 43 Street 136, Tel: 012 335 499 Off-road specialist offers repairs, parts and accessories. Tours can be arranged by appointment.

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

Emerald Garage 11 Street 456 Mechanics specialising in maintenance and repair of vehicles, including oil changing and body painting.

EMAXX 99 Norodom Blvd. Tel: 023 999 818 EMAXX offers fast internet access via WiMAX, Optical Fiber and Satellite.

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.

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.

Western Service Centre 24 Street 420. Tel: 012 477 831 www.wmg-cambodia.com admin@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 Company that 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

services

Bikes & Mechanics

Insurance

Infinity Insurance 126 Norodom Blvd. Tel: 023 999 888 Prfessional 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.

asialife Cambodia 87

services

Gordon and Associates Asia (Cambodia) 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.

Worldwide Express, Trading.

Open Mon~Fri 8am ~5:30pm & Sat 8am~1pm

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.

Photography

Media & Design

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,

88 asialife Cambodia

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.

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.

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. 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

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 Mobile 464A Preah Monivong Blvd.

Tel: 010 201 000 www.smart.com.kh facebook.com/SmartMobileKH One of the most dynamic and fastest growing mobile telecom service providers in the country. Issues the 010, 069, 070, 086, 093 and 098 prefixes.

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

D’s Books 12E Street 178 & 79 Street 240 Tel: 092 675 629 Second-hand book shop with over 20,000 copies and some originals, with a heavy emphasis on best sellers and travel books. Open 9am - 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 6B 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.

NatureWild 10Eo Street 420 Tel: 023 727 407 www.naturewildcambodia.com A sustainable lifestyle store featuring community products made from natural and wild materials from the forests of Cambodia, ideal for gifts.

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.

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.

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).

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.

asialife Cambodia 89

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.

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 A design boutique offering home decor, women’s fashion, kids clothes, bags, accessories and continually updated design surprises. Next to K’nyay restaurant, in the alley across the park from java cafe.

Open 10am - 7pm, closed Sun. 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 Tel: 023 640 5047 Vibrant vintage shop offering a selection of interesting, handpicked second-hand 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.

Luna Boutique 8E1Street 278. Tel: 023 220 176 www.lunaboutiquephnompenh.com Original and stylish fashion designs

90 asialife Cambodia

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.

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.

SALT 2 Street 294 Tel: 012 815 066 SentosaSilk’s younger sibling has just opened in the comfortable surroundings of BKK1. Its stylish wooden interior complements the products sold, ranging from bags and shoes, clothes and dresses to accessories.

Open daily 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 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 91

Himawari Hotel Cambodiana French Element Naga World Hotel & MW Medical Darlin Darlin AG Service Dance World Cambodia

St.

56

St. 308

St. 244

84

L

St. 2

78

St. 1

St. 214

17

St. 182

St.

) 17

St. 151

St. 153

St. 157

St. 159

84

.1

St. 334

St. 330

St. 320

89

Legend Cinema 8 0 31

8

31

01

32

8

St

.1

93

St. 3

6 4 36 4

St. 346

) 7 21 t.

St. 247

ir

h et

St. 218

24

M

on

St. 251

St. St. 270

St. 210

St. 202

St. 204

(S

St. 182

St. 247

St. 186

St. 156

St. 150

St. 146

Chenla Theatre

Blvd.

9

St. 257

55

St. 388

St. 372

St. 362

St. 344

St. 336

St. 230

IFL: Brown Coffee

St. 324

St. 253 253 St.OPPOSITE

4

37 38

St. 336

St. 326

St. 316

Mao Tse Toung

St. 314

86

01

8

.3 St

36

St. 272

St. 234

St. 194

St. 188

St. 156

St. 150

St. 146

St. 138

To Airport approx. 6 km

d. (St. 128)

99

St. 136

St. 608 78

St. 5

66

54

St. 5

St. 5

St. 2

St. 241

82

52

St. 5

.3

592

50 St. 5

St

St. 5

8

95

St.

297

St.

52

St. 182

St. 162 St. 618

St. 614

St. 612

St. 610

46 48

St. 5

St. 5

92 asialife Cambodia St. 5

St.

St. 2

89

11

St. 243

Home Connect

St. 2

03

InterContinental Friends ’n’ Stuff

St. 239 St. 237

Simply Donuts

AT THE AIRPORT: Bambou Indochine Smateria

St. 291

28 St. 5

15

93

.3

(St. 289)

.2

St. 231

St. 233

St. 2

St

St. 227

St. 229

Royal Rattanak Hospital

St. 566

St. 564

St. 562

St. 55

St. 556

St. 528

St. 524

St

. 522

Penn Nouth

St. 134

St. 225

3 8

28

5

St. 560

St.

28

St. 122

St.

St. 616

1

St. 160

75

52 28

St. 230

St. 223

St.

St. 2 St.

St

St. 226

St. 220 St. 221

St. 217

608

1

St. 206

St.

St. 202

St.

St. 192

79

99

05

Sunbird

6

2 St.

32

St. 122

77

St. 118

St. 112

St. 221 2 St.

.1

St. .2

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. 310

St. 163

St

vaquie (St

St. 304

St. 292

St. 300

St. 288

St. 280

St. 129

Olympic Stadium

Wasabi

Tchecoslo

St. 127

Toul Mu

29

St. 165

St. 119

Sihanouk blvd.

St. 152

St. 118

St. 122

v Jok Dimitro

(Pochentong de la Russie

Confederation

St. 278

St. 260

St. 242

St. 248

St. 232

St. 198

St. 190

de les ar 1

St. 161

St. 149 St. 161

St. 117

St.

St. 143

Ch

St. 139

St.

St. 134

St. 141

1

64

d) Airport Roa

14

St. 236

.2 l le u Ga

St.

St. 322

St. 242

St. 115

Orussey Market

St. 137

EL Skin

St. 103

St. 113

St. 125

( St

Kampuch

St. 109

St. 310

St. 9

The Fli St. 105

0

109 16

8

St.

St.

11

St. 306

St. 302

Pasta and Vino

St. 276

) St. 126

St.93

.1

C

Crosstown Cafe

St. 111

St

Bi Nail Salon

St. 294

Sihanouk Blvd.

St. 288

St. 278

St. 180

St. 158

St. 282

0 St. 24

8

2

St. 22

St. 22

4

St. 21

8

St. 20

4

St. 200

St. 18

St. 17

8

St. 174

2 St. 17

St. 24

2

St. 25

4

St. 26

2

Wat Lang Ka

St. 17

St. 154

St. 136

St. 126

St. 118

St. 154

St. 136

) ) ar (St. 114

ong (St. 110

Kramuons

Preah Angdu

St. 108

St. 106

Mr Grill

St. 107

St. 107

Le Biz

St. 86

St. 80

St. 14

4

St. 14

6

St. 13

0

St. 118

St. 108

St. 106 St. 102

St. 96

Gloria Jean’s

British Embassy

ch Embassy

Renature Cafe

Oknha Noukan g Blvd.

Monivon

Raffles Hotel Le Royal

St. 21

International Chiropractic Clinic

g Blvd.

Monivon

St. 140

Stella

CCF St. 81

d. (St. 128 ea Krom Blv

St. 75

St. 67

mey Psar Th

Hair & Nail Studio International Le Cafe Dental Clinic

Le Rit’s

Malis Dental Clinic

yal Hotel Le Ro

St. 88

Tell

St. 90

St. 92

St. 61

St. 86

St. 84

St. 13

4 10

02

St.

.1

00

St

.1 St

Oknha Sa

St. 102

nthomok

krong St.

84

St. 82 St.

80 St.

United States Embassy

)

Cineplex

16

47

St. 63

.3

St.

Market

Queen Boutique Hotel

Romdeng Do It All Bar

St

t. (

St. 53

7)

Fra

eS nc

Central

Cafe Fresco

o

Cham 90

88

InStyle Spa

21

St.

Wat Phnom

La Marmite

Almond Hotel

Zino Lime 9 Vego Tabu Shigeta Dental One More Restaurant St. 21 Pub Java Café & Gallery Samba Luna d’autunno St. 29 Irina Russian Restaurant St. 29 Botanico ISPP Malis

M

Baksei ay

The Chinese House Hotel Cara Door

9

t.

Qu

St. 1

(S

th

Giant Ibis Transportation Van’s

th

wa

3

ni re

so

Kan Ji

St. 9

Red Apron 9 Infinity Derma-Care Reyum Institute nt Yves Rocher St. 1 ume Helicopter Mon of Arts & Culture Mekong Quilts ence A.N.D pend Cambodia The Shop Inde 240 Phnom Penh Jasmine Le Tem Beyond Interiors rd Latin Quarter Monkey Business va Villa Salt oule B C m do The Plantation Noro Lotus Blanc Botanic The Blue Pumpkin Gloria Jean’s Monument Books Toto Ice Cream Cafe Fresco Brown LimKeo Steve’s Steakhouse Dosa Corner EMAXX 5 De Gr Amatak Beauty Spa St. 2 La Cita Coffee dence 3 Sharky’s Resi St. 2 Equinox Tho 1st Floor Taqueria h Th n y Hu La Terrazza Passion Spa Corona Dermal Spa Luna Boutique Aria d’Italia St. 57 V Circa 51 SOS U Care Blue Pumpkin Nathan Horton et) Smateria Photography r Stre Geylang House asteu (P AQVARIVM 51 Miro Ocean St. Udon Cafe Kurata Pe St. 49 Villa Paradiso Fresh Salad Bar U Care Sobbhana La Reine Lost’n’Fo Salon 8

St. 1

Maos

l tra e Cen Offic t Pos

Ware House

Royal Palace

Meta House The Duck

2

Amara Spa

Green Vespa Limoncello Artisans Angkor

Si

Paddy Rice

Keo’Kjay

Gloria Jean’s Stone Grill

hm

o-K

Sin

Rising Sun Bodia Spa Sentosa Silk U Care K West Amanjaya St. 13 Color Vintage National Museum Friends

St. 5

Beirut iVIVA!

er R

K’NYAY Splash Inn La Clef de Sol Vegetarian

St. 1

Mayura Resort Office

St. 7

e esid

40 St. 2

Chow Riverside Bistro Metro Café The Blue Pumpkin

Vietnam Friendship Monument

h

(t nce

Dolce Italia

n)

nsio

a eM

Sihanouk Blvd.

at h

Sunbird 2 t Blvd.

ow

Sothearos Blvd.

Suramari

S is

ay Qu

264

Bambou Indochine FCC Smateria Cafe Fresco Cantina

Eriq Amtalla Salon

St. 266

a

Ch

Pop Café

Australian Embassy

Mind Body Practice

St. 258

n Co

St. 240

k mu kto

St. 246

ll Ha ce en fer

St. 312

Phnom Penh Central

1 l Road

0 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

2

4 St. 64

Nationa

St. 35

Mon

mond Hotel Sofitel Phokeethra Soth

ant

earos

B

I Ching lvd. iCAN

Nati

onal

Road

2

St. 21

St. 394

Lost Room

Euro Dental Clinic La Rose Topaz icopter Norodom Bou mbodia levard iors Le Temps des Kiriya cafe Cerises

Canadian International School

loria Jean’s St. 51 co Simphony De Gran The Dollhouse

ELYXIR

The Terrace The Flicks

t.

(S lvd. oum Ph arak em l Kh

St. 101 St. 103

St. 488

5

173

47 St.

7 75

Bl

vd .

83

ng

2

93

40

St.

510 St.

5 St.

St.

502 St.

00 5 St.

496 St.

494 St.

St

2 . 49

St.

St. 457

St. 448

1) . (St. 27

Ma

.1

St

min Blvd

8

oT se

St

.1

95

19

7

arak Ph ou

St.

.1

99

43

0

St.

ol Khem

41

4

40

St

.2

05

4

St.

St

St

.2

M

on

ire

th

(S

t.

2

St.

43

Yothap

4

91

St.

.1

4

St

38

87

St.

.1

St.

30

St

To u

85

38

.1

St.

P

71)

St

4

.1

37

k ara

t. 2

St

6

81

35

.1

St.

em

. (S lvd

St

4

.1

36

l Kh

in B

St

St.

17

Global Art School of Ballet Dancing

apo

m hou

St.

St.

75

St. 4

93

tinental ’n’ Stuff

St. 432

St.

Angkor Soaps

St. 424

St. 4

Singapore Parkway Salon

.1

7

St. 442

3

h Yot

St. 438

St. 16 St. 17

430

St. 486

St. 480

St. 482

St. 476

St. 472

St. 163

Physiotherapy

St. 167

St.

St.

488

490

St. 147

St. 155

St. 444

Toul Tom Pong

St. 145

St. 470

St. 450

St. 440

St. 432

St. 426

St. 418

St. 408

Russian Market

Indigo Counselling

504

06

512

St. 454

St. 446

St. 450

St. 432

St. 440

St. 428

St. 408

Cando Craft

St. 468

Toys & Me

St. 135

St. 460

St. 143

St. 132

St. 454

St. 121

SupercheapSt. 133

St. 105

St. 456

Toul Sleng Museum

St. 420

Mao Tse Toung Blvd. (Street 245)

St. 396

St. 390

St. 386

St. 376

St. 368

St. 360

103

St

Yoth

apo St. 484

St. 99

St. 508

St. 498

St. 474

St. 99

Art desLignes

WSC St. 350

St. 97

Nature Wild

St. 95

St. 348

St. 466

g Blvd.

St. 436

Monivon

St. 95

St. 330

Smart Mobile

St. 71

iOne

T-Bone

) 271

St. 466

St. 462

Man Han Lou CIAPP

in B

St. 400

St. 398

St. 392

St. 422

ROCK Entertainment Club

Sambo’s Tots

ail Salon

St. 310

rd

DK Schoolhouse

St. 73

Lost’n’Found

St. 320

leva

St. 63

The Little Garden New York Steakhouse

St. 63

e

Bou

Thida Salon

St. 464

Kurata Pepper

St. 380

St. 322

St. 334

St. 352

VI Bar

The Governor’s House

St. 360

57

dom

et)

St. 370

(Pasteur Stre

Noro

St. 478

aurant

To Choueng Ek Killing Fields approx. 12 km

asialife Cambodia 93

07 St

.2

09

New Store Opening @ KeoK’jay

Phnom Penh Designer’s Week @ Plantation

Photography by Dylan Maddux & Charles Fox

94 asialife Cambodia

Eat Drink Phnom Penh @ Himawari Hotel

Charity Auction @ The Exchange

asialife Cambodia 95

soundfix album review

The-Dream IV Play

by Mai Lynn Miller Nguyen

Sonny & The Sunsets

Kanye West

Laura Marling

Yeezus

Once I Was An Eagle

Kanye West delivered two notable news items in one week. The first was the birth of the rapper’s daughter with reality TV star Kim Kardashian, whom the couple have decided to christen North West. The second delivery also came with a strange moniker — Yeezus, West’s sixth studio album. Rife with religious symbolism amid feisty pop culture allusions, the record proves to be West’s most controversial work. Controversy is what West has built his career on, in addition to his gift for slick rhymes and beats. Who else but Kanye West could create a song with the egotistical title ‘I Am A God’ and somehow pull it off? His delusions of grandeur are excused by an ability to be both catchy and compelling, to hold listeners’ attentions and leave them wanting more. Yeezus is West’s most experimental album, a feat of intriguing music choices such as a sample of Nina Simone’s ‘Strange Fruit’, dancehall hype calls and Daft Punk-produced tracks.

When talent emerges in youth, it’s common to focus on the artist’s age — “Just 20 years old and so talented?” is the conventional remark. Laura Marling, an English folk singer/ guitarist with a husky voice and a knack for emotionally stirring songs, is “only” 23 years old. But Marling is not merely impressive for someone so young, she’s just plain talented.

Her fourth record, Once I Was An Eagle, demonstrates that Marling continues to evolve and strengthen the skills that have stood out since she released her debut record aged 18. Darker than her previous work and less easily classified as folk music, the album evokes the complexity and torment of Fiona Apple. There’s more polish on this record than Marling’s earlier discography, but without losing a sense of vulnerability. Although her lyrics and vocals are introspective and intimate, Marling makes sonic choices that are more outward-looking — from employing her guitar to recall an Indian sitar to incorporating a playful Gypsy melody.

Antenna to the Afterworld Who’s the musical mastermind behind Rihanna’s ‘Umbrella’, Beyonce’s ‘Single Ladies’ and Justin Bieber’s ‘Baby’? Answer: Terius Nash, also known as The-Dream. Though his name may not be as ubiquitous as the pop royalty he’s written for, The-Dream is a solo artist in his own right. The R&B musician’s prior four studio albums have garnered a select yet limited following, but his latest album IV Play aims to propel him into the limelight.

The-Dream hasn’t produced any songs of the chart-topping calibre he’s helped write for others, but he has crafted an enjoyable collection of slow jams with appearances from Big Sean, Jay-Z and Beyonce.

Recalling 90s R Kelly without being too anachronistic, IV Play fits in well with the neo-R&B wave that Drake, The Wknd and Frank Ocean have been riding.

As The-Dream sings on the album’s lead single, sometimes “you gotta slow it down.”

96 asialife Cambodia

Most little boys — and some little girls — go through an outer space phase. Maybe it comes from a thirst for adventure, an existential desire to know what is out there, or just a viewing of E.T. With Antenna to the Afterworld, Sonny Smith turns his outer space fixation into an entire concept album. Songs like ‘Path of Orbit’, ‘Earth Girl’ and ‘Green Blood’ play close to the theme, with references to aliens, cyborgs and spaceships.

Together with his band, The Sunsets, Smith combines retro garage pop with futuristic synthesizers and hints of post punk and psychedelia — a departure from their country music-inspired previous album. Smith comes from San Francisco, the planet of patchouli and the carefree, and the West Coast sound is a dominant influence on his work. Though the intergalactic references may be far out, song lyrics stick closely to the universal motif of love so that us earthlings can still relate.

topten

endorsed

Official 97.5 Love FM Phnom Penh Top Ten 1. 22 Taylor Swift 2. Just Give Me A Reason P!nk 3. Don’t Run Away David Archuleta 4. Mirrors Justin Timberlake 5. Come And Get It Selena Gomez 6. Fall Down Will I Am & Miley Cyrus 7. Can’t Hold Us Macklemore & Ryan Lewis 8. Janellé Monae Q.U.E.E.N. 9. I Love It Icona Pop 10. Something That We’re Not Demi Lovato

UK Top Ten 1. Blurred Lines 2. La La La 3. Let Her Go 4. Get Lucky 5. Dear Darlin’ 6. Wild 7. Everything Has Changed 8. I Will Survive 9. Lights On 10. Fuse ODG

Robin Thicke Naughty Boy Passenger Daft Punk Olly Murs Jessie J Taylor Swift feat Ed Sheeran Leah McFall Wiley Antenna

US Top Ten 1. Blurred Lines 2. Can’t Hold Us 3. Get Lucky 4. Mirrors 5. Cruise 6. Radioactive 7. Just Give Me A Reason 8. Come And Get It 9. The Way 10. I Love It

Robin Thicke Macklemore & Ryan Lewis Daft Punk Justin Timberlake Florida George Line Imagine Dragons P!nk Selina Gomez Ariana Grande Icona Pop

Freakonomics Lien Hoang It’s a book! It’s a blog!

It’s a podcast! In fact it’s Freakonomics, the strangely successful marriage of convenience between a journalist and economist who set out to explain mysteries you didn’t know to ask about.

The book, which gave birth to the Freakonomics empire, has a chapter tackling the drop in crime in the United States in the 1980s and onwards.

Authors Stephen Dubner and Steven Levitt posit that legalising abortion in 1973 meant that many unwanted babies weren’t born into poor neighbourhoods, where they would have been susceptible to crime.

In other media of varying forms, Dubner and Levitt have argued that parking is too cheap, that Christmas gifts are some of the most worthless things we can give, we create memories that never happened, and sumo wrestling is designed for cheating.

As you can see, Freakonomics is difficult to label, though it was initially described as a way to make economics fun and compelling to noneconomists. After the book took off, it expanded into a multi-platform project. I usually get my Freakonomics fix by listening to the podcast, but was introduced to it via the book and its sequel, Superfreakonomics.

The creators usually explain that their radio show and book explore “the hidden side of everything,” which gives them pretty free rein to dig into any topic they want.

Often it involves crunching data to make sense of it. A recent episode notes that tipping amounts to $40 billion in the United States, three-quarters of it in restaurants. The show throws in interesting tidbits, such as that gratuity has an astonishingly low correlation with service quality, so diners generally tip by rote or obligation.

Stephen (the journalist) runs the podcast and sometimes invites Steven (the economist) on to pick his brain. Sometimes Stephen goes it alone.

After the Boston bombings this year, he aired a 1999 interview he conducted with Ted Kaczynski (aka the Unabomber) to discuss the parallels between the pairs of brothers in each mass killing.

Freakonomics can be American-centric, but it brings up a lot of global issues. For example, Superfreakonomics includes a section on geo-engineered fixes to climate change, such as injecting sulfur dioxide into the stratosphere to cool the earth. One podcast episode tests out driverless cars, which, it must be said, can only help the nightmare of road accidents in Asia.

asialife Cambodia 97

bookshelf Crazy Rich Asians Kevin Kwan Doubleday

The Chinese nouveau riche of Singapore are the subject of Kevin Kwan’s biting novel. Rachel is an ABC — that is, American-born Chinese — who plans to summer with her boyfriend’s family in Singapore. Little does she know that he is heir to one of the biggest fortunes in Asia. Crazy Rich Asians depicts the lives of Asia’s very rich and sometimes famous, who travel by private jet, live in palatial homes and flash their wealth to the point of vulgarity. As Rachel gets to know Nick’s family and friends, she discovers a world of socialites, billionaires and backstabbers. Can her love for Nick overcome the obstacles, including resistance from his snobbish mother?

A Constellation of Vital Phenomena Anthony Marra Hogarth Set in war-torn Chechnya from 1994 to 2004, Anthony Marra’s debut novel explores the emotional collateral damage of long-term conflicts. Havaa is eight years old when her house is burned down and her father is taken away for a crime he didn’t commit. Her neighbour, Akhmed, takes her to an abandoned hospital in the nearby city of Volchansk and places her in the care of Sonja, an ethnic Russian doctor. Each of the characters is searching for something — a missing sister, redemption, revenge — as a fragile constellation connects them all together. With so much lost and so much to lose, the three struggle to survive amid the brutality of war.

98 asialife Cambodia

Bad Monkey Carl Hiaasen Alfred A Knopf Screwball situations and zany characters abound in Carl Hiaasen’s latest novel. The plot begins when a tourist fishes out a severed human arm off the coast of Florida. Rather than proceed with a murder mystery, Hiaasen uses the gruesome catch as the start of a chain of comedic events.

The limb is left in the care of Andrew Yancy, a former cop demoted to restaurant inspector, who is the story’s protagonist. That is, if you don’t count Driggs, the book’s eponymous bad monkey. After getting kicked off a movie set for lewd behaviour, the primate actor washes up on a Bahamian island and gets taken in by an alcoholic voodoo queen. Sound crazy? It is, but that’s just Hiaasen’s speciality.

Big Data

Viktor Mayer-Shönberger & Kenneth Cukier Dolan/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Big Data is watching. Those with Orwellian anxiety about surveillance will find their fears justified in Viktor MayerShönberger and Kenneth Cukier’s investigative work.

‘Big data’ refers to the vast flow of information about our lives that is being produced, collected and used to predict our habits. An example can be found in how Google uses search histories to sell targeted advertisements.

Or, as recently revealed, how the US National Security Agency mass gathers civilian phone records, emails and logins in its efforts to track terrorists. Though big data can be used to identify widespread trends and help find solutions to societal problems, it raises significant questions about what constitutes privacy in the modern age.

boxoffice

The Lone Ranger

R.I.P.D.

Turbo

Pacific Rim

Masked and riding a white horse, the Lone Ranger is an American symbol of the Old West. Walt Disney Pictures and Jerry Bruckheimer Films resurrect this iconic character — originally conceived for a 1930s radio show — in a new action-packed western adventure. Armie Hammer stars as John Reid, the former Texas Ranger who becomes a legend of justice, with Johnny Depp as his native American warrior sidekick, Tonto. The two heroes take the law into their own hands, fighting corruption, defending the innocent and seeking vengeance against those who have wronged them.

When police officer Nick Walker (Ryan Reynolds) is killed in action, he assumes he can retire behind the pearly gates. But being a cop is a job that goes beyond the grave.

When he’s selected to join the undead police force’s R.I.P.D. — that is, the Rest in Peace Department — Nick finds himself back on the job.

Together with veteran officer Roy Pulsipher (Jeff Bridges), Nick is tasked with hunting down bad spirits in order to protect the living. At the same time, he sets out to find the man who murdered him.

In the classic fable, it’s the tortoise that wins the race against the quick-moving hare.

But a garden snail succeeding in the Indy 500 sounds even more improbable. In this Dreamworks 3D animation, Turbo dreams of becoming a racing champion — not an easy goal for the world’s slowest animal. The snail community mocks his obsession with speed, until a freak accident gives Turbo race car DNA. With his new power of swiftness, Turbo sets out to make his dreams come true.

Featured voices include Ryan Reynolds, Paul Giamatti, Maya Rudolph and Snoop Dogg.

We always thought that an alien invasion would come from above, but what if it came from below? When giant monsters emerge from the Pacific Ocean, the fate of the planet Earth is in peril. Known as Kaiju, these alien life forms are intent on destroying human civilisation.

Massive pilot-controlled robots, called Jaegers, are created to protect humanity and wage war on the Kaiju. As all hope looks lost, it’s up to two unlikely heroes — paired together to drive a legendary Jaeger — to save the human race from its impending demise.

Coming Soon JULY Movie Releases Platinum Cineplex See platinumcineplex.com.kh for screening schedule.

White House Down Jul. 4 The Lone Ranger Jul. 11 Despicable Me 2 Jul. 11 R.I.P.D.

Jul. 18 Pacific Rim (3D) Jul. 18 Red 2

Jul. 25 The Conjuring Jul. 25 Turbo (3D) Jul. 25

Legend Cinema See legend-cinemas.com for screening schedule.

White House Down Jul. 4 The Lone Ranger (3D) Jul. 11 Despicable Me 2 (3D) Jul. 11 Pacific Rim (3D) Jul. 18 The Conjuring Jul. 25 Turbo (3D) Jul. 25 Monsters University (3D) Jun. 27

asialife Cambodia 99

pub quiz

spotted

Green

July

1. Which highly successful American football team is the only non-profit, communityowned major league professional sports team in the United States?

2. Billie Joe Armstrong is the lead vocalist in which band?

3. Who wrote The Quiet American, set in Vietnam?

4. Where in London is the Royal Observatory?

5. Who is the archenemy of Danger Mouse?

21. Which bilingual country’s birthday is on Jul. 1?

22. What name is given in English-speaking countries to the French National Day, celebrated on the 14th of July each year?

23. Which battle is commemorated each year by some of the population of Northern Ireland on Jul. 12?

24. Which Asian country, the smallest in both population and land area, celebrates its independence on Jul. 26?

25. Which country became an independent state on Jul. 9, 2011?

Celebrities on Steroids!

26

27

Hot 11. What term was given by European immigrants to the Khoikhoi people of Southwestern Africa?

12. What did the Mongolfier brothers fly in 1783?

13. Who was the lead singer of Hot Chocolate?

14. What is traditionally eaten on Good Friday?

15. Much of which capital’s heating comes from natural hot springs?

Haze 16. Who wrote the song ‘A Hazy Shade of Winter’?

17. Which successful singer starred in the 1980 film Breaking Glass?

18. Forest fires in which country caused the 1997 Southeast Asian Haze?

19. 12-year-old Dolores Haze is the main character in which Nabokov novel?

20. In which film did Colonel Nathan R. Jessup order the hazing of Private William Santiago at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base?

100 asialife Cambodia

Spotted by Charles Fox

5

1 1

9

8

3

4

4

7 6

7

28

3

6

2 6 2

7

5 8

29

6 8 30

1

9

5

pub quiz answers

6. What, by area, is the largest enclosed inland body of water on Earth?

7. What is the deepest lake in the world?

8. Popped In Souled Out was which band’s first album?

9. The Water Music premiered on Jul. 17 1717 after King George I requested a concert on the River Thames, who composed it?

10. How many players are there on a water polo team?

1. Green Bay Packers 2. Green Day 3. Graham Greene 4. Greenwich 5. Baron Silas Greenback 6. Caspian Sea 7. Lake Baikal 8. Wet Wet Wet 9. George Frideric Handel 10. Seven 11. Hottentots 12. Hot Air Balloon 13. Errol Brown 14. Hot Cross Buns 15. Reykjavik 16.

Paul Simon 17. Haze O’Connor 18. Indonesia 19. Lolita 20. A Few Good Men 21. Canada 22. Bastille Day 23. Battle of the Boyne 24.

Maldives 25. South Sudan 26. Dalai Lama 27. Quentin Tarantino 28.

Salvador Dali 29. Meryl Streep 30. Morgan Freeman

Wet

Spot something that tickles your fancy?

Take a picture, send it to hilary.fastier@outlook.com and it could appear here next month!