Editor's Note: Welcome to Joe’s Nook (anticipated title was Joe’s Corner - but Joe preferred writing in a nook as it seemed cozier). Marta and I are happy Joe is joining us for this leg of our travels. For those not familiar with Joe, he is our friend from medical school who will be training in anesthesia at OHSU starting in June. Joe, who just got his passport, is one of those people who can make friends with anyone at anytime. And he is giddy to join the Lewis family vacation, chat it up with the locals and experience the sights and sounds of SE Asia.
In the premier of Joe's Nook, Joe bargains with postcard dealers (5-8 year old kids scattered throughout the archeological sites) and reflects on our first few days in Siem Reap.
-Drew
And now Joe…
“Hello ser! Ser! You want cold drink?”
Hold on…My sweat laden bandana contradicts my head shaking decline.
::tug at my shorts:: “You buy postcards ten for one dollarrrr – one, two, three, four…”
“No thank you.” Must quit grinning like an idiot that will buy if she is persistent.
“You see, uno, dos, tres…”
“No thank you.” ::grin morphs into full smile::
“Un, deux, trois…”
French? Nice.
“Eins, swei, drei…”
Ok. Now I’m impressed.
“You see, ten for one dollarrrr.”
She’s not fooled...
In my section(s), I will try to give a flavor of Cambodia from the perspective of a novice international traveler. Traveling with the Lewis’ allows for a certain freedom of thought, since most of the normal travel stresses (where to go, when to go, how to get there, how much should it cost, etc) have already been processed and debated by the time I am even aware I should be stressed. Quite a nice way to travel indeed.
However, I must say, that while my travel-training wheels are much appreciated, Cambodia is very welcoming to even the greenest of green foreigners. Many/most locals speak some English, the town of Siem Reap is strikingly clean (including toilets), and everything is priced in US dollars (50 cent beers? Yes please.). Not to mention the Cambodian people are unrelenting in their friendliness and warmth towards tourists. One couple in particular, the proprietors of a nearby fish-pedicure establishment, will stand out in my memory. Their attempts to teach me the language are much appreciated.
::remembers symptoms of Japanese encephalitis and pauses to apply significant amount of deet to lower extremity::
In the spirit of the Nook, some brief observations:
-I always get either the male or older woman masseuse, for better or worse. We assume it’s a surface area thing.
-Number of times laughed at by Cambodians: Joe - 8, Drew - 1, Marta laughs at herself, so her results are skewed.
-Back waxing: while less expensive than in the US, same pain level.
-Common reasons for being laughed at by Cambodians: being exposed during massage, chest hair, back hair, shrieking during back waxing, trying to speak Cambodian after too many Angkor’s, trying to speak Cambodian sober, exposing Drew’s Caucasian-ness during foot massage.
-Spa treatment counts: Drew – 6, Marta – 5, Joe – 5
-Two old Caucasians males + one small Cambodian female = always creepy
-Number of times offered “special goods/services”: Joe – too many to count, Drew – 2, Marta – “How come I never get offered anything like that?”
-Best Marta quote so far: “I don’t really support buying animal fur, but I don’t really like crocodiles, so I’d buy a purse for sure!”
“Ser, ser! You come back you only buy from me. You say you buy!”
Better run for now. Did not realize I entered a contractual agreement. More to come.
Sam nang loho! (not spelled right, and probably not even phonetically right either…oh well, same same).
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