We never expected to spend eight weeks in Phnom Penh, or for that matter, ten weeks in Cambodia, but COVID-19 gave us an opportunity. If we had to be “stuck” in a SE Asian country, we think we landed in a good spot, especially based on the more Draconian measures set forth in neighboring Thailand and Vietnam.

The Cambodian government, in fact, was quite fair with visa extensions and even provided free healthcare to any foreigner who needed it for COVID. People were very wary of the fact we were from the States though as most cases were coming from abroad. After asking where we’re from, several always wanted to know how long we had been in Cambodia and looked quite relieved when we say since late February (long before COVID-19 went rampant.)

In this post, we reflect on some of those simple pleasures from our life in Phnom Penh….walks along the Mekong, sushi delivered by race car, “happy” pizza, dozens of new fruits, temperature guns, meals for $1, and never being cold, to name a few…

Where we Lived: YK Art House

We went through three different accommodations in Phnom Penh, but by the last we were definitely ready for an upgrade for our shelter in place lair. We scored a full service boutique apartment for $600, (normally $1200) which is the same price of $20/night we had been paying for a much smaller studio. It was in a trendy “hipster” neighborhood of Phnom Penh, in walking distance of the Mekong, had tons of natural light, A/C, and lots of trees!! (In a chaotic traffic-choked SE Asian city, we needed these most of all!)

We also liked that facilities at YK Art House are owned by Seametrey Children’s Village – a Montessori-style school with a mission to support disadvantaged children. They also strive to support young artists through their residency program, so it was nice to pay rent to support good causes.

And the best part?! It had a pool. Which ended up being closed. For COVID. Oh….lovely. But at least we had a nice view of something besides crazy tuk tuks and electric wires!

It was bizarre having a fully serviced apartment. A housekeeper is just not something we’ve ever been accustomed to. She came over one day and brought her four-year-old son. He was so cute sitting quietly in a chair playing on a device while she changed our sheets and tidied up our place. He was understandably a bit shy with us foreigners, but his eyes lit up when we said the word Spider-Man. Cambodian kids are seriously the cutest.

Sightseeing & Exploring

Phnom Penh’s beautiful park in front of the Royal Palace, a complex of buildings which has served as the royal residence of the king of Cambodia since the 1860’s. Unfortunately it was closed since our arrival so we didn’t get the chance to check out the grounds.

Strolling along the Mekong river walk was a regular activity for us. The Mekong is the 12th longest river in the world and flows from high in the Tibetan Himalayas all the way to the South China Sea. We had planned to spend a lot more time on the Mekong in the forms of a river cruise and visiting the river dolphins, but alas, our views in Phnom Penh will hold us over for now.

Independence Monument was built in 1958 to memorialize Cambodia’s independence from France in 1953. It’s about a ten minute walk from where we stayed.

Two things we were always seeking out in Phnom Penh….walking areas and trees.

The National Museum of Cambodia

A collection of businesses and residences along the Mekong.

One of many Mekong riverboat cruises. All were docked due to COVID for most of our stay.

Wat Phnom, the Mountain Pagoda, was built in 1372 and is the tallest religious structure in Phnom Penh.

We love the contrasts that this city holds.

Grabbing lunch for $1 from a street food vendor served in a plastic bag with chopsticks. We don’t miss the lack of sidewalks, or the 46 degree (115F) feels like temperatures, accompanied with COVID masks.

The colors of our neighborhood. Flowering trees were abundant.

The trendy and hipster-ish Bassac Lane was very close to our flat. Unfortunately a lot of restaurants and bars did close temporarily during our time in PP so we never got the full experience.

We loved walking the side streets of our neighborhood (when we weren’t getting nearly run over by tuk tuks or scooters?)

You can’t walk far without seeing a stunning golden temple.

Sadly, this area has closed but it is the coolest idea, which we’ve seen used several times… a street food market that exclusively used shipping and cargo containers for its base building materials. So resourceful. We were sorry to see it had closed permanently.

It’s pretty common for public areas to have workout equipment for people to use. A toddler tests out the equipment in his birthday suit.

Phnom Penh also had some pretty magical sunsets.

We affectionately (and yes, a bit sarcastically) called this block Little America, thanks to its infiltration of our artery clogging food chains on all four corners.

One thing we find endearing about the Cambodians is it’s very common to find people (mostly women) walking around wearing cotton or silk pajamas as full-on daily-wear ensembles. You’ll often see teddy bear, Mickey Mouse, leopard print or floral patterns.

This was the first time, however, we saw any woman wearing house slippers….with bunnies…on a scooter.

There hasn’t been a country in our travels with such smiley people (sorry Thailand!). Despite all the uncertainty in the world, it was certainly hard not to look at the Cambodians and smile back. Of course, those smiles were often shielded by the masks. But it’s all about the crinkle in the eyes. The best part? When they give it, they seem to genuinely mean that eye crinkle.

Shopping

The always bustling bright yellow Central Market is in an art deco building from 1935 which is shaped in the form of a cross with a prominent central dome. Its four wings are jam-packed with gorgeous clothing, jewelry, accessories, food and, fruits.

Clams at the market, still alive.

More sea critters at the market.

Dragon fruits, lychees, rambutans and mangos. Oh my.

Fruit markets galore!

You can’t get into grocery stores here without sanitizing first and putting on a mask. If you don’t have your own mask, you can buy one for 1000 riels. (About $.25)

Aisles were mostly empty and everything seemed fully stocked. Grocery prices for packaged goods are only slightly cheaper than US prices, with the exception of dairy and speciality items like salsa or Mac & Cheese which are understandably more expensive. Produce, however, is incredibly cheap, so, we stocked up here and at every market we could get to.

The produce loot. The downfall is definitely too much plastic! ?

Itemized receipt for $40. And yes, it’s in English! Check out the produce prices.

The outside of Aeon mall which was a ten-minute walk from our place. When you arrived, all shoppers were required to have their temperatures taken with temperature guns, wear a mask, and sanitize. Where the hell are these easy-to-obtain and use temperature guns in the States? ?

The variety of food choices at the local mall food court was overwhelming.

Just a normal supermarket.

Clearly we weren’t hurting for choice. This was the sushi selection alone. For the record, there is no mirror in this display!

If you want a durian or green tea flavored chain donut, here’s your chance.

A Korean supermarket. Wonder how you say “they’re great!” in Korean?

One of the small markets on the Mekong.

If you know anything about oyster mushrooms, or mushrooms at all, this price is enough to make your eyes bug out of your head!

Eating & Drinking Out

Plopping on the ground, kicking off your shoes and enjoying dinner at the night markets. And, as always, interacting with the genuine and smiley people.

Thanks to the large number of expats, the craft brew scene was quite dynamic in PP. There was around six breweries which poured delightful pints for around $3-6, depending on happy hours. We got the fortunate chance of meeting several brewers, many of who are Americans.

It’s incredibly easy to start a business in Cambodia. So easy that you can get a business visa on arrival at the airport. We actually talked about opening our brewery here at one point, but although we love it, we’re in agreement that Cambodia isn’t where we want to live long term.

Speaking of beer, life moved towards the normal normal for us. Craft beer delivered by tuk tuk and a distillery tour. The brewery was owned by an American expat from Texas.

Another reason we miss Cambodia? Happy pizza!! So, you might be wondering? What makes it “happy?” One of the toppings you can request is…yes…cannabis! You can order one happy ($1) two happys ($2) or three happys ($3).

We tried the one and two options (see the picture for a closer peek!) and one was more than enough to make us feel pretty…happy. Plus, they include a free beer with your pizza, or you can order a whole pitcher for $2. No, we didn’t have trouble meeting our vices in PP ?

Although it was amazing to have so much delicious Khmer food, we were living in luxury to have so many food options. We went to this place a couple times to get our falafel fix.

We were so busy at the other pizza place, we never made it to this one!

Little coffee and tea stands on every corner. Almost all drinks were a $1.

We hadn’t had good Indian since…India! And while this lunch thali cost more than the local price of $1, it was still pretty damn delicious for $4.

Okinawa (Japan) had been on our list of places to go on this jaunt around the world, but we had to settle for the food. Trying out our first Okinawan food, we experimented with a whipped peanut tofu dish. It was drizzled with peanut sauce, looked like ice cream, and had the consistency of marshmallow cream, but far less processed! Really good. We also tried a new rice dish which wasn’t that delightful.

An ideal restaurant scenario for all your social distancing needs! Who needs sushi belt restaurants when you have Genki Sushi?! Here, there are no people involved. You simply order from a touch screen, your food arrives (in a rad race car) stops at your table, and you press the button to send it back to the kitchen.

More meals out…shrimp dumplings, kimchi, fresh spring rolls (since we didn’t get our fix in Vietnam!), and more noodles than we can count.

Eating in….

1. Papayas galore and open faced caprese sandwiches (a giant bag of basil was $.50 so this was a must!)
2. The beautiful deep orange egg yolks. Miss these so!
3. Miso soup
4. The Longan fruit…translates as “Mean” in the Khmer language, longan is another little, round, sweet tropical fruit. Longans have a somewhat drab, beige skin shading, however once peeled the flesh is clear white and sweet.

More beer and those delicious lime and chili-flavored peanuts you got with every beer you ordered.

Becoming Fruititarians

As mentioned, the produce selection in Cambodia simply made our hearts sing. So many choices, so many new flavors, so many vitamins, and so very inexpensive!

A fruit we frequently gorged on…the mangosteen…an exotic, tropical fruit with a slightly sweet and sour flavor. It’s originally from Southeast Asia but can be found in various tropical regions around the world. You only eat the a white fleshy bits.

Time to live on the edge with this menacing little guy! Although very tasty, the Chikoo, also known as sapodilla, is one of the world’s most dangerous fruits thanks to its thorny-lethal seeds, which can do great damage to the throat and intestinal track if not removed.

This plum-sized fruit is in the berry family and grows in large quantities in India, Pakistan, Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Bangladesh and Mexico. It has an exceptionally sweet, malty and figgy taste, complete with some granulars. Very worth the “risk” and $2/kilo! YUM!!!!

Our first sweetsop. We had only experienced a soursop in Central American countries before. This round or heart-shaped custard apple has a green scaly rind and a sweet pulp.

It’s very easy to eat, simply breaking it open with your hands, letting the green rind fall away, and dumping all the seeds in a bowl. The white fleshy bit is edible and the seeds are not, so you simply suck off the fruit and spit out the seeds. Like its name, it is sweet and juicy, and is loaded with vitamin A and anti-aging/moisturizing properties.

We’ve never really been fans of papaya. Until we tried the Cambodian variety. Omg.

Another pleasure that we devoured is the little furry Rambutan fruit monster! Apparently it cures ailments like dry lips and mouth, prevents anemia, reduces bad cholesterol, prevents cancer, cleans kidneys, is an immunity booster, lowers blood pressure and rejuvenates skin. And thankfully, here in Cambodia, this super fruit costs $1 or less a kilo!

We couldn’t leave Cambodia without honoring our favorite backpacker fruit of all time…the passion fruit! Passion fruits are a rich source of powerful antioxidants rich in vitamin C and A. This makes them powerful immune system boosters, as well as high in cancer-preventing properties. They are also very high in fiber – so great for digestion.

Introducing…our first pomelo! It was a wee bit tricky to get into!

Khmer Cooking Class: La Table Khmere

On our last day, we had a special last minute birthday treat for Greg…a private Khmer cooking class at La Table Khmere in Phnom Penh! ($40 for both of us.) We had been wanting to do a cooking class our whole journey so we had to pull the trigger.

Khmer cuisine shares many commonalities with the food of neighbouring Thailand—although, less chilli, sugar and coconut cream are used for flavour—and of neighboring Vietnam, with which it shares and adopts many common dishes, as well as a French colonial history. We made fish amok, the national dish, a mango salad, and a banana/coconut cream dessert. Angie, pictured, was a terrific teacher!

Our base ingredients included: lemongrass, basil, garlic, shallots, chili peppers, turmeric, ginger, coconut cream, sugar, salt, fish sauce, peanuts, shrimp paste, and palm sugar. So real and whole. Love it.

Fish amok filling is made from fresh market fish, and a coconut curry sauce made from the above ingredients. You have to grind the lemongrass into a paste using a mortar and pestle. It’s a lot of work, at least 45 minutes of preparation, especially considering they make each dish from scratch and sell for around $2.

Angie helps us cut banana leaves into circles which is how the amok is steamed.

Thanks to a few cleverly placed toothpicks, the amok goes into the steamer for 30 minutes.

In the meantime, we shaved green mangoes into strips, as well as carrots, and then topped with peanuts, basil, peppers and several of the above ingredients.

Dessert was made of tapioca pearl balls and strips, sugar and coconut cream which thickens up after being brought to a boil, and topped with bananas. Reasonably tasty!

Enjoying our feast!

Mandy got her first ink! She was planning to do it before we left SE Asia, and since this was the end of the road for now, Phnom Penh was the place to do it. No surprise she found an expat to do it at Phnom Penh Tattoo for a very decent price of $60.

Greg getting a $3 haircut

It was times like these when it felt really good to have friends nearby. We met Annabelle & Yi from Montreal back in Sri Lanka and couldn’t have been more happy to cross paths with them in Phnom Penh. We hadn’t met a couple we got on with this well in a long, long time and are so thankful they were there for part of the time.

We miss you Phnom Penh.