Let’s Visit Asia

Phnom Penh Today

by Ruth on February 19th, 2007

Phnom Pehn, Cambodia finds its way to the International Herald Tribune’s travel section recently, with author Stuart Emmrich describing the city as full of contrasts, a mix of old and new, traditional yet nearly
cosmopolitan.

At this moment, Phnom Penh, the Cambodian capital, seems frozen in time, as the scene in front of you plays out much the way it must have 70 or 80 years ago, when Cambodia was part of French-controlled Indochina and the city was known as the Pearl of Asia. But then you notice the bank of ATMs in the nearby storefronts, the Internet cafés crammed with fashionably dressed teenagers checking their e- mail, the sleek air-conditioned bars with names like Metro and Heart of Darkness. And all around you, you hear the polyglot of languages — English, French, Korean, Spanish, Chinese — that are a testament to this city’s reappearance on the global tourism map.

In fact, after a few days , you notice that Phnom Penh has something of a “next Prague” vibe about it — a place where many young people from around the world, heady with excitement and the thrill of the unknown, are coming to reinvent themselves. At least that is what it feels like as you run into groups of Americans hanging out in one of the cramped nightclubs along Sisowath Quay, or vie with Australian expatriates for a table during the crowded two-for-one happy hour at the Elephant Bar in the Raffles Hotel, or scan page after newspaper page of job listings in the English-language Cambodia Daily.

Curiosity awakened? Have a look at this Phnom Pehn travel guide for ideas on where to stay, where to eat, what to do and when to go.

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POSTED IN: Asian Adventure/Trekking, Asian City Tours