Siem Reap

Siem Reap is a fascinating tourist town. It's one of those places which could be a great study for an urban anthropologist, or the like, with a microscope. The speed at which it's developing is incredible. The people are embracing tourism like there's no tomorrow. It's somewhere in between the fruit seller shacks and the minimarkets. Hotels are popping up everywhere, as are upmarket massage parlours. No fast-food or big brand shops yet, although Nokia and Google are words that feature in the daily vocabulary.

The locals all seem genuinely nice, friendly and helpful. Sure they want to be the tuk-tuk driver or the masseuse that gets paid, but they know when to pressure and when to stop. They also appear to respect eachother so that they don't undercut or steal trade away. This is a logical stable strategy, the reverse of which I'll encounter when I arrive in Phnom Penh.

The Cambodians are being introduced to Western civilisation at such a speed, I'm not sure whether they're embracing it with arms open, or with hesitancy. Either way, it looks like there's not much they can do to stop it.

Maybe I'm reading into it too much, but here's a great example of what I'm trying to express. The week before I arrived, the very first shopping mall opened. There was quite a buzz about it, and although the mall was hardly grand (a small supermarket and some stalls on the second floor), it was gaining attention. In the very first mall in Siem Reap stood the very first escalator. This was the centre of attention; it was simply extraordinary to watch people of all ages attempt to master it: getting on and getting off. Some were laughing, some scared, most riding round and round.

Like a downhill train without brakes, I only hope it's going in the right direction.

(By the way, that day we just chilled in Bar Street, with some delicious fruit smoothies and fruit salad, wrote some postcards - still not arrived?! - and read some books. No temples, just pure observation. Oh, and a fly stuck to my beer in a peculiar way.)