"Smiles amidst the heartache" a Cambodia Travel Page by mad4travel

Most peoples reaction when I told them I was going to Cambodia was - eurgh, why do you want to go THERE!

Sure, its had a bit of a bad time recently, but thats all the more reason to go. Its now pretty safe to travel. The seething hoardes and McDonalds have yet to move in and you can experience a world quite different to your own.

So people, I went and I was not dissapointed. There is no getting away from the tough time they have had over the last 30 years. Everyone has their own tale of loved ones taken away by the Pol Pot regime or the civil war. The insfrastructure of the place is still quite basic eg lack of tarmaced roads.

However, there are comfortable places to stay, the food is pretty good, the toilets, well , you do have to keep an open mind sometimes! and the people are great.

The country needs tourist income to boost the economy. I just hope they are sensible about it and don't end up with Marriotland everywhere.

One of the nicest thing about Cambodia is the people. At first they seemed a bit more reserved than the Vietnamese but they still warm up pretty quickly.

Many can speak some English and are keen to practise it, all are unfailingly helpful if you take an interest in what they are doing.

There is a bit of manana if you want to get anything done urgently (this includes hotel laundry!) but provided you don't shout and are polite you can usually chivvy things along)

There are a lot of terrible sights of landmine victims with lost limbs and being blinded. Phnom Penh has more than its fair share of these poor people begging.

You can donate money via the web to the Cambodia trust who specialise in rehabilitation and Prosthetic limbs at http://www.cambodiatrust.com

It's amazing to think that all culture was outlawed by the Pol Pot regime. Music, dancing, books and TV were all banned.

Although this dance evening was laid on for the tourists, it was still enjoyable.

Judging from my experience in both Vietnam and Cambodia the locals favourite pastimes seem to be watching Soap Operas and Kung Fu films!

Another interesting pass time is to get a massage. They are screamingly cheap (about $5 for an hour). It is a Thai style massage where they really pull you about and walk all over you. It hurts like hell at the time but you feel great afterwards and you have a chance to talk to the masseurs while they are killing you!