PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA: REALITY CHECKS (continued…)
February
2009
Reality Check No. 3: Taking a Bath in the Public Garden
The Cambodian National Museum is located near the Cambodian Royal Palace and houses items from temples across Cambodia. Padma and I enjoyed sitting on the veranda of the National Museum that over-looked the park. For some reason, I felt like I was in Ilocos looking out from one of the old buildings in the plaza.
As we were leaving the National Museum complex, I noticed that there were well-manicured gardens doted with statues. I was about to tell Padma that the place reminded me of Luneta when, all of a sudden, I saw sarong clad men and children taking a bath in the very public garden!!! I had to blink a couple of times to make sure I was not seeing things. While I was surprised to be confronted with this reality, I was also quite envious of those people who had no qualms about doing what they wanted to do. They looked so free, uninhibited, innocent and happy.
This entry was posted on Sunday, February 8th, 2009 at 12:08 am and is filed under 'Pinions, Phnom Penh, Cambodia. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
February 9th, 2009 at 11:41 am
You should have joined the bathing men and kids and experience first hand how it is to be, as you put it, “uninhibited, innocent and happy”.
February 9th, 2009 at 11:54 am
That’s why I envy them. I could never see myself doing it. But, maybe you would. I dare you to do it Monk! I’ll even give you a prize. To the extent that it does not offend prurient interests, I’ll give you free coverage (or rather, exposure) on my blog. While this will not guarantee that you will experience what it is like to be “free, uninhibited and happy”, I guarantee that you will be famous. I’ll let out friends in on it.
February 9th, 2009 at 7:11 pm
Thanks but I think I’ll pass on this very tempting offer.