a sunset graze by the river
my first sunset on the cambodian mekong
magical, no?
couldn't get rid of that red reflection...weird.
picture yourself in a boat on a river...
this mattress was one of my fellow passengers on the ferry to koh tong island. i wasn't as lucky to have a ride waiting for me on the other side.
the plank i walked (my bike over)
looking back at kratie
i rode my bike around the perimeter of the island just taking in (and taking pictures of) the pretty scenery and houses.
this was to be the first of many times i'd see these (and other party) signs. i didnt' understand it at first (which is partly why i took the photo, i guess), but now it seems perfectly normal to me that in every town there are party headquarters buildings, often more than one site for the same party. don't ask me what goes on inside, however.
everyone on the island was so friendly and said hello to me as i rode past. these kids were so fervent in their 'hello'ing i had to get off my bike and stay with them a while. they all took turns blowing the whistle that i have on the zipper of my backpack. which is how they earned their name: the whistleblowers.
whistleblowers with bubble-blowing girl getting serious
the aforementioned whistleblowing in action (also note the 'american style' shirt with what seemes like random lettering but what i suspect may have been intended to be 'abercrombie.' just a guess.)
she was the loudest!
whistle-blowing boy and bubble-blowing girl
talk to the hand! bubble-blowing girl had quite the attitude!
first i thought this was a pony, but i later found out all the horses here were this size. tiny, eh?
cows grazing the day away in the fields
this is behind the pagoda, so i believe it's the monks' residence.
ok, i admit it. i'm using my zoom to spy on monks. bad, bad.
hay hut!
*serious* hay hut...
water collectors. there was actually a woman standing behind here bathing.
the daddy of all hay huts!
you may have to zoom in to see this. left side banana bunch is painted gold, right side silver. hmmm...
puppies! (and their skinny mam)
This place is actually called La Belle guest house now, but they've kept these signs from their previous incarnation (along with metal dragonfly key chains for the room keys). Our DRAGONFLY INN warmly welcome to all honor guests, who have supported and stayed in our INN. For the purpose to assure your safety property, we would certainly expect that all of you would clearly know and well perform to all of these following Inn's internal regulations:' OK, now I'm only going to tell you my favorites: 4. Any sex's work activities and all types of gambling are forbidden in the INN. 5. Please not to cook, not to smoke cigarettes on the bed and please not to use the iron machine.
my first encounter with, yes, black panther beer. i actually tried it a few weeks later. it's black, yes. definitely not revolutionary. it's stout. and it's sweet. and it's gross. also, klang is super-cheap beer that i've actually only ever seen served at one or two places (and never tasted). the local joke is that 'klang' is what your head feels like in the morning...
i can't explain why (of course), but all plumbing tubing, pipes, etc in cambodia are this exact shade of blue.
soccer match with cow
This being my first full day in Cambodia it was also my first encounter with Pajama Girls—whom, consequentially, I did not yet think of as such. I thought it was a bit odd, but I remembered warm summer nights when my parents would allow us outside just as it was finally getting dark. Playing in front of the house in my nightgown is one of the small pleasures I remember from my childhood. And so I assumed something similar here. Little did I know that almost the entire female population of this country (and some of the male) considers it perfectly appropriate and normal to wear their pajamas outside the home—to the market, to school, in the streets, etc. Unfortunately, all I can offer is observation, not explanation.
bomb potato chips...
When I first saw these I immediately thought of the perfect slogan, ‘These potato chips are the bomb!’ Then I tasted them and found out not only were they pretty gross, they were not actually potato chips. They were square-edged tubular ziti-shaped potato-flake snacks flavored with salt, sugar and the requisite MSG. Do not, trust me, taken along with your friends to make anytime, everywhere fun and exciting party.
the one photo i stopped to take on the way to see the dolphins
another beautiful sunset. my consolation prize for bicycling an hour and a half to see the river dolphins and not seeing them. well, i saw the top of one for a few split seconds here and there. i took videos, to try and capture something, which i call the worlds most boring videos, since they are just several minutes of still river water. i did indeed capture one dolphin coming up for a second, but don't really think it's worth youtubing for.
the boat i didn't take to see the dolphins
sunset on the mekong is truly a lovely thing to behold.
Happy Night. This sign didn't really appear to belong to any actual place, but...a man in a tux courting a woman in a short skirt and go-go boots? yeah. irresistable photo op.
