Thai Khmer Meets Cambodian Khmers

Cambodia. For almost two years now I've lived a hop, skip, and a jump away--just 50 short kilometers. I've read books and articles about Cambodia, about the ancient Khmer's & the Khmer Rouge, the sex trade, landmines, & NGO's in Cambodia. Obviously, I've had a certain fixation on the country for a while now. How could I not? But, it wasn't until recently that I experienced it for myself. And, how can I possibly express this experience accurately? Well, first of all, there was something eerily familiar about Cambodia. If you recall, I live in a Thai-Khmer village in Thailand. And, as part of my matured integration into the community, people sometimes introduce me as Heidi the farang who's not like regular farangs, she's practically the same as us, like an ethnically Khmer Thai person (hence, the tittle of this post). She even speaks Khmer fluently, they say with fervor. Which, is not true at all but, bless them for making me feel so included!! By the way, these are not people who migrated from Cambodia and settled in Thailand in even the last century but, rather people who were of ancient Khmer ancestry dating back to the 1200's when the Khmer empire stretched across present-day Thailand, Laos, parts of China & Burma.

Anyways, for some reason I always envisioned rural Cambodia being almost identical to my village here in Thailand--with (practically) the same language, customs, beliefs, & ethnic heritage. In actuality, what I ended up experiencing was a mixture of unexpected circumstances, familiar hospitality, a country of English speakers, tourism saturation, a past of atrocities and continued hardships yet, an aura of optimism. And, yes, there was something in people's faces and in the language that was familiar--though, not like I had first thought. Because I realized something. The people I live with in Thailand, even with their strong ties to ancient Khmer heritage, are Thai's nonetheless. Who, in many ways identify with being exclusively Thai. They haven't lived like the Khmer's nor have they experienced quite the same economical and political impacts. Though they may be rice farmers, shop owners, temple-goers, and smile with sincerity just the same, the mechanics of their lives are so very different. In addition, I have concluded that (which, doesn't mean it's right, it's just my opinion), that the worldview and day-to-day lives of Cambodians are so different given the history in just the past 100 years or so-- being a French protectorate for almost 90 years, dealing with civil war and the Khmer Rouge (in which over 3 million people were massacred in a 5 year period), living under the rule of the Vietnamese for 10 years, being the most heavily bombed country in the world until Afghanistan, and now trying to emerge in a global community.

As one of my friends put it who was trying to describe Cambodia to me before I went... "It's still lacking that sense of community, the typical village life structure, sense of belonging, career, and establishment that we've gotten used to in Thailand ". Which means the cities are copiously populated with people trying to make a living off of tourism and various odd jobs, the countryside is much more sparse and less vibrant than we see here in Thailand, and everywhere there are emerging communities in early stages of order, administration, and civic engagement . Not that this should be taken as good or bad--just an observation. Not to mention, there is quite a deal more NGO and International influence in the instances of the latter and makes it considerably different from the community organization I'm familiar with in Thailand.

After being in Cambodia for a couple days, I realized the naivety of my expectations and began to open my eyes to what was going on around me. Cambodia and it's people have so many unique qualities--and despite historical unpleasantries, there are a lot of positive things going on in Cambodia in ways that are different from the positive changes in Thailand. I guess the main familiarity ( I earlier referred to as eery, but now decided it was not so) came in the kindness of strangers, same wacky adventures (different landscape), service & refinement, and for me, the striking similarity between the Khmer language spoken in Cambodia and that spoken in my village. I had to sometimes remind myself I wasn't home in my village--but in a whole country of people who spoke nearly the same language as that of my village mates. Very weird and somehow comforting.

Some things noted throughout travels in Cambodia...

The US Dollar is commonly used in conjunction with the Cambodian Riel as currency.

 My friend, being in Siam Reap a few years ago, mentioned how different and bustling the city was compared to when he had visited last. So, I gathered that Cambodia seems to be rapidly changing. Even the road from the borde of Poi Pet to Siam Reap had been completely reconstructed.

Compared to Thailand, Cambodia is bursting with foreigner travelers throughout the country--we don't see so many foreigners at all (other than the older men married to Thai women) out where we live.

I still have an insatiable curiosity as to how Peace Corps Cambodian Volunteers live and experience Cambodia...

Practically every or every other person in Cambodia we came across spoke some or fluent English--I think I came across more English speakers there in 7 days than in the 2 years of being in rural Thailand...

Cambodia has so many products from the USA! We were (pleasantly surprised) to find some of our favorite US-made snacks.

Just like in Thailand, Khmer people are very friendly and welcoming. We met many genuinely nice and helpful people along the way.

Last year, the UN reported that 841 people in Cambodia were killed by land mines. Thousands of others remain with injuries and lost limbs.

Cambodia is very accommodating for tourists--eager to spread knowledge about the past and current circumstances and all the magnificent structures/ beauty beheld within it's borders.

There are rare freshwater Irrawaddy dophins still living in the Mekong River! In Kratie, where we spent the second half of our trip, we hired a boat on the Mekong to catch a glimpse of these amazing creatures.

Long, overcrowded bus rides feel pretty much the same no matter what country you are in.

We spent the majority of time in Siem Reap, the home of Angkor Wat (Dec 21-23) and Kratie, a small vintage colonial town on the Mekong River) which, was a central/norther route; mostly bypassing the capital, Phnom Penh.

Someday... I'll return.


More on Magnificent Angkor Wat in Siam Reap, Cambodia (pics are not of the best quality because I took them with my phone =)













The main street of Kratie, Cambodia


We did every possible tourist thing there was to do in Kratie--this is from the day we rented bikes and ventured out into the countryside and on to see the famed temple on the hill. I'm overlooking the Mekong.


In Thailand, the local villagers make replicas of these oxen carts to keep a history of the past but these carts are still very much a part of the present in Cambodia. I was pretty excited to see it in life-size form!




Out on our hired boat to sneak a peak at the dolphins



Stairs leading up to the temple on the hill--yes, we climbed them


Biking out on in countryside of Kratie, snack depleted and feeling hunger/thirsty pangs, we came across a lovely Khmer family (who actually pulled out a table and set up chairs in their non-restaurant shop for us to rest at). and relaxed to the tune of peanuts, friend yuccas & bananas washed down with ice cold water. I'm here with my new friend who appears to be their son...or neighbor.
This was one of those time I really attempted to speak Khmer but only got some basic info out.