Food Trip Friday 01: Fried Cambodian Rice Cakes

I love food blogs and I’ve always been lurking on and following food meme blogs, though I never joined (I’m usually lazy.. lol!). I learned about FoodTripFriday from a friend’s blog – We Ate This! And I had been pondering about joining, I love to cook, we eat out more often than I want to, err whenever I’m lazy to cook, and I also love sampling unique and exotic cuisines..

So here it goes.. My very first FoodTripFriday entry..

Cambodian rice cakes are sticky rice wrapped in banana leaves then steamed. It also comes in several variants. They simplest one would have ripe and mashed bananas as fillings, some with monggo beans and pork, while this one comes with monggo beans, pork and mushrooms. These rice cakes are a main stay during Khmer special occasions and is also usually used as offering during Buddhist religious rites.

When you buy these rices cakes its already cooked and steamed and can be kept for a few days. You can then slice it, then eat it as is, but I prefer deep frying it for an extra crisp..Yummy and so filling. Trust me, two slices is enough to fill me up.

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Phnom Penh Riverfront Photos

Here in Phnom Penh one of the places to be is the riverfront. Officially known as Sisowath Quay, the riverfront is a great place to stroll, to join those ever popular mass tai chi and aerobics sessions, eat in the numerous cafes and restaurants lining the street, feed the pigeons in the park right in front of the Royal Palace, to shop for some souvenirs, and to simply sit and enjoy the river views.

As for us, we like driving around this place, getting ourselves a place to sit and people watch for an hour or two, just taking in the vibe of the place. It has been something like our favorite weekly ritual since we started living in Phnom Penh.  I always have a camera with me, a digital camera if I’m toting a handbag with me, or my phone with a camera if I just have my favorite wrist pouch with me. So since I’m compulsive about taking photos, I didn’t realize I’ve collected a good number of photos of Phnom Penh riverside. Let me just share..

The Royal Palace… taken before 7 am, the best time to take photos here I think..

Rows of Flags.. Chinks likes these. She gets to name which country a flag belongs to..

The other side of the road.. lined with hotels, cafes, restos..

Viewing deck…

Chinkee loves feeding the pigeons..

Newly revamped riverside park right before the port..

More on my PHOTOS page..

Koh Kong Trip, Part 2

Another long overdue post.. This is the sequel to my Koh Kong Trip, Part I, which I know I should have posted ages ago but due to combined reasons of laziness, procrastination, convenient memory gaps, on top of Facebook addiction, well, I am now months late in posting this update.

After that refreshing Koh Kong Tatai Waterfalls picnic and swimming, we all piled ourselves in the van and headed towards Koh Kong City. This was another scenic drive and in just thirty minutes we were in Koh Kong town proper. Hmm, a very typical Cambodian town, the only difference was that the roads were wider or maybe it was because it was 12 noon and no one wants to beat the heat of the sun and stay on the road..

Photo above is the riverfront and that long bridge going towards the Thai border – Had Lek. After a few minutes driving around and checking guesthouses, we settled on Bopha Koh Kong Hotel. Not exactly five star accommodations but the rooms were huge and comfy. We got a twin room with ensuite bathroom with hot shower, a TV with lots of channels though mostly Thai, a personal ref and AC. Not bad at all for $18 only per night. In Koh Kong, Thai Bahts are generally more acceptable than the US Dollars or Cambodian Riels.

It was already 1 pm and you can bet I was hungry already. Thankfully, our relatives were done with their quick showers and we all piled up on the van again to have lunch somewhere. We stopped in a small resto, no signs on it, but its right on the riverfront, with several vans parked in front. I was pretty apprehensive about eating on the shack-type restaurant but I went along as this seemed to be the choice of my sister-in-law. But wow! I shouldn’t have been that scared. Let me just put it this way, that must have been the tastiest Khmer  and Thai food I’ve ever had, and I’ve had plenty. To this day, I could still imagine savoring that spicy Tom Yum soup we had, and I’m not even exaggerating. It’s just too bad I wasn’t able to take photos and I was also shy about asking them to wait before sampling the food whilst I was taking pictures of it. They already think I’m plenty weird so I settled on not having photos of the food.

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Playing Dress Up..

It was a really boring afternoon last Saturday. We were planning to revive Chinkee’s pond in a pot. Last time it had lots of fishes already but somebody played with it while we were not around and all her fishes died. She has been asking to have it again, Hi-ace though is always busy to take care of it. We were planning to buy a small garden pond filter and some fishes but we got distracted walking around the malls. Before we knew it twas early evening already. We had early dinner in KFC, came back home then watched TV. We realized we still had time to kill before bedtime, so I decided to raid my closet to organize my clothes. All things I don’t use anymore I packed for donating. I love doing this, I almost always unearth something I’ve forgotten that I have.

I was digging, digging, sorting when I saw a gauzy black empire cut dress a friend gave me last year. I haven’t worn it coz its too short for me, I could wear it with leggings but I always thought I don’t look good on leggings (hehe with my fat legs and all..). But I kept this dress coz I like its stretchy bodice, I mean even if I get totally huge, I could still wear it..Lol! Anyway, my little fashionista and kikay daughter saw it and tried it on. I had to tie the back with a ribbon so it wouldn’t fall off. Haha! She was giggling and asked me to fix her hair, ‘Tie it up, please Mommim and take photos of me..”

Lol! We had loads of fun taking photos again. Hmm, this is something that I really like about living in Phnom Penh. Life is simple, at an unhurried pace so I get to enjoy and play silly games like this with Chinks.

So here she is..And no I didn’t tell her how to pose. She just posedand pouted by herself with me just snapping photos with my phone’s camera..

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Living in Phnom Penh: Just Let Me Ramble On..

Time for my regular rambling, pointless (haha!) updates..What had I been up to for the past few days? Nothing! Really, except for a few errands here and there, things had been pretty quiet for a change..

February just passed by like a breeze for me. I know it just has 28 days but it didn’t leave me with much impression. Also, though February is where Valentine’s Day falls on, we didn’t really do anything special. We all just spent the day together, me, Hi-ace and Chinks playing board games in the morning, afternoon attending Hi-ace’s school affair then a leisurely family dinner in a Thai restaurant. That’s it! I guess I’m long past appreciating flowers, chocolates and romantic dinners during Valentine’s day, uggh I even find it corny and I get annoyed at those romantic blah blahs being shoved in your face every time the 14th draws near. Happiness now for me, stems from those family bonding moments, times were just together without even doing anything special or being anywhere fancy. Funny, but I feel really content and happy at this point..

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Living in Phnom Penh: A Day Trip to Kirirom National Park

Last Sunday, Hi-ace got a call from his best friend inviting us to spend the day at Kirirom National Park. Chinkee was ecstatic coz she misses playing with Noel,their 2-year old son. So we set off for the 3 hour drive at around 8 am.

This is actually my second trip to Kirirom, though last time we went there it was raining hard, so no good photos and I also forgot to write about it. This time though the weather was awesome so I have plenty of photos. If you’re living in Phnom Penh, this is one of the places to escape to if the chaos of Phnom Penh gets a little unbearable.

Ok, so what’s with Kirirom? Its a National park located about 112 km from Phnom Penh, with a lush forest and pine trees. If you’re from the Philippines just imagine the place to be a little similar to Baguio or Tagaytay but with a lot less people around . It’s a very popular picnic area for Khmers as it allows them to escape the hustle and bustle plus the heat of Phnom Penh. Most Khmers go to several waterfalls near the area  and these usually have picnic huts you can rent. I noticed though that the streams were a little dried out so swimming is a little out of the question. Must be because its summer time.

Going there by public transpo is a bit hard I was told but its still possible. I saw some foreigners there too and they hired motorbikes to get there. The best way still is to have your own transportation. National Highway 4 (NH4) is pretty scenic but I was very much on my toes as there are lots of cars, taxis with kamikaze drivers. And not only that, there plenty of cows roaming around the highway so things are interesting. Once you turn towards the National Park, there are less cars, more greens…

We reached the place around 11 am, picked a picnic hut near the stream. Khmer picnic huts are usually elevated, with some nipa thatch for roofing, and mats for lounging around. Khmers love eating sitting lotus-style so its hard to find huts with tables in their picnic places.

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Affordable Spa Indulgence @ Bamboo Spa

Who doesn’t like experiencing a bit of pampering every now and then? I love massages and here in Asia its quite easy to indulge with lots of spas and salons in most major cities. It’s a tradition that has sprouted different kinds of salons as well as types of massages like Balinese, Thai, Shiatsu etc.. And it has been good to know that Phnom Penh also has it share of spa’s tourists, expats and locals frequent.

I’ve been looking for a spa here in Phnom Penh where I could regularly have my full-body massage as well as foot massages. True, there are lots of spas and massage parlors to choose from and I’ve tried out several in the area, but most of them are quite pricey and its a little hard to indulge when I keep thinking of the cost of each massage haha. I know every since I became a mom, I’ve been a little hard on myself and I tend to be really thrifty.

Anyway, a few weeks ago, I met a lovely Filipina friend and she invited us all to her newly opened spa. It’s called Bamboo Spa and its located at No. 21 St 228. It’s quite easy to find, its  very near Pasteur (St.51) along the same street as International SOS and three doors down from the Italian restaurant – Le Dou.

They have a good range of services and their full-body massage comes highly recommended. I love the small spa ambiance, the scents of the oils and of course, the super relaxing massage. And another thing to love is the price! Full body massages cost less than $10 for more than an hour of pampering. At that price, I could easily make it a weekly indulgence! Bamboo Spa – exactly what I’ve been looking for. Pampering at an unbeatable price..

It’s a must visit.. Check out the link to the map for the Bamboo Spa location. Will post photos soon. =) And you can email  Bamboo Spa at bambootree_house@yahoo.com or call 089-630791 and look for Elma.

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Living in Phnom Penh: Scatterbrained Days

I’ve been so absent minded these past few days. A lot of my work (blogging and website building) activities had been at rest for a few days already. Organizing my computer files had also been forgotten now I don’t exactly know where to resume hehe.

This is so not me! But a few days ago I had been planning our trips for the year, at least for the next six months. Hi-ace schedules are as usual very difficult to pin down. I’ve already booked tickets for our month-long Bicol, Phlippines vacation on July. I know its too early but I wanted to have the tickets already so I won’t have reason to back out. It’s just me and Chinks going because Hi-ace still have loads of classes that time as well as office work. His break will be on August 8 and our return date is on Aug 11..So, he really has no choice but to stay put.

He’s been acting morose, I know coz he loves going to the Philippines and he prefers shopping there plus I guess he just misses the place. He has already given me a long list of what he wants to be bought and I seriously think I won’t be doing much shopping for myself since he has quite a long list and I hate having too much baggage when I travel.

He’s constantly murmuring and asking me what is he going to do when were not around. I suggested going to the gym (he says no..), doing some gardening (he says maybe!), going on a short trip (he says maybe not, its boring without me and Chinks ), or maybe go play some sports (other than soccer he doesn’t play other sports) – tennis, swimming or maybe golf. But I could just imagine him swearing at the expense (he’s incredibly frugal unlike me haha!) and he’ll probably be using used golf balls just to be happy.

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Scenic Cambodian Countryside and a Visit to a Pagoda..

A few months back, Ma, my mother-in-law asked us if we wanted to go to a pagoda to get a monk’s blessings for the coming new year. Though, I am not Buddhist, I would usually come as a sign of respect and also so I could observe and learn closely their customs and traditions. After all, my husband is a Buddhist and its a big factor for both of us to understand each other’s religion.

Anyway, the trip promised to be scenic as the pagoda is located somewhere in Kampong Chhanang. The day started really early and at 6 am we were already on a tuk-tuk speeding towards Sisowath Quay near the riverside and going towards National Road No. 5. This was my first time to take a really long ride in a tuk-tuk. Ma and Hi-ace says its the best way to go, we get to enjoy the breeze and take in as much scenery as we want to. The price of the round trip ride on the tuk-tuk was unbelievably just $8!! I really am seriously in awe of Ma’s bargaining abilities.

So, it was me, Hi-ace, Chinks, our nieces Sokna and Cheng and Ma in the tuk-tuk.. The ride was really so enjoyable and I almost fell asleep being lulled by the wind and the not so bumpy ride. We had been traveling for about an hour when we turned left (lol! don’t ask me where..) towards a small market then onwards. The road became smaller and unpaved and both sides mostly lower with lots of water and some houses on stilts. We stopped for a bit to buy some lotus seeds (Ma and the nieces loves snacking on these..) and also some lotus flowers to offer in the pagoda.

The views were absolutely fantastic and so rural.. Then we reached a place with lots of cows being herded we turned right, then suddenly there was a bang! We had a flat tire and it was in the middle of nowhere, with nothing but the cows, ponds, lotus flowers and rice fields. The nice tuk-tuk driver told us to wait by the roadside and he’ll go look for a vulcanizing shop. So then, we proceeded to occupy ourselves by taking photos of ourselves and the stunning rural landscape.

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My Khmer Coffee Addiction

It’s a fact. I’m addicted to it. I can’t start a day without coffee and I usually have it a couple more times each day. When I first visited Phnom Penh last 2004, I was fretting and thinking that maybe I’ll be on a coffee-diet. Lol! I was really really wrong! I discovered that Cambodians are more than passionate about their morning cup. In fact, they have coffee anytime of the the day!

A few doors down my mother-in-laws house in Toul Tompoung area, there is a Khmer restaurant (corner resto St. 432 and 163) serving espressos and iced coffees at a fraction of the price of famous coffee houses. And the taste? Whew! One of the best brews I’ve ever had. Not only that, I was amazed to find out  that most of these local cafe’s roast their own local beans so you get freshly roasted coffee which, believe me has the best taste. Khmers prefer their beans roasted really black and adds a little fat or butter making the taste a lot richer. They would usually roast their beans every other day around 2-3 pm and just the aroma is heavenly!

So, though I still frequent nice cafes around Phnom Penh (I do enjoy their plush seats, free wifi, pastries..) but every so often you can find me sampling coffee from these small restaurants found all over Phnom Penh. These shops mostly speak very little English so come prepared and have this memorized (lol! I even have a small note always with me with Khmer translation of this just in case..)

• hot black coffee – caa-fei kh’mav (khdow -hot)
• coffee – caa-fei
• iced coffee – caa-fei teuk koh
• ice coffee milk – caa-fei teuk koh tuk duh koh

Khmer coffee is usually served hot – black or with milk / iced – black or with milk. There’s also a place inside Russian Market (Tuol Tompoung Market) serving what they claim to be the Best Iced Coffee in Phnom Penh. It does taste really good, and since there are a lot of tourists in the market they can speak English, so ordering a glass of iced coffee is a breeze.

It’s located right in the food hall, just look for the sign..

And to tempt those iced coffee lovers..

I’ve already shared this passion for Khmer coffee to some of my friends and also my sister. Ouwie is now also a certified Khmer coffee addict. Lol ! I can still remembered when she first tried it, she found it so good, she had too many glasses and found herself unable to sleep and was looking for natural sleep aids. So, though its tastes really good, just have it in moderation

Happy coffee drinking!

O’Russey Market, Phnom Penh

Phnom Penh has several large traditional markets selling all kinds of goodies and its advantage over supermarkets? you can also haggle to get a good bargain. As an expat, I’m more used to supermarkets and it took sometime for me to brave these traditional markets on my own. I first got hooked with the Russian Market (Tuol Tompoung Market), then I began exploring other big markets.

One of my all time favorite Phnom Penh Markets is the O’Russey Market. It’s a six-story building, market stalls are on the first three floors, and on the surrounding streets. O’Russey Markets is a well-known wholesale market for food ingredients, seafoods,textiles, and clothing. You can also find some gardening items, mechanical tools, and electronics. Toys and food stuff you usually see being retailed in small stores across Phnom Penh are usually bought from here in bulk.

Be forewarned, this market is huge, and the pathways in between stalls are very narrow so be prepared to squeeze your way in. I always make sure I’m in my best (Divisoria-Manila like) mood whenever I venture to this market. It also helps if you can take walks for extended periods of time as there are limited resting areas around the market so best prepare with your joint supplements, a bottle of water, and something to wipe the sweat off your face. And do be careful also with your valuables.

The first floor contains mostly food items, goods for reselling, electronics, gardening supplies. But what interests me the most about this market is the upper floors. The second/third floor houses wholesalers of books and other school materials, clothing, accessories. You can also find textiles, tailoring supplies, ready-made clothing, tailoring shops and some hair and nail salons.

The best part for me is the second-hand clothing/shoe/bags/home items. We Filipinos call this UK or ukay-ukay  and this is where you can find designer items @ bargain prices not to mention unique pieces. O’Russey’s Ukay-Ukay/Second Hand stores holds a lot of great finds. I found some cute bags and shoes here but what I really really love are the curtains I discovered here. Second-hand shopping can be a bit difficult and only for those who has the gumption to sort though all the piles, but its very rewarding too..Try it for once and you’ll get hooked and one place to start your ukay-ukay hunting is the O’Russey Market.

I found this really interesting video on YouTube featuring O’Russey Market and the surrounding streets. Video courtesy of MSA Production

O’Russey Market on Google Maps

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Kung Hei Fat Choi!

Just a quick post to wish everyone a Happy Chinese New Year!  Well, tomorrow its officially the start of the Year of the Tiger.

Kung Hei Fat Choi!

Things have been hectic for me the past few days, not to mention that I was again having an asthma attack. This is the 3rd time were celebrating the Lunar New Year here in Phnom Penh and there’s a lot for me to do. We had some major cleaning to do around the house (which we usually do before the Lunar New Year comes around) to sweep away the bad luck and the hardships of the previous year. Cleaning also means we welcome the new year on a clean start. So, you can assume my muscles are really tired at the moment, so blogging will be on hold for a day. =)

Aside from cleaning, there is that offering to do and almost never ending food preparations. Thankfully, my in-laws mostly does that for me, with just me occasionally slicing some veggies and tasting the finished product. We prepared a lot of food since yesterday, I’ve already lost count on how many dishes there was. All of it was fixed on a ceremonial altar, with cups filled with tea and rice wine, and loads of incense burning.

The we all feasted on the delicious food prepared. I sure ate a lot, I bet I’ll be badly in need of diet supplements again soon. After eating we gave the kids their ‘ang pow’ or their red envelopes with money. Chinks is of course grinning from ear to ear as she amassed a lot of ang pow.

I’m now beat and needing some rest. And oh! I just remembered it Valentine’s Day tomorrow! Whew.. I’m in a bit of a panic now I forgot about that.. Anyway, I wish everyone a great 2010. Good Health, Good Fortune and Harmonious Relationships for the whole year..

Khmer Language: Counting and Amounts the Cambodian Way..

I’ve been amiss writing posts about learning the Khmer language. Truth is, I haven’t progressed that much but I can now (though I’m hardly an expert yet) get a ride on a motodup, bargain in wet markets..

Khmer numbers

I’ve been trying hard to learn some basic Khmer so I could get around and I decided to share this to everyone. So learn with me Aside from the basic greetings and form of addresses (see my previous post – Basic Khmer Language for the Traveler) , I believe its a must for any expat living here in Cambodia to learn about the numbers, amounts and their counting system. Why?

• Majority of the streets in Phnom Penh are in numbers. So if you want to be more mobile or you want to easily learn your way around, then first learn the numbers. Check out Canby Publications map and you’ll get what I mean.
• Yes, there are plenty of supermarkets now where prices of goods are tagged in dollars and you don’t need to haggle but all markets and some restaurants quote their prices in Khmer. I’m sure you don’t want to miss the opportunity to haggle and score bargains.

** Note that these are just approximate ‘English’ translations so we can get the closest sounds to Khmer words. These are less than perfect so to improve pronunciation and to get ourselves easily understood, its best to listen well to Khmer native speakers and practice..

• 1  -   muuy
• 2  -   pii
• 3  -   bai
• 4  -   buhn
• 5  -   phrum
• 6  -   phrum muuy
• 7  -   phrum pii
• 8  -   phrum bai
• 9  -   phrum buhn
• 10 – dop
• 11 – dop muuy
• 15 – dop phrum
• 16 – dop phrum muuy
• 20 – m’pai
• 21 – mpai muuy
• 30 – saam-suhp
• 40 – sai-suhp
• 50 – haa-suhp
• 60 – hok-suhp
• 70 – jeut-suhp
• 80 – paet-suhp
• 90 – kau-suhp
• 100 – muuy roy (* hundreds use ‘roy‘)
• 101 – muuy roy muuy
• 200 – pii roy
• 1000 – muy puan (thousands use ‘puan‘)
• 1,000,000 – muuy lian (millions use ‘lian‘)

Tips:

• Cambodians count in increments of five. After you reach the number 5 (phrum), you just then add one to five (phrum muy for 6) and so on. When you reach 10 (dop) , the cycle begins again by adding one (dop muy for 11).
• You will also often encounter some Khmers who reverses the orders of the numbers especially for numbers between 10-20 and they usually insert dun between the numbers. Example, for 12 – instead of saying dop pii, they usually say pii dun dop.
• Khmers usually also use shortcuts like instead of saying ‘muuy roy‘ for 1,000 they would say ‘ma’puan‘..
• The trick is to listen well. If you simply don’t get it, you can ask them to speak slowly, say ‘Sohm, niyeay yeut yeut..’

Living in Phnom Penh: February 2010 1st Week

Hmm, time for my Living in Phnom Penh snippets. Hehe I realize that most of this blog’s readers (“what!!? you have readers??” – I guess Hi-ace is reading again from behind me! )aren’t really reading this but I like writing these kinds of posts the most so I’m trying to make these at least once per week..

One reason I like posting my life bits is that I get to look back and put things into perspective, whenever I write short snippets of how it is like living in Phnom Penh, I appreciate new things and experiences more. I also get my chance to gloat and tell myself, ah! so I’ve accomplished that this week! If you call shopping or gossiping with friends an accomplishment =). And the best reason I like posting snippets of our life here in Phnom Penh – it saves me a LOT on my phone bills. Combined with Facebook, well this blog sure saves me a lot. I simply ask my relatives back home to check out my blog for the latest and they get updated. Sometimes they leave messages on my shoutbox (and it sometimes gets weird..) or just send me their comments through Facebook.

Okay, before I get really carried away with the why’s and wherefore’s of this post.. Here’s what I’ve been busy with the past few days..

umm, i kinda like this cartoon..

Wednesday was fun day for me with new friends I found here in Phnom Penh. Josiet invited everyone to her place and cooked a super yummy lunch for us. Pinoy favorites chicken-pork adobo,  ensaladang talong, crab meat omelette, fish in chinese-style sauce, pancit bihon, and dessert was sticky rice with mangoes. Pure yumminess, thanks J! As usual there was never ending laughter and chika with Che, Zarah, Mel and I’m glad I met another two Phnom Penhers- Ate Elma and Janette. I’m looking forward to more bonding times with these fab ladies..

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Loner..

Recently, Ouwie and I have been doing walking exercises often walking several kilometers every two days. A few days ago we walked from our house in Boeung Tompoeun to St. 271 and stopped at Monivong Bridge near Phsar Chhar Ampoeu. From the bridge,  I was gazing down the quietly flowing waters of Tonle Bassac  river, I saw this and I just took a shot with my mobile phone camera.

I don’t know. For some reason, it made me feel lonely and so solitary. Like I’m in the middle of nowhere with nothing around me but just the vast expanse of water. Perhaps, it simply struck a cord with me since I’ve been feeling some homesickness lately..

Khmer Hammocks and Food

This happened a few weeks back.. It was a weekend and with Hi-ace having a day without anything scheduled, so he asked me where I want to go for the rest of the afternoon. That day, I didn’t want to eat in any fancy resto or even go malling, I simply wanted to have some wind and rest and I was thinking I wanted to eat grilled sweet corn.

Hi-ace then told me he’ll bring us over to one place that is uniquely Khmer. Hmm, that was enough to pique my interest. I know Khmers loves picnics so I was expecting somewhere in a park or a place with lots of mats, you sit down and order food..

After crossing the Japanese bridge, he drove on for more than 30 minutes and I was beginning to wonder where he was taking us. All I could see where fewer and fewer houses and big empty fields. Then we reached a place with houses built on top of stilts and towering over a huge pond filled with lotus plants..

I just love discovering out of the way places like this and when I saw these, I knew I was in for a treat.. Hi-ace told me this is where a lot of Khmers go for food and some R & R. So how’s the inside of those houses on stilts? Here..

You can choose which nook you want to stay in. There’s a mat and a low table in the middle and hammocks made of dried hyacinth. And I was so surprised that those hammocks was so comfy! It was no wonder I fell right into sleep after we had lunch. It’s hard to resist anyway, the food and breeze made me so sleepy..

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There’s a Mine!

Cambodia is the Land of Mines.. See I saw this sign in an internet shop here in Phnom Penh..

Lol! The ceiling was low and the sign was just a kind warning. I’ve now decided to be on the constant lookout for funny signs like this, uniquely Khmer!

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A Laid-Back Weekend..

I had a really good and fun weekend and thinking about it, living in Phnom Penh have mellowed me down a bit. Before in Manila, I used to be always out and about, rarely staying in the house, always stressed out about business, the traffic and the smog. That’s what I love about Phnom Penh now, life is at an unhurried pace, I get to have leisurely walks, coffee and gossip with Filipina friends, explore Phnom Penh’s bargain havens. In short, I’m more relaxed now, enjoying and appreciating things the way they should be enjoyed. But be forewarned, I’m in a story-telling mood, so this post is rather long..

Friday..

Met the Fabulous Pinay’s of Phnom Penh (haha! yeah I call them that..) Zarah, Josiet, and Che (blog ka na ulit, Che so I could link ) @ our now fave hangout Brown Cafe. After about 2 hours of girl talk, we all decided to have lunch at Khmer restaurant – Sugar Palm along St 240. Hmmm, food was bland and a bit pricey so I must say I have tasted better stuff. But then again, the company was great so I forgot about the not-so-good food.

After lunch, we went off to check boutiques along St. 240. Love this street, definitely a fashionista’s haven with elegant boutiques and Cambodian silk and product stores along the sides. Then, we checked Diva boutique along St. 57 , well a bit pricey but they do carry  a good selection of brands like Bebe, Guess etc, though they tend to stock on teeny weeny sizes.

After Diva, we all went different ways and Che invited me to meet her cutie daughter Isabelle. Their place is just a few meters walk so I happily agreed. Met the pretty doll-like Isabelle. I also got to hitch-hike home with Che’s nice help, Pheary who lives near my place. That must be my lucky day =).

After a few hours rest at home, my sister wanted to check out City Mall, Phnom Penh’s latest shopping heavyweight, right beside Olympic Stadium. We roamed around the mall, and seriously, I’ve been there a couple of times, but the layout still mystify’s me and I always manage to get lost several times each visit. We got so exhausted and ended up having dinner at Pizza World coz Chinks was demanding to eat spaghetti..

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Job Search Websites in Cambodia

Since my sister came last week and has been looking for a job here in Phnom Penh, I’d been familiar with job sites here that she has been constantly checking. Previously, I have also received emails from readers (lol! I have readers pala.. I thought only my relatives read this ) about which sites are best to use when searching for jobs here in Phnom Penh. I then came up with listing of which sites are currently being used for posting job opportunities. Surprisingly there are several sites offering this type of service which is a good thing for Cambodia.

There’s room for improvement though and I’ve noticed that most of these sites contain similar job postings, so best check all out and choose which sites has the functionality and interface you feel at ease at. Just click on the site name and it’ll link you up with the website..

• CamHr – good interface, easy navigation plus the categorization are a big help. Focused primarily on jobs and recruitment. Good listing and constantly updated.
• BongThom – popular classified ads site with job openings section. I like the wealth of information you can find here but I do wish they could improve how the site looks.
• KhmerWS – job listings, forums, chat. Clean interface though the listings available are not as extensive as the two sites mentioned above.
• EBMCambodia – well designed website, good navigation, easy to use. Good number of job listings plus ability to filter your job search. You can also find language training, career training as well as overseas study postings.
• PelPrek – good listing, clean and simple interface. Also features some downloadable resources for job seekers.
• CambodiaJobPage – more like an aggregator of several Cambodia job sites. Jobseekers can also post their resumes for potential employers to browse.

Other useful sites:

• CambodiaJobs –  a blog brimming with information about Cambodia job postings, scholarships, training, volunteer posts etc.
• JobsAbroad – excellent resource for teaching, internship, volunteer and job opportunities abroad.