My siste, Ouwie arrived Wednesday evening from Manila. She’s planning on staying here for sometime, an extended vacation maybe and to also check out if she could work here.. Anyway, after she had a good night rest after arriving, we have all started orienting her to all things Khmer.

Living in Cambodia is quite easy and exciting too and now Ouwie is finding that out. We all consider it an everyday adventure just discovering things about Cambodia culture. So, Chinks have started teaching her some really basic Khmer language, like numbers, how to ask ‘how much’ etc..

We spent a good part of Thursday afternoon orienting her to the traffic and some landmarks around Phnom Penh. We went first to Tuol Tompoung Market to shop for some silk scarves and slippers then we walked around the Royal Palace, and on her request near the Royal University of Fine Arts and we ended the walk in the park Sothearos St. around 6pm. Then we all decided to get some coffee, and instead of going to the nearest designer cafe, we opted to try out the Cambodian coffee at a coffee and burger place near the park. It took us a couple of minutes to give our orders to the waiter (my Khmer is really rusty..) but we managed to order a steaming cup of hot and brewed coffee for her and iced coffee milk for me. The verdict, yummy and cheap too! She says better than Starbucks espresso! We only spent about 6000 Riels or about $1.5.. I agree…

For dinner last Thursday we had her try the Cambodian roasted chicken found on the streets.. Goes for about 15,000 Riels, about $3 for the whole chicken, plus slices of cucumber and mint, and two kinds of sauce (sweet-sour-spicy and the salt-pepper mix).  This was really so good we ended up finishing a whole pot of rice hehe. Bad bad for those on the diet!

Friday morning we had to rush out for her interview with some company and afternoon we all had her try out Cambodia’s own ‘Subway’ sandwiches. And yeah she found it really really good, plus with the price of 3000-4000 Riels ($1) for the whole loaf filled with butter, mint, onion leaves, mixed sardines and pork sauce, and two kinds of pate filling in a crunchy French loaf, who wouldn’t fall for it?

She ended up liking it so much that yesterday afternoon, she bugged me to go walk to the market to buy some again.. So now I told her if you see a cart similar to this..

then she could have her fill. Last night we tried out (again.. the one on the streets..) ‘Mee Chaa’ or the fried noodles.. We went to Orussey Market around 8 pm and ate our fill of yummy fried noodles. Wow!  The whole plate just cost about 4000 Riels ($1) – all yellow noodles, with green veggies (they call it ‘katna’), lots of soft and chewy beef and topped with sauce and best eaten with chili sauce! Seriously, we could barely breathe with our tummies so full..

She has yet to the Khmer fruit smoothie – the ‘teuk kralok chek’. Maybe this afternoon. She says if this keeps going on she’ll be needing weight loss diet pills in no time. That’s not to say she’s complaining coz now were scheduled to have a hearty lunch again in my mother-in-law’s house. Yahooo! Home cooked Cambodian food again. =)

Let’s see, I’ve been living in Phnom Penh already for more than a year and one of the things I miss in Manila  are doughnuts! I miss Krispy Kreme’s and local Filipino fave GoNuts Donuts! On the upside not having those yummy and sinful treats here in Phnom Penh means a big help to someone always on the diet like me, and I get to stop frantically thinking about fat burners and doing an hour-long treadmill run whenever I overindulge.

When we arrived here last year, whenever I have cravings for doughnuts I’d usually get some from USA Donuts right beside PUC but I dunno what happened coz a few months back I stopped seeing their stores so I just contented myself with those delicious pastries from Java Cafe or The Shop.

But a few weeks ago, Hi-ace came home with a box of cute little doughnuts from Neo Donuts. Their store is right along Mao Tse Toung Blvd. beside the Neo Suki Soup. This is a franchise of the Thai chain, I think. Anyway, though its nowhere near as delish as Krispy Kreme’s but its a good enough substitute for those wanting to have their sweet tooth indulged.

A box (24 pcs) of mini-doughnuts costs about $5 and the regular sized ones goes for about $.50-$.90 cents depending on the flavor.

A couple of days ago, we went to CityMall to do some Christmas shopping. It was really crowded coz there was this concert about to start at the Olympic Stadium which is right next to the mall. I guess those who were waiting for the concert to start figured its much better to wait out in the air-conditioned comforts of the mall.

We were done shopping around 7pm and the restos inside the mall were all jampacked. Both Hi-ace and me doesn’t like eating in crowded places and we were also craving for some Thai food that night. We found ourselves cruising around Tuol Tompoung Area for a new place to try and we first decided on going to Tonle Bassac, eat-all-you can Khmer/Thai food but it was full of dining Korean tourists and was too noisy. Then we saw this little restaurant right across Tonle Bassac along St. 163 right at the back of the gas station.

It’s smallish, with just a couple of tables downstairs and had a sign Khmer-Thai Restaurant. We’re both lovers of Khmer and Thai food so we decided to give this one a try..

We were in for a surprise! Though the place is small when you get in, they have a very spacious 2nd floor dining area, where you get to lounge around on cushy cushions and dine in leisure. Good ambiance, decor not too overboard like Khmer Surin..(Sorry photos are kinda blurry.. I just took them with a phone camera..) Chinks loved the cushions so much she kept bugging me to buy one like it the next day. She says it’ll be great while she’s watching cartoons..

They have a good menu, mostly Khmer and Thai favorites. We settled on Mixed Seafoods Salad, Morning Glory in Oyster Sauce,Fish Amok (we usually try out Amok in Khmer restos..), and Pad Thai. The verdict? I love the Mixed Seafoods Salad! I can’t seem to get enough of it. The Morning Glory in Oyster Sauce was good too as well as the Pad Thai Noodles. The Fish Amok, not the best but it was okay.

Mixed Seafoods Salad

Morning Glory aka Kangkong in Oyster Sauce

Pad Thai Noodles

Their version of Cambodian delicacy - Fish Amok

Another thing I liked about the place is that you can eat as much rice as you can and pay only $.25/person. Haha, obviously I eat a lot of rice.  They also have free pandan tea which is great coz you’ll surely be drinking lots of it to chase off the spicy flavors.

All in all it was a great dining experience for us. The prices are good, mains costs about $3-$8, and there’s a lot of space to sit, relax and enjoy the meal. And though there were other diners there, it was quiet and the seats arranged in a way that you still get your space and privacy.

Suffice it to say, well be back there again. I’ve already made a promise to try out all their salads =)

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Most mornings I am alone in the house. Chinkee goes to school, comes back around 11:30 and Hi-ace has office and some classes and comes home about 12 noon. I love mornings since this is like my ‘alone time’, best sched for me to update my blogs and work online.

Since I’m always alone, Hi-ace always tells me to be alert and keep the gate locked and lookout for some undesirables. So far, nothing bad has ever happened yet and hopefully nothing does in the future. I also have two phones around me in case I need to contact Hi-ace or his family well in cases of emergency.

This morning, I was doing my usual routine, after checking and replying to emails, I was also thinking up an article about dental implants Mexico, when all of a sudden there was this loud ‘plok!!’ sound coming from outside. Since all was quiet, I was a bit freaked out, but I checked outside to see if there was anybody there. No one was there so I ventured to the yard..

Well, it was just a big and ripe mango! Hehe I picked it up and peeled it and voila!

Yummy Cambodian mango..

And I guess there’s more to come..

Mango Fruits..

and this one I’m watching out for.. It should be falling down anytime soon =)

Unripe Cambodian Mango

Cambodian mango varieties are really plenty, this one’s really fleshy, have nice color and really sweet.. We have 3 kinds planted on the frontyard, the other one has huge fruits, crunchy and best eaten while its unripe with salt, sugar and chili dip or shredded and used as salad with onions, fish sauce and some chili. The other one has small fruits, the flesh almost orange and super sweet..

This is usually our dilemma. As much as possible we want to have a short reprieve from the dust and chaos here in Phnom Penh, but most weekends we don’t have much time to travel really far. So places just around Phnom Penh and adjacent provinces are really what we constantly look for.

One of our favorite weekend getaway place is Sour Soben in Tiger Road, Kandal Province. It’s about 30-40 minutes drive from Phnom Penh. Sour Soben has two huge ponds, landscaped and surrounded by floating huts and they serve delicious and affordable Khmer food. They also have lots of peacocks, swans and other birds plus for only $5 per hour (includes the fishing line, baits etc) you can also try your hand at fishing. They also have a free playground for kids.

I love the whole atmosphere of the place. You get to relax and feel the breeze.. No wonder this place is popular with Khmers so best head over there around 10-11 am to get your pick of a well-located cottage. Of course, in true Cambodian style, the huts just come with mats, as they prefer having picnics and sitting in lotus style. You can also bring a hammock, tie it in the huts and get some beauty sleep.

Khmer food served here is good and I particularly like their grilled fish, papaya salad, roast chicken and the shrimp served with coconut milk. Prices range from $3-$6 for the mains. Let’s say for 3 persons, $20 is more than enough..

I can’t describe the place more in words so I’ll let this photos tell the story..

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Sour Soben, Kandal Province Cambodia

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more huts..

I love Khmer food and I’m really adventurous when it comes to trying out street foods.  Comes from being Asian I think and besides in the Philippines these stuff are part of our daily lives. I must say I miss eating street foods from home and to remedy that I’ve been so game trying out what’s in the streets of Phnom Penh. Except for those fried exotic insects, I had been having a blast tasting different kinds of Cambodian street foods.

I’ve been curious whenever I see those roving eateries that set up late afternoon on the sidewalks with small chairs and lots of young people as patrons. Most of them eating nom pang pate, some serve fruit shakes, but what I was interested in were the fried finger foods. Reminds me so much of Pinoy favorites – fishballs/squidballs/kwek-kwek (quail eggs coated in flour and deep fried)/calamares (squid rings dipped in flour and deep fried).

The Cambodian version has lots of varieties. Hotdogs, beef balls, meat balls, sausages, veggies wrapped in fish wrappers, spicy ham and a lot more. I observed that Khmers like eating in balance. Each serving doesn’t just include several choices of sauce but it all comes with lots of herbs and cucumber. I love experimenting with the sauces and after trying them all I’m getting kind of confused about which one I prefer. The herbs balances the salty taste and the cucumber adds an extra crunch to it.

The variety of food and its unique Khmer taste makes one’s diet easy to forget. It’s easy to have food binge here and everytime that happens to me I contemplate taking diet pills to offset the extra calories. Not good though..Anyway, if you’re into street food and wanna try out what Khmers eat along the streets, this is a must try. And oh, it tastes great with chilled tea.