My sister arrived from the Philippines last week for a whirl-wind visit of Cambodia. She was with a friend and for one week they went temple-hopping in Siem Reap and shopping in Phnom Penh. Hah, that’s a very simplistic way of describing their trip. I haven’t seen her for the longest time and I was happy to have hosted her here in the city. She also brought a care package from my parents (thank you) and the new toys I bought online (brush pens and some music stuff!). The toys were sent to her via the store’s Free Shipping promo.
Anyways, so as the host I took her and her friend around the city’s main sights as well as popular markets. I wanted them to see a bit of culture and tradition so we popped in to Wat Ounalom temple which is just a walking distance from their hotel. Luckily, the whole kingdom is observing the Pchum Ben festival so the wats are alive and festively decorated, with smoke from the lit incense sticks wafting in the air. We spent a bit of time observing this unique Khmer tradition – watching faithful locals in their Sunday best (usually white) bring food to offer to the monks, give alms and say prayers for their ancestors. Of course, we took pictures, too.
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