Mellow Yellow Monday | Inside Cambodia

APAD 024: Dengue mozzie

Posted by The Insider on Oct 22, 2012 in A Photo a Day, Addicted to Meme, All things Khmer, Cambodia life, Cycle 2, What's On in Cambodia | 3 comments

I think I may have taken a photo of the deadly dengue mosquito, aka, Aedes aegypti. What do you think?

Something yellow is reflected on the can.

I believe it is so! The tell-tale sign is there – the prominent black and white strips on the legs and body! As it was glued to the yellow can of condensed milk, I had no trouble exterminating it with a piece of cloth. To prevent the spread of dengue this monsoon season, it is advised that everyone clean their homes, dispose of their garbage properly, make sure nothing in your house or yard holds water (keep everything dry). Use an effective disinfectant, if necessary. I also looked at available mosquito net (can’t go wrong with this) and spray repellents and I found a lot, some are safe for kids, too. There’s also this cool mosquito repellant that you wear outdoors. Cool bracelet, eh?

According to this online news, there are 34,483 reported dengue fever cases, 146 children killed in 9 months (Jan-Sept 2012); a scary 147% increase in the number of reported deaths compared to 59 last year in the same period. For the complete story, please click the link of my source. Please take all the necessary precautions to avoid getting ill with dengue.

APAD 018: Sports jerseys

Posted by The Insider on Oct 8, 2012 in A Photo a Day, Addicted to Meme, All things Khmer, Cycle 2, sights, That's My World, What's On in Cambodia | 6 comments

These jackets are selling like hotcakes. A lot of young local Cambodians snap these jackets. They’re not secondhand items, they overruns from the factories just next door this shop. For $9 I’m not a taker. It is still too much, in my opinion.

They’re factory overruns, not secondhand stuff.

Would you buy one yourself?
If the seller agreed to $4, I would’ve got one for myself. I’d choose the Spain jacket, of course. I’m an avid fan of Rafael Nadal, the tennis player 🙂

APAD 013: Preparing for Pchum Ben

Posted by The Insider on Oct 1, 2012 in A Photo a Day, All things Khmer, Cambodia life, sights, That's My World, What's On in Cambodia | 2 comments

It is Pchum Ben once again Cambodia. It’s the time of the year when chaotic Phnom Penh empties out as most residents go back to their homelands to celebrate this religious celebration.

Pchum Ben is the festival for commemorating the spirits of the dead. The faithful Buddhists go to different wats (temples) in their hometowns to offer prayer and food to their ancestors. It is somewhat similar to the Catholic’s celebration of All Soul’s Day, but the celebration of Pchum Ben lasts longer, for 15 days.

Anyway, since Pchum Ben is two weeks away, there are now activities at the wats. Achars (layman) and elder women start decorating the wats, putting up banners and such, like what you see in this picture:

The statues have been scrubbed washed and are now immaculately clean.

Did you know that the Cambodian Catholic community celebrate All Soul’s Day during the Pchum Ben? Traditionally, the Catholics celebrate All Soul’s Day every 2nd of November but here the date was “adjusted” to coincide with the country’s traditional holding of Pchum Ben.