Cambodia

INTERESTING FACTS*

• located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia

• Its total landmass is 181,035 square kilometres, bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the northeast, Vietnam to the east, and the Gulf of Thailand to the southwest.

TRIVIA *

Cambodia has been changing its name whenever a new government was installed. Khmer Republic - republican years Democratic Kampuchea - Khmer Rouge regime People’s Republic of Kampuchea - Salvation Front Today it is called the Kingdom of Cambodia.

DID YOU KNOW? *

The Cambodian flag is the only national flag that has an image of a building –the

Angkor Wat.

Cambodia’s motto is “Nation, Religion, King”.

HOW DO I GO

TO

CAMBODIA

Plane From Laos Laos Aviation and Vietnam Airlines operate daily flights from Vientiane to Phnom Penh with stops in Siem Reap on Tuesday and Fridays; sometimes there is also unscheduled stop in Pakxe. FROM THAILAND

• Taking around an hour

• Thai Airways, Bangkok Airways and Siem Reap Airways

• There’s higher frequency of flights in the months of December to February

FROM VIETNAM

• From Ho Chi Minh City

• Vietnam Airlines and Royal Phnom Penh Airways

FROM LAOS

• Laos Aviation and Vietnam Airlines operate daily flights from Vientiane to Phnom Penh with stops in Siem Reap on Tuesday and Fridays; sometimes there is also unscheduled stop in Pakxe.

FROM PHILIPPINES

• No direct flights from Manila to Cambodia

Tourist destinations

ANGKOR WAT

• Angkor Wat was first a Hindu, then subsequently, a Buddhist temple complex in Cambodia

• largest religious monument in the world

• built by the Khmer King Suryavarman II in the early 12th century in Yasodharapura as his state temple and eventual mausoleum

• declared a world heritage site by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in 1992

Bokor fill station

• built by the French in the 1920s

• used as a retreat from the heat of Phnom Penh

• abandoned twice (1940’s and 1970’s)

• have an eerie, ghost-town feel

• there are hiking tours arranged by local travel agents.

Silver pagoda

• Located within the Royal Palace compound in Phnom Penh

• houses many national treasures such as gold and jeweled Buddha statues

• decorated with a richly colored and detailed mural of the Ramayana myth, painted in 1903–04 by 40 Khmer artists.

Preah vihear

• Khmer temple situated atop a 525 meter (1,722 ft) cliff in the Dângrêk Mountains, on the border between Cambodia and Thailand

• constructed in the 11th and 12th century during the reigns of the Khmer kings Suryavarman I and Suryavarman II.

• dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva.

Khmer new year (BON CHAUL CHHAM)

• 14-16 April

• One of the most celebrated festivals in Cambodia

• Marks the end of the harvest season

• Cambodians clean and decorate their houses, make offerings at the local temple and throw water at each other as a form of blessing

WATER FESTIVAL (BON OM

TOUK)

• Mid November - three days

• celebrated with three days of boat races, fairs, festivals, shows, parades, fireworks, music and dancing.

Bon Pchum Ben

• September-October - 15 days

• dedicated to the ancestors and blessing the spirits of the dead

• one of the most culturally significant events in Cambodia

• Also called Khmer cuisine

• One of the world’s oldest living cuisines

• Gives emphasis on simplicity, freshness, seasonality and regionalism

• Elegant and understated use of spice

Kuy Teav • Its name refers to the dish and the rice noodles themselves. • traditional pork broth-based rice noodle soup dish • popular breakfast dish in Cambodia

Amok Trey

• Cambodia's most well-known dish

• Freshwater fish fillet covered with an aromatic kroeung

• Not intended to be spicy but rather fragrant, zesty and flavorful.

Bok Lhong

• Khmer green papaya salad, pounded in a mortar and pestle

major products

Pottery

Textile industry

‘SampotSamloy’

• Silk textiles

• Made of the finest, most sensuous silk threads, and dyed in rich, often natural, colors these glorious textiles have only recently been studied in depth.

Rice • cultivated primarily through traditional farming

practices by over 80 percent of Cambodian farmers

• It is the staple food of Cambodians

• most important field crop

TIPS FOR TRAVELING *

TRAVELING TIPS

Greeting is formally done by joining both the palms together in front of each other and then bowing. This is

called Sampeah and is usually initiated by the younger or lower

rank of people.

In Cambodia, the head is regarded as the highest part of the body

and shouldn't be touched even in the kindest manner.

TRAVELING TIPS

Direct eye contact is generally considered disrespectful,

particularly across the sexes.

It’s considered disrespectful to let your feet or soles to point at

people or things, so the feet must be tucked in when sitting.

Plans for

cambodia

1. Maintain the clean environment

2. Encouragement of more locals to

participate in the tourism industry

3. Tourism packages that feature more

historical sites