Cambodia - The Rough Guide to Southeast Asia on a Budget - page 81

Pontoon 10 St 172. Phnom Penh's largest club is a
perennial favourite among the expat crowd, with regular
visiting DJs (Goldie played in recent times), a beautiful
amber bar, an intriguing range of cocktails and comfy
couches to lose yourself in. They also host a popular drag
show, Shameless, every Thurs night. Sun-Thurs 9pm-4am,
Fri-Sat 9pm-5am.

grouped in their own sections. Don't expect an easy
bargain - you'll have to work hard to pay the locals' price.
Supermarkets Bayon Supermarket, 33-34 St 114
(8am-9pm); Lucky Supermarket, 160 Sihanouk Blvd
(8am-9pm); Pencil Supermarket, 15 St 214 (7am-9pm).

DIRECTORY
Banks and exchange There are a few ATMs at the
airport and many more downtown. Travellers' cheques
can be cashed at virtually any bank around town for a
commission of two percent. The best rates for changing
foreign currency into riel can be found with the money-
changers in and around Psar Thmei.
Dentists International SOS Dental Clinic, 161 St 51
( T 023 216911), has English-speaking staff.
Embassies and consulates Australia, 16B National
Assembly St ( T 023 213470); Canada, 11 St 254 ( T 023
213 470); Laos, 15-17 Mao Tse Toung Blvd ( T 023
983632); Thailand, 196 Norodom Blvd ( T 023 726306);
UK, 27-29 St 75 ( T 023 427124); US 1 St 96 ( T 023
728000); Vietnam, 436 Monivong Blvd ( T 023 726274).
Hospitals and clinics For any travel-related illness,
tests or vaccinations, head to the International SOS Clinic
at 161 St 51 ( T 023 816911) or the Tropical & Travellers'
Medical Clinic, 88 St 108 ( T 023 306802).
Immigration department For visa extensions, it's
easier to go to one of the travel agents in town or to
your guesthouse - they'll charge between $5 and $10
commission. The Department of Immigration (Mon-Fri
8-10.30am & 2.30-4.30pm; T 017 812763) is well out
of town on Russian Blvd opposite the airport, although
you'll need to go there for other immigration queries.
Internet There are outlets all over town, with access
around $2/hr (usually open 8am-8pm).
Pharmacies Trained English-speaking pharmacists are
available at Pharmacie de la Gare, corner of Monivong
and Pochentong boulevards (Mon-Sat 7am-7pm, Sun
7am-5pm), which stocks a good selection of Western
pharmaceuticals. Alternatively, look for the branches of
U-Care around town.
Post o ce The main post o ce is east of Wat Phnom, on
St 13 between sts 98 and 102 (Mon-Sat 8am-6pm).
Tourist police T 012 942484 or T 097 7780002 (English,
French and Italian spoken); O ce in Ministry of Interior,
275 Preah Norodom.

2

ENTERTAINMENT
Cinemas The Flicks 1 & 2, sts 95 & 136 respectively
( W theflicks-cambodia.com ), are volunteer-staffed commu-
nity movie houses screening Western, arthouse and
Cambodian films ($3.50/person) in intimate sofa-filled
a/c rooms. Otherwise, Meta House, 37 Sothearos Blvd
( W meta-house.com), offers free afternoon Cambodian
documentary screenings (4pm) and more mainstream
nightly films (7pm; $2), as well as live music, visual poetry
and art exhibitions.
Traditional arts Unfortunately, cultural events in
Phnom Penh are few and far between. The ancient
tradition of Cambodian classical dance, which originated
in the twelfth century, was all but wiped out in the 1970s,
and performances at the Chaktomuk Theatre ( T 023
725119) on Sisowath Quay are still infrequent - check
the listings in the Friday edition of the Cambodia Daily .
The theatre also occasionally hosts Khmer plays and
musical shows. Alternatively, on Fri & Sat at 7.30pm,
Sovanna Phum, 166 St 99, host hour-long shadow
puppetry, classical and folk dance performances a little
way south of town ($10).

SHOPPING
Bookshops Monument Books (111 Norodom Blvd; T 023
223622) stocks a wide range of English books. Secondhand
books are sold at D's Books (79 St 240; T 017 770014),
which has over five thousand titles in (among others)
English, French and German.
Markets A trip to one of the capital's numerous markets is
essential, if only to buy the red-checked krama (traditional
chequered scarf ), popular with Khmers and visitors alike.
The markets are liveliest in the morning; many vendors
have a snooze at midday for a couple of hours and things
wind down by 5pm. Vendors at the Art Deco Psar Thmei
(just ask moto drivers for “psar”), at the eastern end of
Kampuchea Krom Blvd, are wise to the apparently limitless
funds of all barangs (Westerners), and will price their
wares accordingly. It's a pretty tight squeeze just trying to
get past all the stalls. Electronic goods, T-shirts, shoes and
wigs are all in abundance here. A stroll around the Russian
Market (Psar Toul Tom Poung), in the southern end of town
at the junction of 163 and 440 streets, is a colourful and
often more rewarding experience. It's a good balance of
tourist-oriented curios and stalls for locals, with jewellery,
gems, food, souvenirs, furniture and motorbike parts all

AROUND PHNOM PENH
Escaping into Phnom Penh's surrounding
countryside for some peace and fresh air
is very easy - it doesn't take long to get
out past the shantytown suburbs, and the
majority of roads that extend from the
capital are in fairly good condition.