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Recently the rubbish collectors went on strike in Phnom Penh and the resulting mounds of trash are indicative that it was a long work stoppage. The problem was compounded by the fact that in Phnom Penh people just use plastic bags for throwing out trash, and there are no ordinances or rules for putting out garbage so the streets become the natural receptacles.
When the mobile coffee carts caught on and then were supplemented by coffee stands on the sidewalks, many businesses decided to add a coffee shop to their existing business. Click here for some examples.
The recent flooding–still continuing–has caused a lot of inconvenience to people forced to move, and disruption to people going to work and school. It has also caused a lot of physical damage to the streets. The Cambodians have never actually caught on how to properly pave a road–the usual 1/8th inch of asphalt over gravel doesn’t work so well–and the repeated submersion in water has taken its toll, with many streets now well potholed.
When it rains in Phnom Penh, people on motorcycles deal with it in various ways. Click here to see some of the uses–or not–of rain gear.
With four motorcycles of people lined up waiting to be served, whatever the woman under the red umbrella is selling at breakfast time must be really good because the people seem to be coming back.
This block near the Maryknoll office illustrates the shifting nature of the city. On the corner is an old traditional wooden house, modified with more modern side paneling and a small business on the ground floor. Then there are two four-story houses, the new normal for most of the Phnom Penh residents, and then in the background is the Era Hotel, closed since March, but a visible expression of the high-rise architecture spreading through the city.