Sacred Dancers of Angkor. Tasting Dinner

Doug had arranged tickets to The Sacred Dancers of Angkor held on the grounds of a 5 star hotel nearby. Again, due to the River Festival, the bridge we wanted to cross was closed so it ended up being a hot, crowded, memorable and sometimes sad walk through the food and sales vendors lining both sides of the River. We had noted earlier armed police presence due to the visit of the Prime Minister. Of note, were a few individuals asking for money for obviously very sad personal circumstances: at least two very disabled individuals with family members. Nancy suspected hydrocephalus or brain tumors, craniotomy scars were noted and one lady had a limb missing, no doubt from a landmine explosion as well as a few parents with children begging and who looked very thin (begging outright seemed rare and it is likely the most desperate given the culture is one of self sufficiency). This left her with a very unsettled feeling given that we were not organized with any appropriately sized bills to give to undoubtedly deserving individuals.

The Sacred Dancers perform the unique and traditional Khmer Ballet known as Apsara. Ravynn founded the Nginn Karet Foundation as a charitable institution in 1994, with the main goal of meeting the basic needs of Banteay Srei’s poverty-stricken villagers and teach them the discipline in the ancestral Khmer way: meditation, praying and mastering more than 4500 gestures. These artists, born in the land of Angkor, are now professionals .

The ongoing background of Khmer singing, fireworks impacted on the show. The opening was done by younger girls. None of the dancers were in the typical apsara headdress as depicted in the sandstone carvings at Angkor Wat or the advertised picture. Having a gourmet dinner on the lawn or the high end FCC Hotel ($350/night vs our hotel at $45) left Nancy with some ambivalence given walking through the masses just before. The service was very attentive and we felt like royalty. The food was top notch and memorable; the maître de we think was French and made a memorable comment: when Nancy remarked after the 3rd course she already felt full he said that it was a fortunate way to feel...how true...sad but true.Okumaya devam et