Byebye Cambodia - People’s Way Of Life

Having spent 1 month in Cambodia, it was time to say goodbye to the country and its people. It was especially the people that made my time here incredible. I did not have many expectations coming here apart from wanting to see the highlights, in particular Angkor Wat, and learn about its dark history.

Instead, the people blew me away - from the super friendly TukTuk driver in Battambang, the guys who took me fishing in Siem Reap with their family and friends, the woman who owns a bar (and multiple other businesses) and showed me the hard-working nature of Cambodias, the street food vendors who told me about their revenue and costs, the TukTuk driver/guide who led us around Angkor War all the way to the guide with whom we went trekking in jungle in east Cambodia and who was forced to serve as a child soldier (8-11 years old) during the Khmer Rouge regime.

So, this is what I have learned about Cambodian's and their way of life during my time here:
- A street food vendor in Siem Reap earns c.$30 per day on average, of which $1 goes to the police as a 'location fee'
- If a TukTuk driver has no clients in a day, he literally earns nothing that day. Nada.
- There is no weekend or days off for the great majority of the people esp street vendors and TukTuk drivers
- Rent in Siem Reap for a probably okay-ish 1-bed flat is like $200 per month
- Paying taxes for services paid in cash is basically non-existent
- There is no pension. People rely on kids to help them out when they grow old. Shows the much more important role of kids vs western society.
- Kids start driving scooters from as young as 7 or 8 years old. No helmet.
- Gem miners earn on average $1.25-$2.50 per day, depending on the size of the stones/gems they find
- There is not really any awareness of the damage plastic causes the environment (most of the time it is burned)
- In rural Cambodia, collecting 1kg of cans is compensated with $1.25, while 10kg of plastic only with $0.25
- You can pay in USD and Cambodian Riel - or a combination of the two. You might also get back a combination of the two.
- I have not seen or used a knife for 1 month since everything is eaten with a fork, spoon or chopsticks.Read more