...(continuation)...If instead you turned left it was another dirt road but after an empty block owing to the formidable pink wall of the Phnom Penh Hotel you entered a spirit gate of the type found in most Asian villages, including the Arab Mid East intrrestingly. Through the gate was the "backpacker ghetto."
On both sides of the road which became partially paved were shoppes owned by expats and locals, all geared towards backpackers though, suprisingly, none of the good pharmacies so many crave. Guesthouse #9, Simons, Simons II, all the famous guesthouses.
There was a dirt lane connecting on the rightside that followed the lake's shore, lined with squatter shacks, again mostly Cham living on it.
The main road though, veered just a tad bit and then worked its way parallel to Monviong Blvd until ending at a small cul de sac where a couple of police lived, growing fat from the payoffs.
In 2011 they left that road alone, while demolishing the squatter areas on the side path, along the shore. Guesthouse #9 is now a Khmer-run gambling club where foreigners arent appreciated. The rest of the buildings on that short path to #9 have been left standing but strangely ALL shoppes are now owned by different Khmer and none are doing the same type of business as the previous owners. The famous tiny bookstore by #9 is now akin to a corner shoppe run by a middle aged Khmer lady.
There are 3 guesthouses still catering to foreigners but literally, the dregs of the backpacker trail have washed up there. A Ponytailed 60-year old Dutchmen muttering to himself picking up fag butts out of the mud, a pockmarked 70-year old old trying to get a quarter gramme of #4 for $10 US on credit and waiting hours...As I stood talking to old friends a taxi pulled up and out came 3 Western backpackers, as if they were scammed by outdated travelogues and blogposts.
I spent an hour photographing the street art done by expats when the evictions took place in 2011. Then I went, taking a gift of .75 gramme of #4 just for old time sakes. I am regularly dosing on 220mg of methadone, last dosing on the NYC to Tapei longhaul. Just 30mg of that powder #4 got me high. That is how potent heroin is here and that gift was street garbage. The 4 gramme piece I got later was...well I will get to that a bit later...
On both sides of the road which became partially paved were shoppes owned by expats and locals, all geared towards backpackers though, suprisingly, none of the good pharmacies so many crave. Guesthouse #9, Simons, Simons II, all the famous guesthouses.
There was a dirt lane connecting on the rightside that followed the lake's shore, lined with squatter shacks, again mostly Cham living on it.
The main road though, veered just a tad bit and then worked its way parallel to Monviong Blvd until ending at a small cul de sac where a couple of police lived, growing fat from the payoffs.
In 2011 they left that road alone, while demolishing the squatter areas on the side path, along the shore. Guesthouse #9 is now a Khmer-run gambling club where foreigners arent appreciated. The rest of the buildings on that short path to #9 have been left standing but strangely ALL shoppes are now owned by different Khmer and none are doing the same type of business as the previous owners. The famous tiny bookstore by #9 is now akin to a corner shoppe run by a middle aged Khmer lady.
There are 3 guesthouses still catering to foreigners but literally, the dregs of the backpacker trail have washed up there. A Ponytailed 60-year old Dutchmen muttering to himself picking up fag butts out of the mud, a pockmarked 70-year old old trying to get a quarter gramme of #4 for $10 US on credit and waiting hours...As I stood talking to old friends a taxi pulled up and out came 3 Western backpackers, as if they were scammed by outdated travelogues and blogposts.
I spent an hour photographing the street art done by expats when the evictions took place in 2011. Then I went, taking a gift of .75 gramme of #4 just for old time sakes. I am regularly dosing on 220mg of methadone, last dosing on the NYC to Tapei longhaul. Just 30mg of that powder #4 got me high. That is how potent heroin is here and that gift was street garbage. The 4 gramme piece I got later was...well I will get to that a bit later...