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Cambodians Love Their Festivals, Especially This One

Yesterday, Cambodians rushed to the country’s capital, Phnom Penh, for the annual Water and Moon Festival, which starts today and lasts all week. Officials estimate that about four million Cambodians attend the event each year--in a country with a total population of about 14 million. That'd be like 100 million Americans showing up to watch the ball drop in Times Square next month.

The event isn’t a big deal, it is the deal, an annual Olympics of sorts where family members and neighbors compete in crew-style rowing competitions along the city’s Tonle Sap river.

In addition to the races, the festival features Cambodian carnival food: Replace candy apples with fried bananas and corn dogs with dried fish patties. It also offers spins on a Ferris wheel that rivals any rickety, life-threatening rides found in the county fairs of rural United States.

To escape the battle for chair space along the boardwalk, nightly fireworks are visible from the expat-stuffed Foreign Correspondents' Club. The traffic, the crowds, the sometimes-capsizing boats and the infectious good cheer among the Cambodian people make this one of the most overwhelming and stunning cultural experiences in Southeast Asia. We'll see you there.

Related Stories:
· Biggest Water Festival To Date Expected This Week [Phnom Penh Post]
· Embedded Travel Guide: Cambodia [Jaunted]

[Photo: calcpimp]