Cambodia

1 Chapter Basic knowledge

    • 1.1 Official name of country

       

      Destination Cambodia, this is a virtual travel guide to Kampuchea (the local name of the country).

      ·         Official Name:

      Ø  Preah Réachéanachâkr Kâmpuchea/ Kingdom of Cambodia

      ·         Short form:

      Ø  Kampuchea / Cambodia.

    • 1.2 National Flag

       

      The national flag of Cambodia consists of three horizontal stripes, the blue (top), red (double width), and blue with a white three-towered temple representing Angkor Wat outlined in black in the center of the red band; only national flag to incorporate a building in its design.

       
       

       

      v  The Meaning of Cambodia Flag

      Ø  The blue bands in the Cambodian flag represent integrity, justice and Heritage.

      Ø The red band in the middle represents liberty, cooperation and brotherhood.

      Ø  In the center of the flag is a white emblem of the towers at Angkor Wat, which represents bravery.

       

    • 1.3 National Land /Area

       

      Cambodia is a country in mainland South-east Asia, covers a total area of 181,035 km2 (69,898 sq. mi), bordered to the west by Thailand, to the north by Laos and to the east by Vietnam, Cambodia is a roughly circular country with a southern coastline giving onto the Gulf of Thailand. The landscape comprises tropical rainforest and fertile cultivated land, with lush highlands rising in both the northeast and southeast. Rivers are a central feature of its make-up, with Phnom Penh situated at the confluence of the Bassac, the Tonle Sap and the mighty Mekong. A large inland lake, also called Tonle Sap, sits close to the Angkor Temple Complex in the north. There are numerous beaches and offshore islands along the southwest coast.

      However, Cambodia’s main landscape is its jewel, comprising tropical rainforest and fertile cultivated land, with lush highlands rising in both the north east and south east. This rich, nutritious land also includes a wealth of nature, including rare and endangered species such as Indochinese tigers, Asian elephants and freshwater Irrawaddy dolphins.

      Unfortunately Cambodia suffers from high rates of illegal trading in endangered wildlife and logging, and man is fast wiping out these incredible creatures and their habitat. Around Cambodia visitors can find various eco-camps and rainforest preservation trips offering excursions, education and an alternative form of income to locals previously involved in illegal trade.

    • 1.4 Capital

       Phnom Penh is the capital, which has an area of 290 square kilometers, is seriously considered the major center of administration, commerce, communication, culture, economy, education, industry, policy, and tourism. It is also home to legal immigrants from Australia, Burma, China, France, India, Japan, Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Philippine, Russia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, UK, USA, Vietnam etc. The Phnom Penh Capital is a lifeline of Cambodian economy for sustaining residents and it is a tropical paradise for tourists and businessmen. The Phnom Penh’s resident population is said to total over two million people.

    • 1.5 Weather

       Being located in the tropical zone north of the equator, Cambodia has a monsoon climate.            There are two distinct seasons:

      o   Wet season start from: May – October

      o   Dry season start from: November - April.

      1.5.1 Cambodia’s Wet Season

      Cambodia's Wet Season comes courtesy of the southwest monsoon, which blows from May to October, bringing with it some three-quarters (3/4) of Cambodia's annual rainfall. Cambodia, throughout much of the rainy season, daytime temperatures average between 25°C and 27°C.

      Not surprisingly, wet season is characterized by rain, and during the peak of wet season from July to September it can rain every day. Rainy days however tend to have a few hours of heavy rain rather than being all-day downpours, though the latter do sometimes occur -- you will get wet travelling in a Cambodian rainy season.

      Aside from getting drenched, the main disadvantage of travelling in wet season in Cambodia relates to flooding and degraded road conditions. The bulk of roads in Cambodia are dirt and in rainy season they turn to heavily rutted and pot-holed mud pits. Travelling in rural areas, particularly the north and northeast of the country can be slowed considerably. You will still be able to go just about anywhere, it will just take longer.

      Lightweight clothing is worn in rainy season such as: Umbrellas and raincoats are advisable during the monsoon season because when it rains, it pours. Rain may continue solidly for days on end.

      1.5.2 Cambodia’s Dry Season

      Cambodia's dry season runs from November to April, when the dusty northeast monsoon arrives. Blowing like a hair-dryer set to high, the northeast monsoon dries out the country fast. While November and January are quite cool (high C20s) by April, the weather is scorching and so-dry it will take your breath away. Characterized by heat and dust, this season coincides with Cambodia's peak tourist season -- travelers arrive in their droves between November and January to take advantage of the lack of rain and relative cool. By March, travelling can be uncomfortable and hot, while April can be excruciating. Usually being the hottest of the year with temperatures in excess of 35°C at times.

      As the country dries out, badly rutted roads get graded and trip times improve dramatically, though they get incredibly dusty. Cambodia's beach strips at Kep, Sihanoukville and Ko Kong bask in brilliant sunshine with clear calm waters -- if you're a beach bum, dry season is the season for you.

    • 1.6 Time Different

       In this case, we compare time difference between Cambodia and Japan.

      Japan is 2 hours ahead of Cambodia. That means when its 2:48 PM Wednesday, in Cambodia is

      4:48 PM Wednesday, in Japan (Tokyo).

    • 1.7 Population

       Total population is 15.77 million. Ninety percent of residents are Khmer, and the remnants of these are Chinese, Vietnamese, Indian, Thai, Phnorng, Kuoy, Stineng, Tamil, etc.

       

      Here are a number of Cambodia people, calculate on 15-07-2015.

       

      Number

      Description

      15,770,502

      Total population

      7,719,933

      Male population

      8,050,570

      Female population

    • 1.8 Language

       The Khmer language now serves as the official language of Cambodia, where it is spoken by the majority of the population, an estimated 14,494,293 people. It is also spoken by approximately 1.3 million people in southeast Thailand (Surin Province, called Khmer Surin) and by more than 1 million people in southern Vietnam (Khmer Krom).

    • 1.9 Currency

       The riel (Khmer: រៀល; sign: ៛; code: KHR) is the Cambodia’s official currency. The Cambodia’s currency can be exchange is KHR to USD rate because the united stated dollar can be used for trade in Cambodia.

      Anywhere in the Cambodia you can pay for something in dollars and get your change in a mixture of dollars and riel.

      There are some area can be use other currency like in Battambang, Poi Pet, Pailin and other areas near the Thai border, the Thai baht is also accepted.