CarizzCruzem

Khmer New Year?! You’ve got to be kidding me. When I first came here, I was completely clueless of the difference between Cambodian culture and mine.  I hadn’t even heard of Pol Pot. Well, maybe I had, but if I did hear of him, I guess I kinda forgot. Frankly speaking, I didn’t want to be here. However, I have no choice but to come here. I’ve got a good reason but it would just bore you, so never mind that. But the important thing is, I must have had a change of heart because... hey, I wanna know and understand “KHMER”; it’s beginning, culture, mindset and all that there is to know.

To be exact, I’ve been staying here in Cambodia for 11 months and 27 days now. I’m not very enthusiastic with going out. I prefer to stay at home and listen to my music or read books. So, no one can say that I’m a Cambodian culture veteran. Actually, I hardly know anything about their culture. But, I’m trying!!!

As part of that “trying”, I went around Phnom Penh to observe what they do during this so-called “Khmer New Year. This is my first year to see how they celebrate this New Year. It was supposed to be a three-day celebration, from April 13 until April 15, but the government extended it until April 16 because the last day happened to be on a Sunday—another practice that I couldn’t understand. Anyways, anyways, I was hoping that I could talk to some people so I would know how this “Khmer New Year” began. I was curious to know why they have their own New Year aside from the internationally celebrated one and the Chinese New Year. Why, they use the same calendar we are using, don’t they?! So, what’s the point of having another “new year”? I’m quite disappointed that I didn’t find out anything about this. As usual, language barrier hindered me from knowing.

Nevertheless, my eyes didn’t keep me from observing some things. I saw a few concerts so it would be only normal to see many people. The roadside vendors were countless especially near the riverfront. I also saw quite many “Christmas lights” (and it was supposed to be New Year in the midst of hot April!) decorating houses. When we passed Waht Phnom, I saw young people playing games. I thought about joining them but then I saw that they were pouring face powder. Thus, I decided against the thought. We stopped by a side street vendor and ate meatballs, duck eggs and lochha (some kind of noodles) with fried eggs.

I tried to ask some people I know what they do during this time. I wasn’t satisfied because I want to experience it for myself. But the Khmer New Year is over now so I might just try next year. Anyway, everything that they said is worth mentioning so here goes:

Many people here in Phnom Penh go back to their home province to celebrate the New Year with their families. They clean their houses because of the belief that it drives out evil spirits. There is also a belief that the New Angel arrives at some point of the first day of the celebration. They offer gifts to their relatives and to the monks. Aside from the games, there are also the traditional dance performances. Powder and water are also part of the celebration.

This sure sounds fun. Unfortunately, I didn't experience it. But I'm hoping that I'll do and know better next year.