Community service of the economic type....

It wouldn’t be Cambodia (or South East Asia in fact) if we didn’t help to prop up the economy!!!! Yes.....SHOPPING and other “touristy” bits.  Siem Reap has it all....markets, street stalls, fish foot massages, ice cream rolls made in front of you and almost anything elicit you can think of!!!  With the exception of the elicit items, we have managed to support the local economy.  Here’s a taste....

After finishing 3 whole days of hot, hard work, a day off to test our bartering skills at the local market couldn’t have come at a better time.
The local market was busy and alive all day long. You can find absolutely anything you’re looking for, whether it be fresh produce and other foods, clothes, shoes, accessories and anything in between, and believe us, merchants will try to sell you all of it! They are very friendly, but also very persistent people! One lady lured us in by letting us know she had fans inside her stall... little did we know we’d spend $100 between us!
We were all a little nervous to barter as it is not done in Australia and we didn’t want to offend anyone, but we were informed merchants often increase their prices when they spot tourists and they expect people to barter.
Lucky for us, our first attempt was quite difficult and took a fairly long time, although Jayde scored 4 pairs of shoes for $50 rather than paying $125. This made bartering with other merchants seem like a breeze!
The boys bought some snazzy matching banana shirts and Kylah, Morgan and Jaymee got matching cane bags for $15 each instead of $25.
The day market was great, but most of us would agree the night market was also a lot of fun.
The fresh ice cream made and rolled before your eyes was incredible, and was brought over to us by the very friendly (and flirty) owner while we had fish eat dead skin off of our feet! It is an odd sensation to have tens of small fish nip your feet, but once you get used to the tickling feeling, it is actually very relaxing. Our feet have never felt smoother and the fish were full - win win!
Overall, we had a fabulous shopping experience in  Siem Reap. We probably spent a little too much money but we guess that’s what holidays are for. Looking forward to the shopping scene at Phnom Phen!

Ella, Jayde and Amber




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