I had to cancel my bike trip because I had to work all last weekend, it sucked, but my office filed the initial submission yestersay, naming 5 leaders of Khmer Rouge to be investigated for a bunch of heinous crimes. The whole office proceeded to get extremely drunk (on the boss's tab) and we were then given today off.

The bike I had planned has not been reschudeled, but next weekend a couple friends and I are loading an suv with bikes, driving to the beach, and then biking up Bokor Mountain. Bokor Mountain was a colonial village on top of a mountain in the middle of the jungle, just off the southern coast. When the Khmer Rouge took power, they evacuated everyone who lived there so now, while the french colonial buildings and their elaborate architecture remain intact, the jungle has literally swallowed the village. There's a ranger station at the top where you can spend the night and I hear the sunrise is amazing b/c you're in the clouds, but I don't think I'll be camping out up there this time. I'm planning to do that a bit later. Whenever I tell people I plan on biking up Bokor hill, they all kinda laugh. I'm not really sure why.

I bought a bike and it is by far the best mode of transportation in this city. I've been riding it everywhere. I get to see so much more of the city and I get there so much faster than via tuk-tuk and even motos. A couple things suck about riding around town: the stench of this city magnifies itself when you're on a bicycle and of course I think I'm going to get into a horrible accident at least once a day. Surprisingly though, drivers seem to be observant of cyclists, I cut them off frequently and they always slow down and don't say a word.

I've hired my cleaning lady to also make me coffee, eggs and bacon 3 days per week. I can't wait to wake up and just have breakfast waiting for me. It'll be like I'm 8 again.

A group of about 4 or moto drivers sit at the corner of my street. They hang out there all day. Every morning as soon as I open my gate, they start offering me rides. My bus stop is about 3 blocks away from my house - a ten minute walk, 8 if I'm in a rush. I only try to take the motos when I'm really late. About a week ago I was running a few minutes late and tried to get a moto. The first guy wanted to charge me 1000 riel (25 cents) which is far too much. For the distance I needed to go, it should cost 200 or 300 riel and I offered 100 you know b/c you have to bargain for everything here. he wouldn't budge from 1000 even when I offered 500. No big deal, as there are 3 other moto drivers. So I ask the second guy, and he will only do it for a 1000. I ask the third guy - same thing. They formed a fucking monopoly, bastards. so out of principle I walked. Well I was late again the other day and when i signal for a moto one of the drivers pulls up. I tell him where I'm going, and I offer 500 riel. he immediately accepts. He yells to his friends that I'm paying him 500 riel to go literally up the street. The fucker laughed the whole ride and when I paid him he laughed even more. fucking moto monopoly.

Weddings here take place on the streets. They erect elaborate bright orange tents and party till around 1 or 2am. They serve a ton of food, which is conveniently cooked in an adajecent tent and drink unhealthy amounts of alcohol. The tents generally take up 3/4 of the road, which causes horrible traffic jams, especially on the busy streets. I mention all this b/c someone is getting married in front of my house tonight. I'm going to try to crash it

I'm looking out my office window and at the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces Headquarters (yes, our building is literally next door to the headquarters of the armed forces) and someone is urinating on a lone bush in the middle of an open field. I mention this to highlight the massive public urination epidemic plaguing phnom penh.

Perhaps it's because of the rainy season, but i see literally tens of people each day urinating on fences, gates and walls on roadsides, and almost exclusively on the busiest boulevards. Cement walls and iron gates adorn the streets here and every few blocks i'll see a moto parked along the side of the road. Directly in front of the moto is usually a guy spray painting a wall with his amber liquid. Not one of these urinators seems to make any effort to conceal their primordial act of relief. They could simply walk into any restaurant and use the toilet free of charge, and if they really love peeing with they sun on their backs and wind in their hair they could urinate in the semi-privacy of one of the many alleys, but instead they choose to mark their territory in broad day light for everyone to see. I've heard that in NYC, you have to go to court and pay a fine for similar acts, but in Phnom Penh if its not encouraged, it's at least decriminalized.

The american embassy celebrated our nation's b-day in grand style with a thundering fireworks display. Although I was not invited to the private embassay party (my boss was though, and he's canadian!) I caught the fireworks from a moto on the way to a bar. I liked the fireworks, but the problem is that many cambodians ran into the homes to seek shelter when the display began. i guess living in a country entrenched in a 30+ year civil war will have the affect on you. Regardless, I think a big round of applause is in order for the embassy scaring people into thinking phnom penh was under attack (again).

This weekend I'm planning a bicycle trip 150km to the beach. Currently i have neither a bike nor a route nor a weather report, but i'm going anyway. I predict this is gonna go horribly wrong at some point.