SINVILLE'S OWN ODYSSEY
1200 words / 6 minute read
I've been reflecting recently on the changes that have been going on in this town in recent years, so I thought I'd share my thoughts on how lucky I am to have made my escape at this point in history, and also how different life would have been if I had made the trip even a decade ago.
Firstly, I am very lucky to have found an apartment in a fantastic bar and guest-house near the beach, where the owners feel strongly that their guests (especially the long term ones) are very much part of their extended family.
Although, thanks to Olga, I don't get to enjoy the direct benefit of the booze myself, I must say it is pretty cool to live in the same space as a popular bar that's fully open to the public, meaning that as well as the atmosphere that's created when the place is buzzing, the fresh faces always keep things interesting.
And of course, the fact that there is cold beer ready and an ocean view deck on which to savour it has obviously played no part whatsoever in friends of mine deciding to drop by from time to time, vaguely murmuring something about "catching up" whilst enjoying the surroundings and taking the chair with the best view.
But why shouldn't they? I get to sit there everyday and I only need to call outside my front door if I'm in need of breakfast or a coffee, which makes for lazy man's heaven.
Of course one still ventures outside the guest house walls for variety, and the restaurants in this town, at least during the years I've been coming here, have always been open to providing what's on the menu “to go” with no real separation between sit down and takeaway establishments.
Many extended that service to offering free delivery but communication can be a problem sometimes.
Language barriers are easily overcome when you are in a restaurant and can point to an item on the menu, but over the phone that is a luxury that we do not get to enjoy, so the fact that we now have Tukout.com is something of a game-changer (do you know just-eat? Same same, just local)
It removes the chance of communication breakdown in your food delivery - but only as long as you can accurately pick out your house on Google Maps / describe how to get there (and are happy to pay a buck or two for delivery - more than reasonable, I would say!).
Why is describing your house necessary? Well to this day, many places in this town don’t actually have a formal address, believe it or not, lacking both road names and house numbers (something that hinders the growth of Amazon I imagine).
Technological advances are perhaps more pronounced here in Sinville than other places, since Cambodia had further to come in terms of its development if you were to compare it to its neighbours.
A few years ago (refreshingly) it didn't even have billboard advertising for instance, let alone the video screens that are ubiquitous in the West and other parts of Asia - though we have since caught up on that one.
In fact Sinville's quite astonishing economic growth is very hard to miss for anyone who's been coming here for any length of time: despite being Cambodia’s only real seaside resort, 10 years ago it was effectively the size of an English village with relatively few paved roads, fewer cars and a generally non-life-threatening disregard for road rules or traffic lights.
You're taking your life in your hands if you run a red light these days, since the village is now a very fast growing town with an international airport and (what feels like, on a bike) wall to wall SUVs.
The pace of change could actually be seen by any visitor should they care to compare today's town with the one they find on Google Street View - pick a road and it may point the same direction but the buildings on either side will be remarkably different, in a pace of change that would be familiar to anyone who has spent significant time in London (and most likely other major cities) in recent years.
There is a difference though: this is not a major capital city, making the overall effect of London-like levels of rampant change and gentrification all the more pronounced in a place more akin to the slower pace of life of Brighton or some other quiet seaside resort.
Of course I doubt I need to preach to anybody else about TV or about communication in the modern world but they are both radically different now, thanks to the joy of smart phones and free communication apps like WhatsApp. A decade ago, calling home from here would have meant a special visit to the internet cafe to use their machines to Skype or use their long distance phone line.
I had by coincidence actually bought my mum have a smartphone as a Christmas present, which I gave to her just before I left the country. Whatsapp, despite its terrible name, means that I can be in contact with her (or anyone for that matter) as if I was in the same country with no need to consider international charges or hesitate before I send a picture message.
But the biggest day to day technological change has been the global switch from physical to digital media. No big deal for you guys back home but a huge change here, as we no longer need to be concerned whether a local shop stocks a book, CD or DVD that can now be bought and downloaded directly from Amazon or ITunes.
The one technological advance that I have lacked is ironically probably the least advanced: as I wrote here, having managed to to do myself a mischief and temporarily lose the use of my right arm, a left-handed motorbike would have meant I would have still been fully mobile despite my injury.
This was not to be unfortunately (or at least not easily available here) but after only a few (what felt like quite long) months, I was able to return on two petrol powered wheels once again!
On that note, I have literally just recovered the ability to type with both hands but I have remained quite prolific in my writings throughout these "gammy hand" months thanks to modern technology stepping in once again: through voice typing I've able to write almost every word of this blog - not to mention Whatsapp, Facebook and text messages, emails, journals (and also earn some extra money doing freelance work, happy days!).
So to sum up, thanks to modern technology, I no longer have any idea what it feels like to be bored or under-stimulated and feel as though there is nothing from home that I can't access here should I need it.
This means that I can live a more independent life with my illness, allowing me to work on a freelance basis, educate myself by having access to a wide variety of reading material, learn new skills completely from scratch and share the results with people back home.
Not to mention that we all now have the incredible luxury of making four-hour long international phone calls (without having to pay a penny) and then being able to have a pizza delivered without having to actually speak to anyone - my god, isn't technology wonderful?
DEVELOPING WORLD
A few years ago (refreshingly) it didn't even have billboard advertising for instance, let alone the video screens that are ubiquitous in the West and other parts of Asia - though we have since caught up on that one.
In fact Sinville's quite astonishing economic growth is very hard to miss for anyone who's been coming here for any length of time: despite being Cambodia’s only real seaside resort, 10 years ago it was effectively the size of an English village with relatively few paved roads, fewer cars and a generally non-life-threatening disregard for road rules or traffic lights.
You're taking your life in your hands if you run a red light these days, since the village is now a very fast growing town with an international airport and (what feels like, on a bike) wall to wall SUVs.
The pace of change could actually be seen by any visitor should they care to compare today's town with the one they find on Google Street View - pick a road and it may point the same direction but the buildings on either side will be remarkably different, in a pace of change that would be familiar to anyone who has spent significant time in London (and most likely other major cities) in recent years.
There is a difference though: this is not a major capital city, making the overall effect of London-like levels of rampant change and gentrification all the more pronounced in a place more akin to the slower pace of life of Brighton or some other quiet seaside resort.
Of course I doubt I need to preach to anybody else about TV or about communication in the modern world but they are both radically different now, thanks to the joy of smart phones and free communication apps like WhatsApp. A decade ago, calling home from here would have meant a special visit to the internet cafe to use their machines to Skype or use their long distance phone line.
I had by coincidence actually bought my mum have a smartphone as a Christmas present, which I gave to her just before I left the country. Whatsapp, despite its terrible name, means that I can be in contact with her (or anyone for that matter) as if I was in the same country with no need to consider international charges or hesitate before I send a picture message.
But the biggest day to day technological change has been the global switch from physical to digital media. No big deal for you guys back home but a huge change here, as we no longer need to be concerned whether a local shop stocks a book, CD or DVD that can now be bought and downloaded directly from Amazon or ITunes.
WHERE ARE THE LEFT HANDED MOTORBIKES?
This was not to be unfortunately (or at least not easily available here) but after only a few (what felt like quite long) months, I was able to return on two petrol powered wheels once again!
On that note, I have literally just recovered the ability to type with both hands but I have remained quite prolific in my writings throughout these "gammy hand" months thanks to modern technology stepping in once again: through voice typing I've able to write almost every word of this blog - not to mention Whatsapp, Facebook and text messages, emails, journals (and also earn some extra money doing freelance work, happy days!).
So to sum up, thanks to modern technology, I no longer have any idea what it feels like to be bored or under-stimulated and feel as though there is nothing from home that I can't access here should I need it.
This means that I can live a more independent life with my illness, allowing me to work on a freelance basis, educate myself by having access to a wide variety of reading material, learn new skills completely from scratch and share the results with people back home.
Not to mention that we all now have the incredible luxury of making four-hour long international phone calls (without having to pay a penny) and then being able to have a pizza delivered without having to actually speak to anyone - my god, isn't technology wonderful?
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