NOVEMBER 1st A COLLECTION: of glassware from our breakfast table this morning in the very charming Oh Battambang Boutique Hotel
The full breakfast we were served
NOVEMBER 2nd A BOOK COVER: I spotted this book on a table in the hotel lobby the day we arrived, took a quick look at it and wondered why I had never seen it before. Then yesterday we stumbled across it again in our favourite social enterprise, retail outlet. So far, I have resisted buying it but I know I would love it and it might just find its way into my luggage before we leave Battambang
NOVEMBER 3rd A SHOP FRONT: The traditional shophouses in Cambodia vary slightly from province to province and those in Battambang are well preserved and often beautifully renovated. This shop front is one we have admired every trip here and this time is no exception
NOVEMBER 4th A FOR SALE SIGN: I’m assuming there is a for sale sign amongst these but I really have no idea since I can’t read the Khmer script
NOVEMBER 5th A BRIDGE: in the main downtown area of Battambang
NOVEMBER 6th A FENCE: A one of a kind bamboo fence in the garden courtyard setting of one of my all-time favourite businesses, which has survived and started growing again after the difficult times of recent years. I might just have splurged on a few new clothing items recently right here
NOVEMBER 7th I DIDN’T MAKE THIS: but it’s a veggo platter and looks exactly like something I would and do make. I remembered it fondly from our last visit to this restaurant and that’s exactly why I ordered it
NOVEMBER 8th THROW IT: This is an archive shot of one of the littlest monks we ever taught and the image came straight into my head the moment I read today’s prompt. An was never a keen student but he delighted in the opportunities to play that our classes provided
*It was also selected for the Fab Four on the day I posted it
NOVEMBER 9th AN UNMADE BED: Even in hotels I always make the bed before leaving the room. It’s a habit trained into me in childhood. Last Friday the morning we checked out of our hotel I snapped this photo as it amused me that we are sometimes such opposites. Ian’s bag is completely packed and mine is almost completely empty with the contents strewn all over my side of the bed while I contemplate the best way to get all that stuff in there. And yes, the bed is unmade
NOVEMBER 10th POWER LINES: Many places all over the kingdom have a tangle of power lines at every intersection and Battambang was no exception. Though I must admit to the credit of municipal authorities, we saw teams of workers removing those no longer in use and replacing the old cables, several times during our stay.
*This one was also chosen in the Fab Four collection on Facebook on the day
It was hard to select just one image so this was a close second. Battambang still has a lot of its traditional architecture and old-world charm intact
NOVEMBER 11th AN ARROW: leading the way up to one of my favourite shops in Phnom Penh and me reflected in their fabulous new logo. Fabulous Dorsu where I just happened to be shopping for the third time in three weeks. That’s the monthly selfie sorted too
NOVEMBER 12th IN MY POCKET: So very few of my clothes have pockets so when they do the most likely items within will be my keys a mask and tissues! That's it for today
NOVEMBER 13th A CLOSED SIGN: at one of my favourite eateries in the capital. I love a dosa
NOVEMBER 14th A FLOCK OF BIRDS: Hornbills to be precise. We see them quite often and they seem almost prehistoric and very awkward in flight but I’m totally fascinated by them. They roost very near where we live and fly overhead regularly
NOVEMBER 15th HAND SHADOWS: Yesterday we went to see the “Walking Through a Songline” popup digital experience, which is currently in Phnom Penh. Although very short, it was a wonderful exhibition and we enjoyed it several times over and played around with creating shadows on the projections on the walls and floor as we were the only ones there at the time. I took these shots of my hand shadow with my phone then turned them into a collage for this prompt
NOVEMBER 16th RUNNING WATER: We have been out and about all day today and decided to eat lunch in one of our favourite vegan cafes. I’m always glad to see these ‘refill not landfill’ stations and had to avail of the running water to top up my water bottle. Say no to plastic
NOVEMBER 17th WRINKLES: This postcard depicts a wrinkled but charming, rural, Khmer woman. It is a reproduction of the beautiful watercolour artwork of local artist and photographer Loeum Lorn. In the past few years I have bought several different images on every trip to Battambang and this trip was no exception
NOVEMBER 18th EMPTY TABLE: At 5pm on a Friday night, it’s not easy to score an empty table with a view of the river but we got lucky today
NOVEMBER 19th ROCKS: In a secluded little corner of the garden a bed of rocks frames a wilting, yellowing leaf. Nature taking its course aesthetically
*surprisingly this one was selected for the Fab Four on Facebook
NOVEMBER 20th AFTERNOON LIGHT: The street scene from our terrace bathed in that warm, late afternoon light
NOVEMBER 21st HALF FULL: The annual traditional Xmas cake bake has already commenced. Batch one is baked and now deliciously scenting the kitchen is a half full pot of dried fruit: cranberries, raisins, sultanas, apricots, melon, mango, pineapple, dates, kiwi fruit, ginger and peel all boiled in butter, juice and stout, with spices added and now set aside for three days to brew up nicely. ………. It has to remain in the pot as I don’t have a bowl big enough to contain it and the eggs and flour that are yet to be stirred into it
NOVEMBER 22 GRAFFITI: The Khmer graffiti wall in a cool, new, creative space I have recently discovered in Phnom Penh. I love the handwritten messages in several languages jumbled up with stencilled Khmer images and names
NOVEMBER 23rd UGLY FOOD: For the longest time the appearance of dragon fruit put me off trying them. Now however I’m a complete convert and buy two or three a week. Chilled with yoghurt they make the best breakfast but I only ever buy the red ones and have only just recently learned to tell which is which without seeing one cut
NOVEMBER 24th A TALL BUILDING: still under construction and like so much of the development here over-shadowing and juxtaposing with the more traditional structures around it. The evolving face of modern Phnom Penh
NOVEMBER 25th A SPIDER WEB: indigenous art illustration from a gorgeous a collection of children’s books I still have. This is a Dreamtime story about the power of magic and the dot art is the reason I can’t part with them. The drawings are beautiful and much to my delight after thoroughly cleaning in preparation for the arrival of our house guest this afternoon there is not a spider web to be seen in our place
NOVEMBER 26th A FUNNY SHAPE: An interesting, ceramic sculpture in the beautiful house in Kep we just arrived at and where we will take couple of days break. I’ve always thought it was a funny shape and it reminds me of origami but I really like it and the decor of the entire place in fact
NOVEMBER 27th A SPLASH: Swimming laps is like meditation to me. I can feel my mind calm and my body relax as we do laps together. I could barely contain myself long enough to take this shot of Ian creating a splash before I created one of my own yesterday just after arriving in Kep
NOVEMBER 28th SOMETHING HIDDEN: Through the statues dedicated to donors at the pagoda there is a glimpse of Rabbit Island, which is almost hidden from view but constantly on the minds of the little monks of Kep. We have taken them there on day trips twice and the requests to repeat this experience are constantly being made. Today we visited and proposed to the Abbot that we do it again with them next month but the boys do not know that yet
NOVEMBER 29th A LIST: I came across today when I was reading a little booklet put out by the Australian Embassy containing many varied facts and figures about Australia. As an expat I’ve always had one as it is so embarrassing to be living in another country and not be able to supply answers to locals on the many topics that one is invariably asked about. This habit started in my first overseas posting in China, where information was scarce in 1989, well before Google could easily solve such an issue and I still always pick one up in the embassy whenever we need to go there. Now that we have booked our tickets we are turning our thoughts towards Australia and with a bit of luck and a fair wind we may even receive an invite to Friday night drinks at the embassy this week for the first time ever
NOVEMBER 30th A FAMILY MEMBER: Not so much a family member as THE family member that my world revolves around. In fact, the only family member I have seen or spent any time with in the last four and a half years. Ian is never happier than when he has a serve of rice and a curry in front of him. I went with the most recent shot I have of him and it was this one taken three days ago
A late update: This was was also selected for the Fab Four on the day I posted it and I only just discovered that
THE PROMPTS
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