Words
- by Roberto Rocha
- published from Cambodia
- on 2010.09.08
Cambodia makes you want to learn history
You go to a new country and in a few days you can make a reliable generalization. These people, they are cranky. These others, they are outgoing and festive. Those there, shy and gentle.
Cambodians stumped me. One week in and I couldn’t condense the national psyche to any nugget worth its air.
I was in a country with fast-paced cities, mind-blowing architectural aesthetics (ever seen a Khmer pagoda?) and a proud heritage of a bygone empire. But the people were a total mystery.
- by Roberto Rocha
- published from Cambodia
- on 2010.08.21
The strange statues of Koh Kong (PHOTOS)
In the town of Koh Kong, near the border with Thailand, there’s a Buddhist spiritual retreat with a bizarre collection of sculptures by its riverfront.
In the photos below you’ll see sadistic-looking sculptures dressed in KR uniform killing people with the heads of animals. You’ll see a man being sawed in half while being pecked by a garuda, a bird of Buddhist mythology.
See full article for photo gallery.
- by Roberto Rocha
- published from Colombia
- on 2009.09.28
Cartagena and the Spanish dilemma
The more I learn about Colombian history, the more pissed off I get at the Spanish. Which creates an awkward situation: I can’t possibly stay mad at the nation that gave me paella, sangria, tapas, flamenco and Penélope Cruz.