SECTION EIGHT

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COLUMN SEVENTY-TWO, JUNE 1, 2002
(Copyright © 2002 Al Aronowitz)

LETTER FROM INDO-CHINA:
A TEXAN TOURS THE KILLING FIELDS

I am off to Phom Phen for three nights four days at three AM....I'll be back Friday. I saw some great fights last night with Dr. Kenny and "MY EXTENDED FAMILY" ....what a story!!!. My "date" with the hairdresser turned into a financial rape for me. She met me with her sister (the interpreter) and her nine year old kid (bay-bee) ......It was a baht horror show. I took them to dinner and they ordered one of every fish known to mankind. Then I tried to ditch them for boxing but they insisted on coming along which set me back another 2,000 baht (plus drinks). No more (alleged) nice girls......Ho's only. The sister had the balls to tell me, "Next Time You Come, My Sister Will Go To Phukett With You"...I said "Yeah? With how many family members?"

Dr. Kenny sized up the situation and commented, "If that is her fucking sister then I am your brother and that Thai over there is our cousin." I think Sis was a baht facilitator, there to skin my $$$$.... I deserve it...I sensed impending boredom and financial disaster and didn't bail like I told myself I should...OK.. be in touch...I'll E you from The Killing Fields...Hope they have lot's of  pics of those Agent Orange Victims...I love those......Skulls dude..Think Skulls ........OUT.

* * *

Here is a bit about my side trip to Cambodia...Like I said, the country is a shit hole which makes it a great place to visit. It is a rather dry account. Not much happened...The ongoing crisis in my life is my Ahhhhh! relationship with "So" who is a bar girl. We've been through this before. I start to feel real affection for her but I know as soon as I go back to the USA she'll be servicing Kraut, Finn, Limey shank. YAVOOL! Wolfgang will be sticking his finger (or his bratwurst) up my honey's ass...Oy! The Horror! The Horror! More on this later...

* * *  

Here we go:.........Three Nights, Four Days in Cambodia..... SO and I stayed up all night with some pool and boom sing. Her first trip out of the country or on a plane. Left Pattaya at 3am for the airport in Bangkok. Slept in the cab, slept on the plane and arrived in Phnom Penh in the morning. A driver picked us up "welcome Mr. Wayne and Ms. So" ..drove to our hotel which by Khun Rum's usual modest standards was posh. Took a shower, more boom sing and ate a French lunch. Off on a half day tour of the city (which makes Saigon look like River Oaks or Beverly Hills) Went to a bunch of temples, the National Museum, The King's Palace, and the highlight of the day Tuol Sleng the infamous torture camp. Ouyie! Those Khmer guys made Uncle Adolph seem like a piker. Everyone was chained to their metal bed (no mattress of course), electrodes to the nuts, whipped, water torture, eyes gouged out....then after all that they executed them by slamming a shovel into the neck....ouch! I never saw anything like it. Much more gruesome than the Agent Orange pics in Saigon... Next day, Excellant...Apocolypse Now, Heart of Darkness....we boarded a cigar shaped speed boat for the river trip to Siem Reap. Farang on top, sane Asians inside the air conditioned innards of the craft. Five hours, after a half hour of which all backs were beginning to give out. So was a real trooper, opting to stay on top with moronic Farang rather than join her more practical Asian brothers and sisters down below. Arrived in some smelly shit dump and boarded a small craft for another short ride ..Changed to a cab "Welcome Mr. Wayne and Ms. So"....Angkor Wat very much worth the heat and dust..Also impressive was Angkor Thom and about 10 others we saw. It was a steaming hot day. We were both drenched. Now for a Rum slip up. We missed our plane back because I thought 17:30 was 7:30 not 5:30. So was pissed but we scored a nice room in Siem Reap and she was back in a good mood in no time....French dinner, taxi ride around the town....back to our room where we hired two massage girls to do us up. Quick boom sing and to sleep. Next day...Arrive back...short rest and off to The Killing Fields...Lot's of skulls...(So says, "Look Win, they look like coconuts?)...Many mass graves and a monument. A few land mine victims wheeling around who I gave $$ to. Back to the Hotel, went out for French dinner, boom sing...sleep....

Last day, get up, boom sing, breakfast and a long long ride out to a temple...The Mountain Temple or something. It was 650 something steps to the top. So almost passed out at the top from the heat....She had to rest for a while before we could go down.... On the way back we made a quick tour of Zone 11 the infamous Vietnamese whorehouse district. Called zone 11 because it is exactly 11 kilimeters from PP. Ouyie! What a shit dump...Garbage everywhere...Plastic garbage....rotting garbage..Some Farang were sitting around the bars drinking beers. We didn't stop....Off to the Russian Market. Pay Up time. I bought So a gold chain for $65 bucks and some curios for myself...Back to the hotel and off to the airport. Was back in Thailand in less than an hour..

Conclusion: Cambodia is the poorest goddamned country I ever saw. Only about two miles of paved road. The money is worthless. Everyone uses American bucks or Thai baht...Garbage everywhere. No one seems to pick up any garbage....Except for one or two main streets I wouldn't walk around Phnom Penh at night. We strolled two blocks from our hotel to a restaurant at night and saw several armed private guards with automatic weapons patrolling buildings. Beggers all over the place. However, we had a great time and I'd go back in an instant.....The people are outrageous. Very friendly..The prices are dirt (lot's of dirt and dust everywhere) cheap. I'd like to return and take the three hour trip to Sihanookville on the coast. Other places as well. There is lot's more to see and at bargain prices. It has a more relaxed vibe than Vietnam (at least that's what I think) And the Dodge City atmosphere gives it an exciting edge. In short...Highly Rum Recommended....  ##

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