Shopping Frenzy

The next couple of days were very stressful.  How do you ever know if you're getting the best deal at the tourist market?  The thought of overspending can be almost unbearable.

After taking in days and days of amazing culture, it was time for something a little less cerebral.  It was time for shopping!  We were going to try out our bargaining skills at the Siem Reap Central Market and the Phnom Penh Russian Market.  Plus for good measure, we got massages at Seeing Hands, which is an organization that trains people who are blind to be masseuses, and Barb, Holly and I got pedicures at Dr. Fish.

Neil and I quickly found a routine in the Central Market.  Because any form of eye contact with a vendor or mild interest in an item solicited excited sales pitches, we needed a game plan to fight back.  Since I'm better at negotiating (and more interested in shopping), I was the face of negotiations, while Neil played the bad cop who thought everything was priced too high.  The result was a fantastic combination of getting some great items and buying way too much stuff.  Check out a few of our treasures: (Cambodian flag, coconut-wood box shaped like a mangosteen fruit and a shopping bag made from recycled cement bags)

My favorite experience of the day came at a jewelry counter.  I was considering buying a necklace pendant made of aquamarine.  It's hard to know what's genuine in this situation, but the vendor was prepared for my skepticism.  Before deciding on a price, she brought out a small, black device.  She told me it was for determining if a stone was real.  She pressed the pointed end of the box on the glass counter top and showed that it was not real gemstone.  Then she pressed it on my potential stone, and the box showed that it WAS real.  Next she pressed it against her ring and a stone in her display showing that they were real and fake respectively.  How can you argue with that?!  Neil's still not convinced, but I was sold.  Her machine said it was real!

OK fine, she talked me into blue topaz earrings too

After buying one of everything we saw, we stopped for lunch at a "Belgian" restaurant featuring a cocktail created by Angelina Jolie.  Barb was brave enough to order one in the hopes of being a big winner.  Every 10th Tomb Raider they sell is free, and every 100th wins a t-shirt and 100 bucks.  She was lucky enough to get hers free (they may have felt bad for us, we're not sure)!

Live entertainment with lunch

 Next it was time to pamper our tired feet, so we found the best deal in town:

Dr. Fish stands can be found all over the tourist areas of Siem Reap and other Asian cities.  As soon as you sit down on the side of tank, the little fish start swarming, and boy are they hungry!  They will nibble on your dead skin for as long as you will allow.  Holly was a real champ and kept her foot in the tank the entire 15 minutes.  Barb and I were another story.  We could only handle a few seconds at a time at the beginning, but eventually we relaxed a bit and enjoyed ourselves.  Neil decided the owners wouldn't appreciate their fish being kicked clear across the street by his sensitive feet, so he acted as official photographer instead.

Fishies ready for the feast 

Barb and Christine: giggly messes

Holly: calm and collected

It was really an interesting experience.  We decided it just felt like tickling bubbles if you didn't think about it too much.  It looks like there are a handful of similar services around the States, if anyone is interested!!











Our time in Siem Reap was over after that day, so we hopped on a bus headed for Phnom Penh, where we started the shopping process all over again.  It really was a tough way to spend a couple of days.