Tweety knows no language

From 30,000 feet in the air as Silk Air MI 608 made a slow descent towards the land, all I could descry was a canvas. A canvas utilized by an artist, unconsciously displaying his talent with colours and his/her penchant towards green. A canvas, daubed with patterns of green and brown, kissing the blue horizon and creating a melody of colours. I am 15,000 feet above Phnom Penh (perhaps outskirts) and all my eyes can see (as far as they can see) are beautiful fields speckled with brown rooftops.

My days in Phnom Penh were dotted with a regular and undulating pattern of – Sumptuous Breakfasts in the morning at the Intercontinental, Meetings and Gyaan Sessions, Lunch, Dinner and Sleep! So basically it was about food and meetings.On that note there are more than 20 Indian Restaurants in this city.

It was not all meetings though. If ever Honda sets up a crash test/load test centre for its mopeds (under 50cc kinds), Phnom Penh is the place for it. I had exhilarating ride on one of the ‘Tuk Tuk’s (a moped with a carriage attached). So far so good. Tuk Tuk ride in Phnom Penh sounds fun and local. Hold on! Imagine six fully grown and overfed males returning from dinner in the middle of the night being driven by a drunk Tuk Tuk driver. This realization dawned on us when the driver took us through a one-way street (against the traffic). We read the sign which expressed its desire to be ’One Way’ after we had the passed the street (in the opposite direction of course). In the end we had to part with 6USD for this joy ride. Yes, Khmer Riel is not really a preferred medium of exchange, USD serves you well.

The city has a quaint and an idyllic charm to it. It seems as if this sleepy town does not want to be awakened and at the same time – it seems as if civilization (or modernization as we know it) is hypnotizing it in to a nightmare. A beautiful river side dotted with serene temples, if only man knew conservation.

Anyways I did make a promise to revisit this sleepy town and to immerse myself in this mystic land. A land which was almost wiped out in the 1970s and a land where the new ‘crop’(as a friend there put it) has seen tough times.

As I was leaving Phnom Penh, my mobile phone got so attached to the city that it decided to stay back. However, I have ensured it does reach Singapore in a day or two. No escaping me!

Tired and mystified as I emerged from the security check at the airport, a young girl at the counter smiled and returned my key chain. She smiled again, pointing this time to my key chain. Tweety (which forms a part of my keychain), bright yellow and beaming, can conjure a smile irrespective of race or language– smile knows no language. Tweety knows no language.