In addition to the usual experiences of a city, the culture, the hustle and bustle and visits to various must-see sights, there are other equally important places of interest that are not to be missed. That is, if you are Helen. I am constantly amazed at how she never tires of the numerous markets at which the same old tat is sold by hawkers singing the same old tunes. I usually turn into a petulant five-year-old, grouchy at being dragged along. It is like being torn away as a kid from watching your favourite cartoon by your mother in favour of the significantly less important task of food shopping.
Nevertheless, there is usually something to occupy me at these places, regardless of the fact that I didn’t want to go. The Russian Market in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, was no exception and is where much of the western clothing made in garment factories in and around Phnom Penh that doesn’t make it to western stores, turns up. At a mere fraction of the western retail price, one can find labels such as Gap, H&M, Next, Abercrombie and Hollister, just to name a few. The problem is you can’t be sure what you’re going to find, which is not unlike shopping at the jumble sale that is TK Maxx.
To this end, it is not uncommon to see tourist t-shirts with names and pictures of local places or phrases written on them with a Gap or other familiar brand of label inside the collar. Moreover, many Asian countries produce their own brands of beer, the labels of which are reproduced on tourist t-shirts and vests for gullible visitors to advertise for free. Imagine then, if you will, a t-shirt adorned with a popular Asian beer on the front and a Disney label stitched into the collar. True story. And it was not just a one-off; I witnessed on many stalls around the market a deliberate ploy to progress and develop the cotton candy-like image of the most famous of American exports. God bless Globalisation. What on earth would Walt say? Frankly, I don’t care. It seems there really is magic in the kingdom! Either way, there is no doubt that if Disney made beer, it would probably be the best beer in the world.
Nevertheless, there is usually something to occupy me at these places, regardless of the fact that I didn’t want to go. The Russian Market in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, was no exception and is where much of the western clothing made in garment factories in and around Phnom Penh that doesn’t make it to western stores, turns up. At a mere fraction of the western retail price, one can find labels such as Gap, H&M, Next, Abercrombie and Hollister, just to name a few. The problem is you can’t be sure what you’re going to find, which is not unlike shopping at the jumble sale that is TK Maxx.
To this end, it is not uncommon to see tourist t-shirts with names and pictures of local places or phrases written on them with a Gap or other familiar brand of label inside the collar. Moreover, many Asian countries produce their own brands of beer, the labels of which are reproduced on tourist t-shirts and vests for gullible visitors to advertise for free. Imagine then, if you will, a t-shirt adorned with a popular Asian beer on the front and a Disney label stitched into the collar. True story. And it was not just a one-off; I witnessed on many stalls around the market a deliberate ploy to progress and develop the cotton candy-like image of the most famous of American exports. God bless Globalisation. What on earth would Walt say? Frankly, I don’t care. It seems there really is magic in the kingdom! Either way, there is no doubt that if Disney made beer, it would probably be the best beer in the world.
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