To start with a downer, Phnom Penh night market is bit of a disappointment, especially if you have seen the Siem Reap night market. I saw it once before our visit to Siem Reap, and once after. But except for one aspect of the Phnom Penh Night Market, which I will talk about later, everything else was pretty usual. If you are on a tight schedule, you can choose to give this market a miss.
The market is situated near the Mekong Quay, close to Wat Phnom. Shops here start opening up at aroud 4pm and are open till about 10pm. Inside the market, you will find kiosks and shops selling counterfeit clothes, belts, and bags.
There
are some cute designs up for sale at very reasonable prices, so if you
are the right size, you can probably try some. The lanes are narrow and
are often very crowded. So one needs to be careful with wallets and
phones.
Besides
clothes and accessories, you will also find some shops selling
souvenirs and local art. This is a good place to buy fridge magnets,
snowglobes, and tacky t-shirts.
If you are good at bargaining, you can
get very good deals on almost everything. Even if you aren't good at it,
it doesn't hurt to try. You will manage to get at least some discount.
Besides
the shops and the kiosks, there are the food stalls, where you can find
some local delicacies, deserts, and drinks. You can but Khmer dishes,
noodles, fruit juices, and ice creams. We had a scoop of coconut
icecream and it was really good.
If
you have time, you can sit on one of the mats that have been rolled out
for people to sit on and enjoy food and family time. The atmosphere is
pretty cool, and with the cool breeze blowing on the quayside almost
every evening, it is a pleasant experience.
Coming to the coolest part of the Phnom Penh night market, it is the live performances - songs and dances, by various members of the community. Some of these artists are really good. The night market gives them a good platform to perform in front of a crowd.
Phnom Penh night market, though a popular tourist spot, can be quite disappointing for some people. So if you are tight on time, and are anyways planning to visit Siem Reap, you can choose to give this a miss.
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