Classical dance dates

Sam Savin, one of the classical dancers who will perform on 7 June

I suggest you put Saturday 7 June or the following day in your calendar. A newly revived work of Khmer Classical Dance - called Preah Anurudh Preah Neang Ossa - will be performed at the Chenla Theater in Phnom Penh by artists from the School of Fine Arts. Tickets are a snip at 3,000 and 6,000 riel with the show being staged by the Amrita Performing Arts group. I was lucky enough to see the premiere of this new work at a special staging of the dance in February and its worth going to see. Kudos to ANZ Royal Bank for sponsoring this event.

Today I spent the day at the quarterly meeting of CCBEN - the Cambodia Community-Based Ecotourism Network - in their new offices on Street 468, a few blocks from the Russian Market. I've mentioned CCBEN before - they provide information and support in various ways to ecotourism projects around Cambodia - and its well worth visiting their website for more details. They also laid on some food afterwards for an official office-warming party. One new project that is just in its infancy and who came along to the meeting to explain their concept was In The Stream of the Palm Tree, a community-based project by the Prek Tnout Commune, about 14 kms outside of Kampot, on the road to Sihanoukville. Supported by the NGO Save Cambodia's Wildlife, the project will provide opportunities for visitors to enjoy waterfalls, mangrove forests, guided walks, boat trips and more, and operates in the lee of Bokor National Park. And before I forget, there's an exhibition of Stay Another Day at Meta House this coming Friday. It kicks-off at 6pm and will interest anyone wishing to find out more about initiatives that will enhance your visit to Cambodia and also give you an opportunity to contribute in some way to improving the welfare of its people. If you see the orange-coloured SAD booklet, grab it because its a mine of information. Link: CCBEN