Alleyways of PP

Breakfast time © Steve Goodman

Photographer Steve Goodman loves taking pictures around the busy alleyways of Phnom Penh. And he does it bloody well I must say. Steve gave me a few essays for my own To Cambodia With Love book that's due out in a few months and this one on his alleyway pursuits is one that didn't actually make the final cut. However, it's worth posting here. You can see more of Steve's photographic work here.

Phnom Penh's Alleyways - by Steve Goodman

As a photographer I enjoy going where other travelers do not tread, not only to witness and photograph everyday life, but also to meet and interact with everyday people and enjoy the surprised and delighted reactions of Phnom Penh’s denizens when they see a foreigner not only intruding into their private lives but demonstrating interest and warmth. I have never failed to be amazed at the almost uniformly friendly and warm greetings that I receive in long winding alleys and hidden side-streets that aren’t depicted on most maps.

Of course Phnom Penh’s bustling markets are fantastic places to wander around, but they are generally crowded and can be sweltering, especially during the hot season. So aside from shooting photos in the beautiful light of the early morning and the golden light of sunset, I enjoy wandering through Phnom Penh’s alleyways, where even on the hottest of days it is shady and relatively cool. One time on an alley behind the busy Kampuchea Krom boulevard, an entire family invited me into their shophouse where they sold traditional Khmer herbal medicine, and treated me to a few candied fruit treats laced with traditional herbal remedies.

Often people who are eating on their stoops offer me some of their food. Me, a total stranger whose only calling card is a smile and a few words of greeting in Khmer. Sometimes I meet folks who speak a bit of English, but just as often I meet people who seem to speak fluent French and are sorely disappointed when I let them know that I don’t speak the language even a little bit. Of course the children that I meet are the most amazing people I encounter… playing, laughing, and sometimes showing off their blossoming English language skills by saying, “hello, what is your name”. Sometimes the younger ones will proudly count to ten in English in an always successful attempt to impress and surprise the foreigner.

Most people are happy to permit a few photos if asked with a smile. Often times when someone is initially reluctant, after I show them the photo they enthusiastically invite their friends and relatives to come and have me take their pictures too. The only time I get a negative reaction to a photo request is when I ask people who are gambling huddled around a card game, so I’ve learned simply not to ask most groups of street-side card players.

Along many alleys are small cafes and pushcart vendors offering a wide range of snacks and beverages and the people milling about trying to beat the heat always have time for a brief interchange with a smiling camera wielding stranger.You'll also find businesses of all sorts in these mostly residential sidestreets; noodle factories, tailors, herbal medicine shops, and much more.

Smothering Burma in love

Cover of To Myanmar With Love

The second book in the To Asia With Love series is being published this month by ThingsAsian Press of San Francisco and it looks like it'll be a scorcher. Already To Vietnam With Love by the series editor Kim Fay is in the bookshops, and now a window into the often secret and murky world of Myanmar (or Burma to most of us) comes in the shape of To Myanmar With Love, its 275 pages edited by Morgan Edwardson and with photographs by Phnom Penh-based lensman Steve Goodman. Morgan, who lives in Bangkok and makes regular trips to Burma, has assembled a great team of local and expat writers to provide a unique insight into dining, shopping, sightseeing and culture in a country they know intimately. I'm firmly in the 'go and visit Burma' camp and so this book will be priceless when I get around to satisfying my Burma curiosity. And of course, To Cambodia With Love is still in oven, actually it's at the editing stage and looking likely for an early 2010 release.