Cambodian New Year In Phnom Penh - Celebrations Of Tradition & Religion
The New Year is always an occasion of merry festivities and celebrations and in true spirit of the occasion, the locals of Phnom Penh celebrate it with various traditional customs and cultural events.
Falling in mid April, the Cambodian New Year coincides with the dry season reaching its peak. This period is also known as the Khmer New Year or ‘Chaul Chnam Thmey” which translates to “Enter the New Year” in Khmer, the official language of Cambodia.
The celebration of this festive holiday is said to span over three days and is commonly referred to as ‘The Three Days of The New Year’, which are known as the Moha Songkran, Wanabat and Tanai Lieang Saka.
On Moha Songkran, the first day of the New Year, locals adorn colourful items and gather at shrines and temples to light candles and burn incense sticks. Cambodia being a Buddhist country, the locals pay homage to Buddhist teachings and bow thrice before an image of the Buddha. Furthermore, a tradition that is said to bring good luck, many locals wash with holy water thrice a day, that is, their faces in the morning, their chest at noon and their feet prior to bedtime.
Vietnam Overland Entry Points
From China:
Huu Nghi in Lang Son province, Northeast Vietnam - connect Guangzhi province, China.
Mong Cai in Quang Ninh province - Northeast Vietnam - connect Guangzhi province, China
Lao Cai in Lao Cai province - Northwest Vietnam - connect Yunnan province, China
From Laos:
* Tay Trang Border Gate in Dien Bien Province - Northeast Vietnam - connect to Phongsaly province, Laos.:
* Na Meo Border Gate in Thanh Hoa Province - north Centre of Vietnam - connect to Samnua province, Laos.
* Nam Can Border Gate in Nghe An Province - north Centre of Vietnam - connect to Xieng Khoang province Lao
* Keo Nua ( Cau Treo ) Border Gate in Ha Tinh Province - north Centre of Vietnam
* Lao Bao Border Gate in Quang Tri Province - north Centre of Vietnam - connect to Savannakhet province Laos.
* Cha Lo Border Gate in Quang Binh Province - north Centre of Vietnam
* Po Y Border Gate in Kon Tum Province - Central highland of Vietnam - connect to Attapeu province, Laos.
From Cambodia:
* Le Thanh Border Gate in Gia Lai Province - Central highland of Vietnam - connect (Ratanakiri, Cambodia):
* Moc Bai Border Gate in Tay Ninh Province - South Vietnam
Tourist Attractions of Cambodia
The Kingdom of Cambodia is a country in South East Asia with a population of more than fifteen million people. The kingdom’s capital and largest city is Phnom Penh. Cambodia is the successor state of the once powerful Hindu and Buddhist Khmer Empire, which ruled most of the Indochinese Peninsula between the eleventh and fourteenth centuries. A citizen of Cambodia is usually identified as “Cambodian” or “Khmer,” though the latter strictly refers to ethnic Khmers. Most Cambodians are Theravada Buddhists of Khmer extraction, but the country also has a substantial number of predominantly Muslim Cham, as well as ethnic Chinese, Vietnamese and small animist hill tribes. The country borders Thailand to its west and northwest, Laos to its northeast, and Vietnam to its east and southeast. In the south it faces the Gulf of Thailand. The geography of Cambodia is dominated by the Mekong river (colloquial Khmer: Tonle Thom or “the great river”) and the Tonl