I met Chhen by accident .I needed a tour guide and a friends recommended I call a guide he had used. That guide was unable to help me, but he recommended Chhen, and I am very glad he did.Chhen enjoys sharing Khmer culture and history, and this is very different from a guide that simply knows the facts.
 | Chhen knows the stories, the history, and the artistic achievements of the temples in a vocabulary that was very welcome to me as a Westerner with no prior knowledge of Angkor and without an arts background. I particularly enjoyed the day Chhen took me to Bantey Srei, where the carvings are outstandingly preserved, and explained the culture and historical perspective behind all those intricate carvings. |
and then he took me to a village corner famous for its “Cambodian noodle soup.” Chhen knew the prices Khmer pay for the lunch, and he made sure that we paid only what was fair. He is a good conversationalist too, so I felt very much like I was exploring Angkor with Chhen rather than simply hiring a person to recite facts to me. He took me to his home village, too, and I met his family, which was a great experience. I’d recommend Chhen to anybody without the slightest hesitation. |
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