Michael Batson

New years are big and plentiful in Cambodia, they recognize three in total; the international day; Chinese New Year and the Khmer New Year of these the latter two are by far the more celebrated, all these in a country already awash with public holidays. The Cambodian New Year or Chaul Chnam Thmey, which in Khmer literally means “Enter new year”. The holiday lasts for three days beginning on New Year's Day in mid-April, this year starting on Friday 13th, and which marks the end of the harvesting season, though shops and businesses often stay closed longer.For Khmer New Year, Cambodian flock back to their provinces in huge numbers, choking roads and booking out hotels, leaving bemused tourists to wander largely deserted streets and congregate in riverside bars. As many Khmers flock to their hometowns, the inevitable complaints of price hikes and border bribes have started pouring in like clockwork. The traffic police are infamous for their sudden enthusiasm for generating revenue with the New Year beckoning. Phnom Penh streets are coveted by gangs of the blue-shirted plague stopping motorists for on-the-spot fines for some imaginary offence. I was stopped on my motor bike by half-a-dozen of these guys, two grabbing my handlebars as if to prevent me fleeing, and thrust a flyer written in Khmer under my nose. They demanded $50 to be paid immediately, an outrageous sum equivalent to a month’s pay for an officer. The price quickly dropped to $20