Begging in Cambodia - Don't be Annoyed!
The other thing that was brought quickly into perpective about Cambodia was that, more so than any other place in Asia, we found beggars more aggressive here....Before you pass judgement, read up on it's history, the fact that it's a war ravaged country and that there are alot of war casualties from land mines, leprosy, etc. in it's midsts.I will address the begging issue further in my Warnings section but we stuck to the following rule of thumb: If they were obvious casualties of land mines or, suffering from an incapacitating illness/malody, we would readily give them money. Otherwise, when eating at a restaurant we would buy the children food or, a large banana pancake with fruit wihch they would promptly devour.Also, we carried school supplies (such as pens/pencils and candy/gum which we offered to others. Also, you can purchase cheap toys, paper, rulers....anything school related to...
