by khmerbird on January 21, 2010
Book’s Description
17 April 1975. The date sends a chill down the spine of most Cambodians. It was the start of a nightmare that was to continue for almost four years at the hands of the brutal Khmer Rouge.
Photographer Roland Neveu was one of the few foreigners who stayed behind when most of the press corps left the country as part of US evacuation operation Eagle Pull. The few 35-mm films which he shot that day are some of the only remaining images of that time. He was lucky enough to be able to take them out of the country after his forced sojourn in the French Embassy compound. This book takes you to Phnom Penh on that fateful day.
Buy the book from Monument Book
by khmerbird on August 13, 2009
i know her but i guess she doesn’t know me. it’s normal. i met her few times in some social occasions. there are a lot of things i admire about her work but this is the first time that i wrote about her.
Who is she
i first saw her on the television, few years back. she surprised me when i have learned about her life. she married since she was very young, after her husband died, she was sold to a brothel. i hardly imagine how she could survive and how much she suffer with her own life. she managed to escape from the brothels and she founded AFESIP to help others young sold children.
her name is Somaly Mam,
it’s sad but we must know what happen
i turned a few pages of the book, it’s well written. i believed she would tell everything in a direct way about her life. i need to prepare to read this book because i know what kind of book i am about to read. her life is a nightmare but her courage is a god’s gift. she have done many actions to take back all those innocents girls from many brothel in Cambodia and she is still doing it everyday.
before this book, i met a beer girl in Siem Reap, she came from the same province, Mondulkiri as Bong Somaly. she were talking with customers, with accent, while she served the beers as anywhere else in Cambodia. i didn’t want to believed what she told. i though she might just want to kidding me and ask for money.
after reading more about Bong Somaly’s life, now i know there are also many other girls experiences the same life.
i think now the situation is getting better, but still the action is still needed to act to prevent this kind of things.
You too, can get involved
Bong Somaly NGO always need fund to support her actions and take care of those girls. a few bucks of donation would help to make a different.
you can buy her book The Road of Lost Innocence
or you can make donation directly on her website AFESIP (Agir pour les Femmes en Situation Précaire)
by khmerbird on June 25, 2009
National Geographic Magazine July 2009 featured great article about Angkor and don’t forget to check out the 3D animations from Angkor Interactive, it’s great to see how Khmer people lived in 13th Century.
ANSWERS FROM ANGKOR (Cover story), by Richard Stone, photographed by Robert Clark,
During the ninth to 15th centuries, the resplendent city of Angkor, capital of the Khmer kingdom and home to royalty and the largest religious monument on Earth, was the most extensive urban complex in the world.
Yet Angkor today is in ruins and populated mostly by peasant rice farmers. The reason behind the city’s downfall may be rooted in its ancient, vast and complex water system.
It was a marvel of engineering designed to control the flow of water into the sprawling city, but it required constant maintenance. When the water system faltered, so did Angkor’s power.
Writer Richard Stone brings to light the limits of human ingenuity, while veteran National Geographic photographer Robert Clark chronicles the sacred city, past and present. Stone is available for interviews.
Read the full article Answers from Angkor
by khmerbird on June 19, 2009
it’s me at the 2nd rang and also 2nd from the left, it was the 2nd time that i won the award for my 2nd short story and also for the 2nd price, i never got chance to got number one yes, as you can see it’s all about number 2 LOL
but it’s a pleasure to be a part of those people, who love literature and support the ideas of young writers, it could give me a reference to measure myself where i am in the middle of dream and reality.
the photo was taken in 2007 when i received the award for the short story “The man on the roof“, the story was not too good enough i would confess, i didn’t have much time to write. you can find anyway my old writing style … hope it’s not too much boring too.
i am glad to hear this year, they also celebrate the same thing, you can find more information as below:
Nou Hach Literary Association Writers Conference on Literary Aesthetics
The Nou Hach Literary Association, in cooperation with the Sowers Association and the Khmer Writers’ Association abroad, will once again host its annual writers conference for 2009, now in its seventh year.
The seminar features Cambodian guest speakers as well as guest speakers from Sweden, Iceland, Demark and Fore Island, who will share their experiences.
Topic: Literary Aesthetics
Place: Buddhist Institute, Phnom Penh
Date: Saturday 20th June 2009
Time: 7.30am to 5pm
Cost: Free with registration – refreshments provided
The winners of the Nou Hach Writing Competition in short story and poetry will also be announced.
Places are limited! To register for the seminar or for more information, please contact:
Nou Hach Literary Association office
Buddhist Institute
Email: khmerlite@gmail.com
Phone: 023 355 484 / 011 955 599
(Or in English: laurajeanmckay@yahoo.com.au / 089 820 517)
by khmerbird on November 4, 2008
have you watch old boy? maybe it is too strong and insane for you. i would not dare to recommend you unless you are a fan of cinema and you could understand how far idea can go and then maybe one day you could try but be warned you will get shock …
but the idea and creation of the director and actor are the masterpiece and memorized in cinema history. it’s a wonderful work and imagination from the director and the sacrifice from the actor. i could not imagine if in this world someone else can perform the same level as him. it’s about the revenge and the idea of the revenge is cruel and insane. there’s no explanation, why we need to go in the third level but it’s a good try and finally people can accept the idea.
i got the same message that i need to pass to people, we should think of how our action can effect and give the uncomfortable moment to the other people around us. we got power, we got money and it doesn’t mean you can do anything. one day all those effects might be brought back to you and then maybe it’s too late to apology. this is my main idea on the next short story, as i said it will be the black one. we call it noir (it’s the French word to say black) and a film noir is a category of the movie that show a dark side world from the other side of what we call the right way.
so it will be a black one but there’s one thing i can promise you it will make sense. and the message is quite important to what people need to improve now in some social sessions. it will be focus on a traffic police and a security guard. they both got the hot blood and it will accompany by a lovely on-stage dancer.
after this serious short story i promise to someone that i will write a comedy and sweet one. so maybe you are not going like this when i am serious 
by khmerbird on October 6, 2008
My mum called me around 5 am or maybe earlier … it’s Sunday. we had a nice party last night and have a lot of funs.
When i listen to Gloomy Sunday, it made me think of a poem i wrote few years ago. at that time i wanted to write something about Monivong Boulevard.
sometime life is not that easy, in a certain circumstance. i pray it won’t be last for anybody. it’s juts a moment of time, somewhere in your life. i wrote Monivong Boulevard with a strength from my heart, with a memory i had for certain people who involved in my life, who have shared a certain moment with me. this poem is for you all. it was written somewhere in Phnom Penh, October 9 2003.
you can read it at www.lookatkhmer.com
Thank to http://ikhmer2.wordpress.com/ for introducing the Gloomy Sunday, it’s a hunted song, really.
by khmerbird on September 26, 2008
definition,
Sbove : (n) kind of grass (Saccharum spicatum) used for thatching roofs.
how many of you have seen Sbove? i guess everybody knows it. but have you ever seen its flower (Pka Sbove)?
when i said Pka Sbove, everybody asked me back,
Does Sbove has flower?
Yes it has, and there’s a romantic story about it.
I heard it one night, somebody told me about the story of Pka Sbove
and since then i can’t stop thinking about writing a story with the nature of Pka Sbove.
here is the story of Pka Sbove,
there’s a kind of Sbove that has flower. the flower grows and flourishes. when the time comes, the wind will blow the Pka Sbove from its trunk. some Pka Sbove got no chance. it touches the ground, plans itself and becomes the Sbove just next to their family. some lucky Pka Sbove is blew from trunk to trunk, from place to place. it flies in the wind, it travels from village to village, from province to province and sometime even from country to country. unlike any others Pka Sbove, the free Pka Sbove got chance to fly and see the world. only the destiny that can decide when it touches the ground. Once it touches the ground, it will become the Sbove and it will never be able to fly or go anywhere again.
i was old once orally and i never be able to hear it again. it’s the same like the story itself there’s no second chance ! LOL
Synopsis: coming soon.
Characters: i wanted to write about a policeman, a backstage dancer, a security guard.
Category: drama/black/gangster story
Plot: Impossible love, Violence, Tragedy.
Target: As long as it get everything to be a good story.
by khmerbird on September 9, 2008
If the morning still comes, one after one
It’s because I need another day,
To find the words,
To write them down,
To find the way,
To let you know,
That I love you and I will always do.
If the wind still blows, from place to place
It’s because I need them to transport my message,
From me to you, far away
To let you know,
That I am right here,
Waiting for you,
No matter how long it will take, I will wait.
If the rain is still falling down, drop after drop
It’s because I like to sit here,
Near my window,
Spending my time,
Watching the rain,
And at the same time,
I could think about you,
The rain is beautiful, exactly as how you look like.
If the birds are still singing, louder and louder
It’s because I ask them to sing a song,
The song that I wrote especially for you,
And when you hear it,
You would know,
You would feel,
How long I have waited for you
How much I love you, how much I care about you.
If you still hear the sermons, from pagoda to pagoda
It’s because I am praying for you,
I am praying to meet you one day,
I will bring you to Van Restaurant,
I will bring you to Chinese Restaurant,
I will bring you to Pizza Company,
I will bring you to KFC,
Anywhere you like, I will invite you a dinner.
If the empty Cyclo is still there, down the Sisowath Quey
It’s because I ask the driver to wait,
I know soon or later you will arrive,
You and I, we will make a ride,
Around the City,
To the Riverbank,
To Wat Phnom,
To Phsa Thmey,
And you will see how happy I am, to have you near.
Everything is possible my dear, even you are near or far
Why can’t I just love you?
Why can’t I just think about you?
Why can’t I just miss you?
And if even you don’t exist,
Why can’t I just create you?
End.
Written with accompany of music from Yiruma – Love me
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Image: Kiss the rain, from My Music Blog
by khmerbird on August 19, 2008
in my dream,
Phnom Penh is a city of trees and flowers,
people live in the houses of wood with a garden,
there’s no automobile, or train or plane but elephants.
in my dream,
Phnom Penh is a city of Civilization,
people take care of their neighbors as their own family,
there’s no robbery, or murder or betrayal but love and respect.
in my dream,
Phnom Penh is a city of dreams,
some dream to be a good father or a good mother,
some dream to be a good son or good daughter,
but no one dreams to be The King or Leader,
we live together like brothers, we talk like a man,
we share what we earn, and we always live in peace.
end.
by khmerbird on July 29, 2008
