Images from Siem Reap

People love it or hate it.  There is little in between when it comes to the durian fruit (pronounced too-rain in Khmer).  They look prehistoric and don't taste like your typical sweet, juicy fruit.  You slash them open with a butcher knife and hack out the yellowish, egg-shaped chunks.  They taste like a rich custard, have the texture of mango, and smell like dirty socks. 
*Fun fact:  People are killed every year by durian falling off trees.

Lotus flowers can be eaten raw, just before they bloom.  They taste best on the very day they were picked.  All the parts can be eaten, the roots, flower, etc.  Most people buy them in this form.  It takes a bit of work to pick out each individual seed, and although they don't contain a lot of flavor, they make a cheap, healthy, and convenient snack.

I packed light with the plan to fill up my backpack with rarities from the Western Grocery stores.  I purchased, among other things, two boxes of cereal, pasta sauce, Pop Tarts, a nail buffer, and Cambodia's version of 409.  When I discovered boxes of Mac n' Cheese, I almost caused an International incident by wildly tossing boxes in my basket with noodles of all shapes: shells, dinosaurs, spirals...  At the register, I said, " Hi, I'm Kerri.  I'm a cheese addict." 

"Squeak...Squeak...Squeak!"  In the U.S., this sound would arouse all the dogs in the area.  Yet, in Cambodia, the purpose is much different.  Ladies walk along the streets with their carts and squeak their dog toys.  This alerts the restaurant owners to bring out their bags of aluminum cans.  The squeak ladies then takes them to a recycling plant in exchange for money.  Part of their proceeds go back to the restaurant owners for taking the time to separate them.