AsiaLIFE

Sunset’s the time when Cambodian people get ready to take their toddlers on outings, not put them to bed. Mother of a vivacious three-year-old Angela Savage finds two good reasons to go native.

‘Enjoy Phnom Penh Park’ say the red neon letters in Khmer script over the entrance to the riverfront fairground just south of the port. It’s both a business name and an invitation to have fun. And every evening around sunset motorbike loads of Cambodian families answer the call.

Surveying the crowds from his perch in the ticketing booth is manager Dara, who has worked five years for the company behind the park.

‘I love my job,’ he says. ‘I get to watch people have fun. If I couldn’t come here to work every evening, I’d be sad.’

Phnom Penh Garden has been operating on Sisowath Quay just north of Street 90 since early 2008, having moved from its previous location near the Nagaworld.


The Fun of the Fair

Its rides include rotating planes and jeeps, two electric trains – one with carriages shaped like ducks – a merry-go-round, small Ferris wheel, dodgem cars and a roller coaster.

There are also a jumping castle with built-in slides, wading pools where kids can angle for plastic fish, and token-operated rides in the shape of various animals, not to mention a child-sized armoured tank. Despite the words ‘United States’ written on the side of one electric train, all the equipment comes from Vietnam.

With few exceptions, the rides swing, sway, rotate and/or undulate at a toddler-friendly pace, accompanied by tinny music and flashing fairy-lights. Some seatbelts are functional, and many rides are safe enough for toddlers to tackle on their own, thereby satisfying their need for independence. With most rides costing 1,000 riel and 2,000 riel, you can afford to indulge that other great craving toddlers have – repetition.

Provided she gets to be in the driver’s seat, our three-year-old has been known to happily ride the electric train five times in a row while a miniature signal box beside the tracks plays ‘Frère Jacques’ over and over. She can’t get enough of it.

The operators will direct you to the relevant ticket booth if you can’t figure out where to pay for specific rides. You can buy a wad of tickets and cash in unused ones before you leave. I’ve even seen operators return tickets to families whose crying child had to be pulled from a ride before it got underway. Dara says foreigners visit the fairground, but it’s Cambodian families who are the main patrons. It’s the sort of place where you bump into tuk-tuk drivers from your neighbourhood out for the evening with their kids in tow.

‘Enjoy Phnom Penh Park’ is open from 5pm to 10pm (Monday to Saturday) and from 4pm – 10pm on Sundays. Provided you’re not paranoid about safety standards, it’s a wonderful place to mingle with Cambodian families and keep toddlers and smaller children entertained.


Dancing Fountain

If you’re in the mood for more mingling and your toddler still has energy to burn, head south along Sothearos Boulevard towards the Cambodia-Vietnam Friendship Monument. Here in the park opposite Wat Botum Votey is a Chinese-built fountain, which looks nondescript by day. But on festive evenings, it explodes in a spectacular show of multi-coloured lights and special effects, jets of water spraying, twisting and leaping metres into the air in choreographed routines.

With luck there’ll be loud music pumping out of huge speakers to the side of the park – think Vanessa-Mae does the 1812 Overture – making it seem as though the fountain is dancing.

Like ‘Enjoy Phnom Penh Park’, the fountain is popular with Cambodian families and a great place to hang out with the locals. Sunday nights when it’s not raining and festival days offer the best chance of seeing the dancing fountain in action. Show starts around 6pm to 6.30pm.