Phenomenal Phnom Penh

Encounter a blend of Buddhist virtues and Western convenience at every turn.

- Allie Moore

VANS, CARS AND MOTORBIKES (known as “motos”) whizz around Independence Monument at the junction of Norodom and Sihanouk boulevards, while vendors push two-wheeled carts of eggs down the dusty numbered streets, announcing their presence through megaphones affixed to their carts with twine. Only on major thoroughfares do drivers of the deluge of vehicles obey the rules of the road. Elsewhere, it’s every moto for itself. Phnom Penh’s grid of streets is the epitome of chaos, but amid the dense tropical humidity that hovers imposingly over the Cambodian capital, tranquility can come in the most unexpected moments.

With one of the world’s largest concentrations of nongovernmental organizations, Phnom Penh hosts a fair number of events and conferences for nonprofit professionals. As such, the gradually growing Southeast Asian city evolved to meet the needs of visiting professionals and their personal entourages. With a recently enhanced city-wide bus system, a year-old train connecting the airport to the city and an infrastructure investment of $300 million during the past five years, Phnom Penh makes strides — long overdue by some cities’ standards — that finally bring the Kingdom of Cambodia’s biggest city into the present day.