In

this issue the logo for the Ten Years Ago column has been made LARGER so that tourists

won't, as happened two issues ago, tell their friends to be wary of coming to Cambodia

because they have read news items titled "Hostage taking big money spinner for

KR" or "KR cut Route 6".

** There is some new vocabulary emerging from the American single, professional,

urban female demographic. Some examples:

* Reverse evolution princes (n.): Men who at first seem to be princes but turn out

to be frogs.

* Teenile (adj.): Used to describe someone who is way too old for what she is wearing,

as in "That 45-year old woman is wearing low-cut jeans. Is she crazy or just

teenile?"

* Mousewife (n): a male housewife.

* Lush flush (n): The rosy hue to get in your cheeks after a few too many glasses

of wine.

** A white woman was pulled over by Municipal police while driving her car in Phnom

Penh but the cops couldn't find anything wrong. So, they decided to fine her $2 for

wearing a seat belt. She paid.

** Welcome to Global Village 101: Last Saturday night CNBC ran the Tonight Show hosted

by Jay Leno.

But the intro said "Brought to you by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism in

Indonesia" and then an ad comes on in Thai for an upcoming Kitaro concert in

Bangkok sponsored by Heineken Beer.

Leno, in his monologue, says "Hey, did you hear that a dog gave birth to a cat

in Cambodia?.....Yeah, and President Bush said he was not sure yet how it happened

but he wants a Constitutional Amendment to ban it."

There were only a few chuckles, which means Cambodia is apparently off the radar

screen as an issue for the upcoming US presidential elections in November.

** How do you weed out corruption? Ask the World Bank. They have a team of "Forensic

auditors" in town taking a close look at the "thumb-print trail" on

four of their projects.

** Overheard at a cocktail reception between one Your Excellency in the old government

who has a better position in the new one, talking to a brand new Your Excellency:

"Oh, don't worry. You will make so much money, it's unbelievable!"