While

the Kingdom was thankfully unharmed by the Tsunami off the coast of Aceh last December

26, there have been a few minor spillover effects that are more a result of creative

imaginations at work than the movement of tectonic plates.

Reports from Sihanoukville indicate that there has been a noticeable drop in seafood

consumption at some local restaurants there stemming from the belief that crabs have

headed out to deeper waters to forage off of corpses. Said crustaceans would no doubt

win an undersea long distance award as the initial hop to Singaporean waters is already

1,000kms.

A separate rumor is circulating that the number of ghosts on the prowl in the Southeast

Asian region has skyrocketed, causing one Phnom Penh resident to avoid unlit streets

at night.

** There is still time for fans of Angkor Wat to participate in an election for the

"New 7 Wonders of the World" contest. Voting is already underway at the

website www.new7wonders.com, but Angkor Wat is not one of the current leading contenders.

With more than 18 million votes cast, the Pyramids at Giza, the Taj Mahal, and the

Great Wall of China are all front runners, as is - GET THIS! -- the statues of Easter

Island.

Ballots can be cast for seven more weeks. Former UNESCO head Federico Mayor Zara-goza

will make an announcement on March 13 on which 21 sites will go forward to the final

round of voting.

** Some prison officials are in a bit of a quandary. They say there is no law against

attempted or successful escapes.

**The bar/lounge/restaurant Talkin to a Stranger is up for sale. No mystery there,

say owners Wendy and Derek. They are just ready to do something else.

** AFP's Luke Hunt is back in town after a whirlwind circumnavigation of the planet

in the last two

months, including a stop in Bombay where he rescued an ungrateful German guy, Christmas

in New Hampshire and a photo shoot of scantily clad surfer groupies in Hawaii. Details

of these adventures are available on request. His one complaint about his brief visit

to New York is that the people there were too friendly.

** The Australia National Day celebrations took place on Jan 26 in an orderly, diplomatic

and celebratory fashion. Even when Chea Sophara and Kep Chuktema discerned that both

were at the same event at the same time, one tiger decided that two tigers in the

same room were too much, and left.