Pet lovers may get caught up in the nationality debate. A woman recently took

her cat to the local vet for a vaccination shot and found out that she had to fill

in a space on the certification form marked "Race" before she could get

it back signed and sealed.

** Could someone explain to the casinos in Phnom Penh, which may or may not

be legal depending on who you talk to, that the Cambodian riel IS actually the legal

tender for the Kingdom, has been quite stable for the last two years, and IS easily

exchangeable for dollars anywhere around town. One casino pit boss when proffered

a 10,000 note looked like he was asked to shake hands with a leper.

** A road construction advisor who passed through town last week after a two-year

stint in northern Laos on the Chinese border said that compared to where he was "working

in Cambodia was like working at IBM."

** A senior, senior human rights worker who is about to leave on June 30 after

a two-year tour here in the Kingdom for points unknown was overheard last month asking

"Where's Kandal?"

** It's been confirmed. If you want to make an international call and not be

overheard by absolutely anyone, then use the MPTC pay phones. Sources say they CAN

NOT be tapped.

** This latest from the land of high-tech. A recent survey of American adults determined

that only nine percent of all Americans over the age of 18 knew for sure whether

the sun revolved around the earth or vice versa. The question "Is the earth

flat or round?" was not asked.

** Last issue's Gecko column has seemed to stir up a bit of debate, most of it positive

with one senior NGO worker commenting "Great stuff, this is the last colony

and the NGOs think they run it." However, we've received one bitter submission

from "the cockroach" which will run in the next edition, as will a second

piece from the TNGO Subversion Group. Stay tuned, and be advised, the Gecko did not

write the TNGO piece himself.