New Living Hope Center Choir singing for the first time at Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony at Raffles.

In what was called (by employees) “the first ever Christmas tree lighting ceremony in Cambodia”, Raffles Hotel d’Angkor lit up a real tree imported from the US on December 9. A cute choir of orphans from the New Living Hope Center performed for the first time, singing Yuletide classics with Khmer tweaks like “Oh what fun it is to ride in a tuk-tuk all the way.” The ceremony wasn’t much more than a flipping of the “on” switch and a quick reading on the history of lighting ceremonies, but guests had fun plus wine and hors d’oevres.