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CAMBODIA
- SOUTH EAST ASIA
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Location
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| Cambodia
occupies an area of 181.035 square kilometers on the Indochina peninsula
and bounded by Thailand, Lao and Vietnam. The country consists chiefly
of a large alluvial plain ringed by mountains and the Mekong river.
The plain is centered on lake Tonle Sap, which is a natural storage
lake of the Mekong. The Mekong river wich rises in Tibet flows through Cambodia from Lao, North, to Vietnam, South. Phnom Penh was built in an auspicious location where the Mekong intersects with the Bassac and Tonle Sap rivers. The Tonle Sap lake and the Tonle Sap river create a unique phenomenon over the world, reversing its direction twice a year. The Dangrek mountains run along the Northern border, the Cardamom mountains run Southwest of Battambang. The Elephant mountains run East and Southeast of Phnom Penh. The country's tallest mountain, Phnom Aoral, 1.813 m, lies East of the capital between Kampong Chhnang and Kampong Speu provinces. Local time: + 7 hours GMT |
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Climate
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| Cambodia has sun almost year round. Average temperature 27 degrees Celsius; minimum tenperature is about 16 degrees. Dry season from November to March, temperature ranging from 17-27 degrees. December and January is the coolest period. Rainy season from May to October, temperature ranging from 27-35 degrees with humidity up to 90%. The hottest month is April. During this wet season, it rarely rains all day long. Precipitations come usually in the afternoon and even in the evening or night at the end of the rainy season. | |
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Population
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The total population is almost 11.5 million, with 90-95% constitued by Khmers. Other ethnic backgrounds: Chinese, Vietnamese, Cham (muslims) and Khmer Loeu (hill tribes). |
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Religion
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| The official religion of Cambodia is Theravada Buddhism, that was introduced into Cambodia in the 12th century by King Jayavarman VII. There are also around 500.000 Muslims and 60.000 Christians. | |
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Language
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| Except Khmer, which is the official language, French is spoken by old and educated people. In recent years, the trend among younger cambodians has been to study English as a second language. | |
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Currency
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| The
unit is the Riel. Riel denominations are 50, 100, 200, 500, 1.000,
2.000, 5.000, 10.000, 20.000, 50000 and even 100000. There are no
coins. American dollars are generally accepted throughout the country,
as well as Thai Baths. Most of the major hotels and the banks accept
credit cards for a 2-5% commission. You don't need to change your dollars at the airport, the rate isn't good at all and ususally the locals use the dollar as a national currency. You will need Riels in remote area or to use as little change. |
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Working
hours
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Government offices 7.30-11.30
/ 14.00-17.00
Business offices 8.00-11.30 / 14.00-17.00 Shops 7.00-19.00 Banks 8.00-15.00 |
