In addition to the notorious Pol Pot regime and over a thousand ancient
temples, Cambodia is also known as a country of smiling people. Smiling is a
part of our everyday life. Smiling brings peace to hearts and souls. Why
exactly are we Cambodian smiling?
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Welcome and greeting: This is because Cambodia was cut off from the outside world
during civil wars the 1970s and 1980 (in terms of tourism). So our smiles
are a sign of welcome and greeting. However, smile is not only from people
coming out of wars, but also from young children. They smile in stead of saying
‘hello!’. See also I see Cambodia!
·
Honesty: Cambodian people smile while talking, especially to
tourists. No worry! This is not by intention or with string attached. It
comes just unintended.
·
Politeness: It is somewhat impolite if you talk to Cambodians and you are
not smiling. The consequence is perhaps they will not talk to you or they will
not tell you the truth. It is also strange if you ask them something and they
respond without smiling. They may not want to talk to you or they do not trust
you.
·
Hiding hardship: Sometimes they smile even though something bad had happened to
them. They smile in order to comfort ourselves and they want to hide all the
bad things happened.
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Shyness: Sometimes they smile because they are shy.
Author: Chheng Niem
