Just a couple of ideas off the top of my head that you won't find in a tourist brochure.

• Too many guys are found dead in their guesthouse within 24 hours of getting off the plane.
  Traffic is chaotic.
  Road rules are rarely observed so traffic deaths and injuries are very common.
  Food hygiene procedures in most restaurants is practically unknown.
  Educational standards are low throughout the countryside and the ability to think rationally and logically is rare.
  Superstitions are common.
  Hit and run accidents are common.
  Power cuts are accepted as normal
  Tradesman's standards are low.
  Racism is normal but not overt.
  Thieves are routinely beaten by mobs; often beaten to death.
  When it rains, streets flood in seconds.
  Dengue outbreaks occur after the rainy season.
  Healthcare is fairly primitive in state hospitals.
  Most doctors have cheated their way through med school or paid off the dean.
  A doctor's knowledge here is somewhere between a western trained nurse and hospital cleaner.
  Dishonesty is a way of life.
  Bribery is a normal way of getting things sorted quickly.
  Electricity is relatively expensive due to dirty landlords adding their cut.
  Bar padding in girly bars is normal.
  Local markets are filthy and stinky.
  Piles of plastic waste and other garbage that attract rats and cockroaches are normal.
  Petty crime is common.
  Western food is fairly expensive.
  Travelling inter-city is a roll of the dice
  Meth is a big problem here
  You wouldn't want to go to prison here.
  There are too many generals.
  Traffic jams get worse every month.
  Machetes, scythes and tomahawks are the preferred weapons of choice
  Politically it's a one party system.
  Life is cheap
  People are not industrious.
  The southern beaches are now fucked by rapid and unrestrained Chinese development.
  Waterways are heavily polluted.

Apart from that, life is good here.

• The weather is great.
  The women are real dusky beauties with hourglass figures.
  You can swim all year round.
  The people are friendly.
  I have never felt hostility here.
  There are some great apartments and restaurants.
  Income is reasonable for Western teachers.
  Natural disasters are rare.
  Weed is weak but OK
  Beer and all liquor is very cheap
  Cigarettes are cheap
  Murder of foreigners is rare
  Gun ownership for common people is low.
  You can buy anything here (apart from the thing you really need).
  There are lots of modern shopping malls and apartments.
  You can live as cheaply as you want. I prefer comfort myself

Many guys here would disagree with my assessment. They are only my opinions formed from being here for many years. I'm happy here, and I would rather be here than at home. I accept it for what it is.

rexwell wrote: ↑Fri May 01, 2020 9:26 am Just a couple of ideas off the top of my head that you won't find in a tourist brochure.

• Too many guys are found dead in their guesthouse within 24 hours of getting off the plane.
  Traffic is chaotic.
  Road rules are rarely observed so traffic deaths and injuries are very common.
  Food hygiene procedures in most restaurants is practically unknown.
  Educational standards are low throughout the countryside and the ability to think rationally and logically is rare.
  Superstitions are common.
  Hit and run accidents are common.
  Power cuts are accepted as normal
  Tradesman's standards are low.
  Racism is normal but not overt.
  Thieves are routinely beaten by mobs; often beaten to death.
  When it rains, streets flood in seconds.
  Dengue outbreaks occur after the rainy season.
  Healthcare is fairly primitive in state hospitals.
  Most doctors have cheated their way through med school or paid off the dean.
  A doctor's knowledge here is somewhere between a western trained nurse and hospital cleaner.
  Dishonesty is a way of life.
  Bribery is a normal way of getting things sorted quickly.
  Electricity is relatively expensive due to dirty landlords adding their cut.
  Bar padding in girly bars is normal.
  Local markets are filthy and stinky.
  Piles of plastic waste and other garbage that attract rats and cockroaches are normal.
  Petty crime is common.
  Western food is fairly expensive.
  Travelling inter-city is a roll of the dice
  Meth is a big problem here
  You wouldn't want to go to prison here.
  There are too many generals.
  Traffic jams get worse every month.
  Machetes, scythes and tomahawks are the preferred weapons of choice
  Politically it's a one party system.
  Life is cheap
  People are not industrious.
  The southern beaches are now fucked by rapid and unrestrained Chinese development.
  Waterways are heavily polluted.

Apart from that, life is good here.

• The weather is great.
  The women are real dusky beauties with hourglass figures.
  You can swim all year round.
  The people are friendly.
  I have never felt hostility here.
  There are some great apartments and restaurants.
  Income is reasonable for Western teachers.
  Natural disasters are rare.
  Weed is weak but OK
  Beer and all liquor is very cheap
  Cigarettes are cheap
  Murder of foreigners is rare
  Gun ownership for common people is low.
  You can buy anything here (apart from the thing you really need).
  There are lots of modern shopping malls and apartments.
  You can live as cheaply as you want. I prefer comfort myself

Many guys here would disagree with my assessment. They are only my opinions formed from being here for many years. I'm happy here, and I would rather be here than at home. I accept it for what it is.

Really appreciate such a comprehensive list, thank you.

I think Vietnam in particular could align with Cambodia on a lot of these aspects, although it seems Cambodia is probably more extreme.

Is "A doctor's knowledge here is somewhere between a western trained nurse and hospital cleaner" an accurate assessment? Or just a bit of humour to exaggerate the poorerhealthcare standards?

When I first came here on holiday in 2005, I had a minor infection from a cut on my leg. the doctor cleaned the infected wound then opened an antibiotic capsule and poured the contents into the wound thus dirtying the wound and then bandaged it up. Standard practice here. A wife of a friend took their child took to the doctor as she had a headache. The doctor put a saline drip into the child's head and send her home. The dad got real angry when he got home and saw the child and ripped out the drip. No rich Khmer goes to a Khmer doctor, they fly to Singapore, Thailand or Vietnam. I go to a Japanese doctor if I need to go for a check. At least Japanese doctors have had an actual education. Many Khmers have degrees, but no education or knowledge about what they have studied. I had a nurse lift $70 out of my wallet once; stupid me for trusting medical staff as I would at home. There are real doctors here but they wouldn't be more than 5% of doctors. I think it is improving. Saline drips are given for anything, stub your toe, saline drip. Because it makes them look like they know what they are doing, and they get $20 extra for the drip. Medical labs here are very good and cheap for bloodwork. I get a blood test on occasion here and look for out of range indicators. I have more faith in my education than theirs.

La Quenta wrote: ↑Fri May 01, 2020 9:40 am
Is "A doctor's knowledge here is somewhere between a western trained nurse and hospital cleaner" an accurate assessment? Or just a bit of humour to exaggerate the poorerhealthcare standards?

That's just a common bar stool banter phrase of little substance reiterated by people that have little connection with healthcare provision. When I came here over 20 years ago the the healthcare services I run were pretty primitive, but services have increased exponentially over that period. While healthcare provision can be quite variable, particularly in the provinces, in Phnom Penh for example there are some top notch services. I personally use Central Hospital and have witnessed their surgery as well as other procedures which are all of good standard. http://www.central-hospital.com/ch/aboutus

Calmette hospital which often gets a bad press from some expats produces good results. While I have had little to do with that hospital over a number of years, as an example a friend was recently referred there with an acute appendicitis resulting in Volvulus (twisting of the colon) which was dealt with promptly and effectively.

Marty wrote: ↑Fri May 01, 2020 8:08 am OP, i recommend you watch all No Joke Howard's videos to know what Cambodia is all about. Many people have moved to Cambodia based on his videos.

What a terrible idea. NJH was an idiot two-minute expert who came here to take drugs and fuck ladyboys. He was barely above starvation during his whole two years here and had to beg the US embassy for a ticket home. And he's dead now. The worst person ever to take advice from.

La Quenta wrote: ↑Thu Apr 30, 2020 7:32 pm To be honest, i am a bit freaked out and anxious reading reports about how so many expats in Phnom Penh seem to drop dead - and so often.

They don't. The death rate among foreigners has dropped a long way since the tourism industry died. Most of these people were drug tourists, not expats.

I feel safer in PP than in the cities mentioned. Then again, we are on the threshold of a devastating economic crisis. The new normal will change people’s behavior, no doubt. Young people reported in the news, as posters above said, mostly die from abusing substances and alcohol.

John Bingham wrote: ↑Fri May 01, 2020 1:10 pm

La Quenta wrote: ↑Thu Apr 30, 2020 7:32 pm To be honest, i am a bit freaked out and anxious reading reports about how so many expats in Phnom Penh seem to drop dead - and so often.

They don't. The death rate among foreigners has dropped a long way since the tourism industry died. Most of these people were drug tourists, not expats.

i dont think Cambodia is less or more safe than Thailand, Burma or the states
If u use ur head an dont do stupid things, same as you do back home, you will be fine

On the note of deaths of expats.
Since I 1st visited Cambodia legally in 2001, i have had 5 acquaintances /friends die of other than natural causes (no drugs, alcohol or murdered) and all under 55
I have been living in Thailand since 1985 and have had NONE die here, other than cancer or old age

I have no idea why that is but, it is what it is

In my opinion, it's not a particularly safe city (nor especially dangerous either), but more importantly, it's not a very pleasant city either.

At the same time, it's not the worst place in the world and there's is a sort of unique vibe to the place that is strangely appealing.

A swiss guy got hit with a baton walking his dog over a minor argument. He fell, dropped his head on the pavement and was transported to hospital (Callmette) where they looked at the injuries and sent him home over the night, where he died.
Just an example but you can compare this incident with what would have happened in your hometown in the west.
How likely is it to get beaten with a baton over some minor argument? How likely is it that a hospital sends you home after you heavily hit your head on the pavement in your home country?
You have to take care in cambodia. Things can turn nasty in a heartbeat.