Riverside in the late afternoon

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armchairlawyer
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Riverside in the late afternoon

Post by armchairlawyer »

It starts to get busy on the Riverside promenade around 5pm. A group of guys form a large circle in the gap between lawns opposite st 118. They volley a small hard plastic football with great skill from one to another. Sometimes it goes wrong and the ball careers off over the low wall and down into the river, which is now far below - the water level being low.

A man often brings his duck about this time. The duck, quite a handsome creature, stands in the shadow of one of the trees that populate the river edge of the promenade. The man provides ice for his duck and his webbed feet are covered by the cold water. A lot of people surround the duck, who looks at them placidly until his owner grabs him and carries him down to the water and unceremoniously throws him in the river. The duck flaps around and quickly circles back to dry land. The group that followed down all laugh warmly at the duck that hates water. The owner, not yet satisfied, returns his duck to the water several more times. I suppose he deems a good bath is necessary. As soon as he is able, the duck quickly waddles back up the slope to the safety of his spot under the tree. The small crowd surrounds the duck on his journey back up, clapping and shooing him.

A pleasure boat is moored haphazardly by the river’s edge, its fittings looking more dilapidated than normal for such craft. People say it had a collision with one of the large sand cargo boats.

The enormous Carlsberg illuminated billboard is gradually being reincarnated in its new position. Initially it shone its lurid green light every evening across the river and towards the Royal Palace but it now occupies a more fitting position opposite street 136.

Looking the other way towards the street and the buildings that line it, the enormous cubic-shaped hotel continues its glacial pace of construction at the southern corner of street 130, still a jenga style mass of concrete beams going in all directions.

In the block to the north, the shadow of a long-removed Burger King banner is just discernible on a shop that is being gutted and made new for some hopeful venture.

And further still to the north, the wide Oskar restaurant frontage glowers in sombre fashion at the passers by and the relentless traffic. All is black there, the floor, the walls, the tables, the uniforms of the staff. Even the burnt orange moniker signage seems to begrudge as little contrast to the omnipresent black as is graphically possible.

At the traffic lights opposite street 110, the lights change colour and even a green and red man come and go, but all this is merely for amusement as the traffic plies through with casual disregard for any associated meaning to the visual display.
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Username Taken
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Re: Riverside in the late afternoon

Post by Username Taken »

"Woke up, fell out of bed
Dragged a comb across my head
Found my way downstairs and drank a cup
And looking up, I noticed I was late
Found my coat and grabbed my hat
Made the bus in seconds flat
Found my way upstairs and had a smoke
And somebody spoke and I went into a dream"
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armchairlawyer
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Re: Riverside in the late afternoon

Post by armchairlawyer »

The Tonle Sap river level is up strongly and the reverse flow is the strongestI've seen it in years. The water is getting choppy with all the flow from the Mekong. Also getting a nice effect of alternate blue and brown patchwork, as you view it from afar.
ByeDubai
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Re: Riverside in the late afternoon

Post by ByeDubai »

The Burger King closed?
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Ghostwriter
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Re: Riverside in the late afternoon

Post by Ghostwriter »

I expect him to be replaced by a Burger Prime Minister soon.
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