March 14ths Full Moon Hash is now in the Past. Due to the still expanding Universe, all experts know that the moon and earth are separating at the rate of about 4 centimetres per year and sometime in the future, the moon will be difficult to find and see. My plan is too enjoy as many Full Moon Hashes as possible before that happens.(and I suggest each of us do this!) as our moon is moving away. Yes, this is going to take a long while, but we cannot argue with facts so on on! Point is,,,,If you missed this particular Full Moon Hash, you missed a good one! A long one too at just over 8 kilometres (This route, and many of our recent Hash routes have been recorded and preserved via Google Maps, Nike Plus, and one or two other satellite based system. Hopefully we can get the different maps posted onto our own website. This record of routes, will help anyone who wants to travel it for the first time, or revisit the area. ) I was fortunate for all the help I got from Heart of Darkness. His experience, knowledge and personality, was a benefit during the planning stage and thanks again Mate! And thanks also to his lovely wife, I Told You Honey, for not murdering him just because he forgot her birthday! (Belated Happy Birthday I Told You Honey.) Being the walking Hare, I planned the route so that we could take as much advantage of the walkways in the middle or side of some of the old wide French boulevards’, with trees, and plants, dividing the road. Walking in these venues is a treat, and a hell of a lot safer than being a Hasher on the roads. We began at the Velcommen Inn on St.144, and headed a hundred or so metres into the heart of the old Kandal Market, The Khmer name of the market is Phsar Kandal, which translates to “market in the middle” or “central market”, not to be confused with the real CENTRAL MARKET!!!!! After making a right turn inside the market, onto St.148, we then quickly made a left along a laneway and exited on St.154. A left turn there led us into the Wat Omalom. This Wat was built on an artificial mountain, which elevates it several metres. It has some great gardens, incredible statues of different animals, and word from one of our people, it was broken into the past week, and lots of gold was stolen! . Legend has it that this Wat was the birth place of Phnom Penh and there, a fitting place for the statue to Old Lady Penh herself. We exited the Wat, and turned right. Our route took us past the National Museum, right onto Sotheros Blvd. and directly in front of the Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda. After doing a right hand turn, we continued into the centre of the Viet Nam/Cambodian Memorial Park. We travelled through the entire park reaching Sihanauk Bvld. For unexplained reasons, the beautiful coloured water fountain in front of the monuement was not operation, so we missed a great water show, with music. Oh, well, can’t win them all! (I passed the site again last night and the water show was in operation, and lots of people were there to enjoy it.) With the Independent Monument to our right, we turned left onto Sisowath Quay and then made a left onto the Riverfront walk along the Tonle Sap. We made a brief halfway stop at the “hold”, in the area of the Kings Palace, then continued along the Riverside walk to just beyond The Night Market. Our route took us directly in front of the Old Post Office, constructed in 1890, and made famous in the film, “city of ghosts”! (the French architect who conceived that building, also designed the Train Station, Central Market, and the Old Police station, just to name some. We made a half circle of Wat Phnom which was built in 1373, and stands 27 metres above the ground. It is the tallest religious structure in the city. From there we went up tree lined St.92 for a few hundred metres, with a left turn beside the American Embassy. We followed that til we came to Freedom Park, (where the freedom to protest is no longer allowed), past the wonderful monument to Gandhi, (who like Martin Luther King, protested with-out violence) and finally to the back of the Night Market. Our On On was at the Velcommen Bar and there happily met up with a bunch of Hashers who for a variety of reasons came just for the ON ON. It was wonderful seeing all the smiling eyes as Hashers met Hashers.. It was a great evening, lots of interesting chatter and just plain old fashion good times and friendship. We enjoyed the company of some foreign spies, and got some information on upcoming Hashes, one for next year in the Philippines, which sounds real interesting to me. On On til next time!
Posted on: Sun, 16 Mar 2014 03:36:11 +0000
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