Extreme Khmer

In this episode, we learn about a spirit shrine on the riverfront in Phnom Penh with an unusual name and a mysterious history.

An interview with Khmer newspaper journalist and the author of Blue Lady Blog, the energetic and insightful Kounila Keo.

This month we give you a "snapshot" of the religion and culture of two very different Cham (Cambodian Islam) communities in Cambodia: one in Oudong and the other south of Phnom Penh. Be sure to check out the Podcast section at studykhmer.com for extras.

In the last episode of Season Three, we travel to Kampong Cham to get to the bottom of a popular Cambodian legend, about a mountain-building contest between men and women.

Interview with three of my former Khmer students from SEASSI 2002, about what they're doing with their Khmer language skills now in Phnom Penh.

In October, 2007, I attended a book fair in Phnom Penh and interviewed both booksellers and readers. Here are the results. See the episode "extras" at studykhmer.com for contact info for selected publishers from the book fair.

An interview with a construction worker working on a temple building in the provincial capital of Surin.

A little something different this episode, it's a Nek Kruu Sokhary tour-de-force. First she presents with a short tale of cross-cultural interaction, then I have people watch it in on iPod in both Siem Reap and Phnom Penh and give their opinions on it. In the end, Nek Kruu provides us with her final analysis. Illustrations by artist Linda Saphan.

This episode is the first in a two-part series on contemporary young artists in Phnom Penh. We'll meet several artists and look at their work, plus look at organizations that support them. Make sure to check out the full-length versions of interviews which appear in this episode in the "Culture and History" section of "Khmer Ephemera" on studykhmer.com

In this episode, the first of several in Season Two about the Khmers who live in Surin province in present-day Thailand, we visit a school started by a Khmer Sisaket man to teach Khmer reading and writing to Surin Khmers.