In Siem Reap, night markets have been springing up like mushrooms for years. While they are an ideal place to stroll around in search of souvenirs, it has to be said that these markets were created with the sole aim of quenching the thirst of tourists on the go.
However, there is another night market on the outskirts of the city that doesn't offer kramas, ‘I love Cambodia’ T-shirts or foot massages for $2. This market is nonetheless well worth a visit for anyone wanting to immerse themselves in everyday Khmer life. Welcome to Route 60.
A great place to go out
Sary is proud of her stall. Standing behind a stall overflowing with brightly coloured fruit, she proudly poses in front of the flashbulbs of delighted tourists. Although many people crowd the entrance, few venture into the depths of the bays of this huge night market, which stretches for several kilometres. From dusk onwards, the fairground workers take over the main road and its side roads. From the swarm of small carts come all sorts of goods: cuddly toys, shoes, new and used clothes, drugstore items, handbags... Only a heavy and sustained rain would be able to break this unchanging ritual.
It's a must for Cambodians, who not only shop here, but also enjoy the merry-go-rounds and other games of skill.
For ages, this market has been one of the city's most exciting thoroughfares. But since when exactly? Opinions vary depending on who you ask, but the fact is that the tradition has been firmly established for at least a decade. So much so that it has become a must for Cambodians, who not only do their shopping here, but also enjoy the rides and other games of skill that delight young and old alike. The smiles on the faces of the children perched on their bumper cars or jumping on a bouncy castle speak volumes about how happy they are to be there.
And it doesn't matter if the rides look a bit old-fashioned: the young crowds don't seem to mind at all. But the market's reputation is not just based on the fun on offer. It's also, and above all, the place to eat.
A paradise of street food
What would Asian cuisine be without its famous street food? A cuisine now recognised and celebrated, as attested by the Michelin stars recently awarded in Thailand and Singapore. A culinary style that is both delicious and inexpensive, with almost infinite nuances.
Although the food on offer at Route 60 is nowhere near the sophistication of the stalls in Bangkok, you can still discover a multitude of dishes, each more varied than the last: Ban Chao, grilled chicken and fish, noodle soups, fried rice, doughnuts and cakes... The list of specialities sold here is like an inventory from the Prevert. The smells blend together in improbable exhalations of grilled meat and candyfloss, prawns and popcorn.
It's a place to meet up with family, friends or lovers around a portable gas stove.
Insects are also on the menu, not forgetting fruit and ice cream. You'll also find excellent durians, succulent roasted peanuts and tasty corn on the cob that crunches under your teeth. Along the roads, mats have been laid out either on the ground or in small makeshift bungalows made from odds and ends. Here, families, friends and lovers gather around a portable gas stove to cook their own meal before getting back on the scooter for a shopping spree. After all, you don't even have to get off your scooter to go shopping, you can do it right from the handlebars.
This night-time escapade has come close to disappearing time and again, threatened by urbanisation and stricter regulations than in the past. Previously starting well before the roundabout depicting a graceful apsara, the market was forced to retreat in 2015, when new buildings and their huge car parks were erected.
In the heart of the night
In the end, the shrinking space allocated to the market did not discourage either the fairgoers or the visitors. With a child in her arms and another holding her hand, Piseth says she comes at least once a week. ‘Here, the little ones can have fun and enjoy the rides. And then the whole family comes together, we sit down together and have a good time’.
A certain melancholy seems to have taken hold of the Route 60 market.
Sokha, aged 6, ball in hand, confirms his father's words with a big smile. For the vendors, the atmosphere is a little less cheerful since the opening, two years ago, of the gigantic ‘Palm Container Night Market’ a few hundred metres away. The atmosphere is radically different, younger, trendier, but also much more expensive.
A certain melancholy seems to have taken hold of the Route 60 market, the festive atmosphere being counterbalanced by a darker side. Children play in the litter-strewn swamp that separates the voices, a cohort of beggars passes from table to table, and poverty, relatively discreet in town, is revealed here.
Even the smiles on the shopkeepers' faces seem to be tinged with a sad resignation, before they turn their attention back to their mobile phones and their virtual paradises.
A handy escape when you spend your evenings sitting waiting for shoppers.
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