IN THE AFTERMATH of decades of war, Cambodians made their homes wherever and with whatever they could. Some squatted in abandoned houses. Others built shanties on unclaimed land. The border between home and the street, between private and public was blurred. Phnom Penh’s residents were incredibly receptive to a barang (foreigner) or three wandering through their neighbourhoods, poking our noses and cameras into their lives.
In many parts of Phnom Penh, it is a fine line between home and public.
Likewise, home and work is often the same place.
The outdoor kitchen serves for a commercial kitchen.
And of course, family meals are prepared in full view of the outside world.
Even when the electricity is on, studying on the front porch is more comfortable.
The contrasts in housing in the 1990s were stark.
Apartments over shops lined the main streets.
Modest but comfortable farmhouses were found on the edges of town.
Side streets often had a mix of newly built and traditional stilted double storey homes.
But scattered all over the city, vacant land was claimed for shanty towns.
Many, but by no means all, were found along the river banks.
Often found in low-lying areas prone to flooding, we nicknamed them "swamps".
Some of the houses were sturdy, well built affairs.
Woven matts stood in place of walls.
Others were no more than an open lean-to.
And in some places, there was a tree growing through a roof.
These people were incredibly tolerant and welcoming, as I and photographer friends poked around in the neighbourhoods.
Little was able to be hidden. Cooking.....
....or whatever she's doing with the toilet scooper on her head.
The living conditions in some places for some people were atrocious.
Surprisingly perhaps, some of the better built houses were the stilt settlements over the river.
There was always a strong sense of community, I felt.
People couldn't not know the neighbours, nor those that passed through.
Big sisters look after smaller siblings.
There was always someone to play with, even if you had to bring your own toys.
Little gangs formed. That young puppy would be a luxury in the swamps.
Chores were taught at a very young age.
By teenage years a girl would be often be cooking for the whole family if parents were lucky enough to work.
Household chores would stay with her to old age.
One thing was common along most of the prosperity scale.
Hammocks! Under houses, between trees, on front porches.
For some it was home on the footpath. Most just a place to swing in the breeze.
It's been 20 years since I saw Phnom Penh. French era main street apartments would be unchanged, but for many poor, home has been bulldozed and pushed to the city fringes.