Oh what a circus

A fairly significant hangover but one of those lessened by waking up still so hammered that the headache ebbs away slowly rather than attacks viciously.

Coffee and pizza followed by another wonderful activity with all wedding guests and a second visit to the Phare Ponleu Selpak that I raved about the other day. I've never been at a performance of anything where I've been so urging the artists to succeed, such is the infectiousness of the Phare.

This show was called Khmer Metal and focused on an urban storyline set in a Phnom Penh bar. Themes of theft, dishonesty, drunkenness, relationships and same sex attraction, were all covered. It was useful that tourists could see this side of life, which is reality for many urban Cambodians, rather than the view of Cambodia as 'the nicest country in the world' where everyone speaks softly and bows towards tourists with hands in respectful prayer position. Whilst aspects of the culture are enviable, the history of the Khmer Rouge and experiences of foreigners who've worked in Cambodia do not support this view of a gentle land.

The show included some amazingly flexible gymnastics skills on aerial hoops, acrobatics on ten-metre long drapes, balances on random pieces of equipment (pictured), and crazy supple formations created out of the performers themselves. It was as fantastic as ever.