You may not know this, but the language of Cambodia, Khmer, does not use the Latin alphabet like western languages.  While it is a beautiful alphabet to look at, it is completely unrecognizable, and a complete mystery to us.

As we pass by stores or office fronts, the Khmer language will be large, with the English translation (if there is one), below in a smaller font.

As we passed a local barber, something caught my eye.  I don’t know what it was, but I stopped and looked at a group of men getting haircuts and shaves.  There was a familiar tone and air of camaraderie amongst them.  There was a small group of men waiting to get their hair cut, and then around a small screen, another group of men were unseen, but I could hear them talking back and forth, and joking with each other, even though they were in different areas.

I asked about a shave, since it’s almost time for another Alan’s Shave Time post.  (Note to self: I really gotta come up with a better title!)  One of the guys about to get shaved, told me the price, and then asked me what kind of shave I was interested in.  He then called back to the hidden group of guys in the back, and there was a bunch of jocular yelling and laughing in response.

I didn’t understand the hubbub, so I mimicked the shave motion on my face.  The young man had a mischievous look on his face, and called back again.  Another guy came out, and he actually spoke some English.  Not much, but I finally understood what all the laughter was about.

In Cambodia, it is a custom for a groom (and the groomsmen), to have their scrotums shaved the day before the wedding.  I’m not sure if this is their equivalent of a Bachelor Party, but they all seemed to be having a good time, so who am I to judge?

The guy told me the prices for both types of shaves, and I left.  Once again, I thought, “Why the hell not!”, and decided to have them both done.  Rather than write about it, I decided to do a video of the experience.  It’s OK!  There’s nothing graphic.  It’s a G-rated video.