After our National Museum and Royal Palace tour, Osang, Violet, Jandy and I made our way, on foot, back to our respective hotels to rest and freshen up.  After an hour, we again met up, this time to go shopping for souvenirs at the nearby Central Market.  Again, we made our way on foot.  Along the way, we decided to make a short stopover at the 8-storey, Western-style Sorya Shopping Center, located just one block south of the Central Market.

Sorya Shopping Center

The first real mall in the city, this 40,000 sq. m. airconditioned shopping oasis, the largest in the city, was quite large, with passenger elevators and escalators (then a strange novelty when it opened in 2003).  Inside were a number of Western fastfood restaurants at every level ( Pizza Co., Master Grill, Kentucky Fried Chicken,  BBQ Chicken, BBWorld, Lucky Burger, etc.) plus a a variety of shops selling clothes, shoes, jewelry, toys, imitation watches, latest release DVD copies and some electronics and appliances.

Osang and Violet trying out the foot massage demo

As we entered the lobby, we encountered a lot of “demo” booths promoting products such as a stainless steel multi-tiered steamer; a stride-glide exerciser; a hand-held vacuum and recliner-massage-chairs.  Osang and Violet each tried out the foot massager.We  also each tried out a sundae treat (US$2.30 each), with many premium quality toppings such as Mars, Snicker, Oreo Cookie, etc., at Swensen’s, a premium ice cream parlor which originated from the U.S.A.  It opened its first branch in Sorya Shopping Center in September 2007.

“Cooling off” at Swensen’s

The well-stocked Lucky Supermarket, the first supermarket set up in Phnom Penh (and now the city’s largest supermarket chain), has a branch at the ground floor. On the upper floors there  a 3D cinema complex (Sabay Cineplex, Level 5), roller skating rink, sporting goods store (City Mart Sports Supply, Level 4) and games arcade.

Swensen’s sundaes

After shopping at Central Mall, we all had dinner at the  local food court at Level 4. Virtually all varieties of dishes were available at very reasonably prices of US$2.00 to 5.00. However, their coupon system was a hassle as we had to buy a ticket first before ordering food from any outlet.

Food Court

Though less colorful than the traditional markets, Sorya Mall was still a such a good place to cool down, hang out or simply to take a break from the ‘culture shock’ that hit us when we arrived in Phnom Penh.

Food court fare

Sorya Shopping Center: 11-13 Preah Trasak Paem (Street 63),  Phsar Thmei 2 Commune , Daun Penh District, Phnom Penh.  Tel: +855 23 210 018 and +855 16 700 001. Open daily, 9 AM to 9 PM.