Both men and women often wear cotton or silk sarongs, especially at home. Men who can afford it usually prefer to wear silk sarongs. Most urban Khmer men dress in trousers and these days most urban women dress in Western-style clothing.

On formal occasions such as religious festivals and family celebrations, women often wear a hoi (a type of shirt) during the day. At night they change into single-colour silk dresses called phamuong, which are deco­rated along the hems. If the celebration is a wedding, the colours of such garments are dictated by the day of the week on which the wedding falls. The women of Cambodia are generally modest in their dress, although this is fast changing in the bigger towns and cities.

Travellers crossing the border from liberal Thai islands such as Ko Pha Ngan or Ko Chang should remember they have crossed back in time as far as traditions are concerned, and that wandering around the temples of Angkor bare-chested (men) or scantily clad (women) will not be ap­preciated by Khmers. Nude bathing is a definite no-no!