Cambodia's currency is the riel, abbreviated in this guide by a lower-case Y written after the sum. Cambodia's second currency (some would say its first) is the US dollar, which is accepted everywhere and by everyone, though change may arrive in riel. Dollar bills with a small tear are unlikely to be accepted by Cambodians, so it's worth scrutinising the change you are given to make sure you don't have bad bills. In the west of the country, the Thai baht (B) is also commonplace. If three currencies seems a little excessive, perhaps it's because the Cambodians are making up for lost time: during the Pol Pot era, the country had no currency. The Khmer Rouge abolished money and blew up the National Bank building in Phnom Penh.

The sinking fortunes of the riel meant that, until recently, it was hardly worth the paper it was printed on. The government has responded by creating new higher-value denominations, although notes of 20,000r and higher are still a fairly rare sight. The riel comes in notes of the following denominations: 50r, lOOr, 200r, 500r, lOOOr, 2000r, SOOOr, lO.OOOr, 20,000r, SO.OOOr and lOO.OOOr.

Throughout this book, prices are in the currency quoted to the average punter. This is usually US dollars or riel, but in the west it is often baht. While this may seem inconsistent, this is the way it's done in Cambodia and the sooner you get used to thinking comparatively in riel, dollars or baht, the easier your travels will be.
For a sprinkling of exchange rates at the time of going to print, see the Quick Refer-ence section in the inside front cover of this book.

YABA OABA DOT YABA DABA DON'T!

Also be very careful about buying 'cocaine'. One look at the map and the distance between Colombia and Cambodia should be enough to make you dubious, but it's much worse than that. Most of what is sold as coke, particularly in Phnom Penh, is actually pure heroin and far stronger than any smack found on the streets back home. Bang this up your hooter and you are in serious trouble - several backpackers die each year in the lakeside guesthouse ghetto of Boeng Kak in Phnom Penh.