Featured country: Cambodia

A constitutional monarchy officially known as the “Kingdom of Cambodia,” Cambodia is located on the Indochina Peninsula, surrounded on three sides by Laos, Vietnam, and Thailand.  Ninety-five per cent of the nearly 15 million people in the country follow Buddhism, though historically Cambodia was greatly influenced politically and culturally by Hinduism.  In fact, the nation’s most visited and revered monument of Angkor Wat was originally constructed by the Khmer king, Suryavarman II in the 12^th century as a Hindu religious complex.  Angkor Wat is  the largest religious monument in the world, and is portrayed on the nation’s flag.  In the 20^th century, Cambodia achieved independence in 1953 from France, which had colonized the country since the mid-19^th century.  After the Vietnam War, a devastating genocide of over 2 million people occurred from 1975-1979 by the Khmer Rouge.  Taking decades to recover, today Cambodia is experiencing some of the strongest cultural and economic growth in Asia through tourism to its beautiful heritage sites, textiles and the garment industry, and agriculture.  And currently, the University of Cincinnati has two Cambodian undergraduate students on campus.

Source: CultureGrams

Featured library resource: Foreign Information by Country

Angkor Wat

“Mastika and Rakia – Mastika is an anise-flavored liqueur made from raisins, grapes, figs, or plums. Rakia is a typically made from plums (but can also be produced from peaches, apricots, figs, and apples). It also serves as the national drink of Bulgaria. Both liqueurs taste similar to brandy. Most meals include drinks served as aperitifs.”

About their food:”Lunches and dinners often include soups, salads, stews, grilled meats, or stuffed vegetables. Regional culinary variations include the presence of more fish dishes along the Black Sea, less pork in the more Muslim Southeast, and more diverse dairy products in mountain areas. Plums, apricots, peaches, and melons are a few of the fruits available in the country. Cafes, pubs, and sweet shops are popular meeting places for a drink, coffee, or snack.”

Alexander Nevski Cathedral, Sofia

The Global Road Warrior, “Bulgaria: Country Snapshot,” http://www.globalroadwarrior.com/contentinfo.asp?cid=21&nid=65&next_nid=66 (accessed October 9, 2013).