By Rudolph.A.Furtado (posted 23rd Dec. 2013)
“During my tour of Phnom Penh, I came across this lady on the street with a kitten tied to her body and a package of clothes. Was she a homeless lady with a pet? It was amazing to see this lady with her pet cat and a load of luggage. I observed her roaming around the street near my hotel. Could also be a source of tourist attraction.” (Rudolph Furtado commenting on his photo)
Comment from Michael: not everyone in the world is participating in the usual Christmas festivities as most people do in the West. This lady seems to be a “tramp” – homeless, and she has a small tabby or calico cat with a short tail as a friend. It seems to me that a higher than usual percentage of cats in Asia have shorter tails or kinked tails. It is not that uncommon for Siamese cats in Thailand to have tail “abnormalities”. It looks rather crude to put string around the cat’s neck as a lead of some sort. This string also seems to prevent the cat escaping. This looks cruel to people in the West. I suppose this reflects a different relationship with the cat in parts of Asia compared to the West.
Thanks a lot Ant for adding first hand information about this women. Great. It makes all the difference.
This woman indeed displays cats as a ‘performance’ to get money from tourists. I was just in Phnom Penh over Christmas and also saw her around 172 street a few times. One time I saw her she had about 3 cats balanced on her front and back, and was carrying a big basket full of very young kittens with her. She goes around the cafes and barfronts along the street posing for photos and asking for money.
Yes, the lady has all the usual cat foods laid out as if she is at home in the kitchen. It does speak: I know and like cats. It could be Italy. The building reflected in the window looks nice but is a bit Eastern European for me. Prague maybe. Who knows?