Let the Year of the Tiger Begin

Cambodians clean a statue Buddha during a merit making ceremony in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The ceremony was held in advance of Cambodian New Year's celebration. (Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS)

The streets of the bustling capital fell quiet on Wednesday, with many shops shuttered and most people staying inside with their families to welcome in the spirit of the New Year.

Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer
Phnom Penh
Wednesday, 14 April 2010

The streets of the bustling capital fell quiet on Wednesday, with many shops shuttered and most people staying inside with their families to welcome in the spirit of the New Year.

The Year of the Tiger officially began at 7:36 am, in accordance with the Moha Songkran, Khmer astrology that depicts cycles of 12 years, represented by animals.

Since Chol Sakarach, the Lesser Era, Cambodians have held the Khmer New Year in the fifth month, or Khe Chet, a time of year when the farming was finished and before the wet season of the monsoon began.

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