Embassy Salutations

I was leaving the US Embassy and because I’m American, our guest speaker said good bye in the traditional Khmer way: sohm peyh (where your palms meet and fingers are pointing toward the sky. As a younger person, he greeted me good bye at the chest level, but had I been older maybe his fingers would reach his chin to honor my age. When hands are clasped together at the forehead, it is meant for Buddha or a very high ranking person, and ALSO your PARENTS. Parents are god-like here, said a friend.

And with the Cambodians on the tour, he shook their hands. I thought it was cool that there was a bit of cross-cultural exchange at the end of the tour.