Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Spent just two days in Phnom Penh, a big, dusty, but very alive city.    Half  the population of Cambodia is under 22. Took a ferry across the Mekong River to Silk Island where ladies make silk entirely by hand. 

The 38 day process begins with the eggs turning into caterpillars who feed on  huckleberry leaves.

The caterpillars cocoon.

Then the cocoons are boiled and the thread is spun on the spindle as in the picture at the top. 
Then the ladies weave the thread with intricate looms into silk fabric.   

And for all the Va Tech fans, this tuk tuk, taking ginger to the market, is a long way from Blacksburg.