Bikes.

I am told that only a very few years ago, the streets of Phnom Penh had but very few cars on them. Most people cycled, and a few might own mopeds: only senior government and military personnel (and NGOs, of course) could afford cars. These days, that has all changed and the city streets are beginning to lock up with congestion. However, there are still many brave souls who cycle. The interesting thing is that about half the bicycles I have seen are of folding variety.

As some of you will know, I use a Brompton folding bike on a more-or-less daily basis. Or rather, I do when back in the UK. It's a neat design, hat folds up quite small, and weighs in at about 11kg. These machines are for the most part a little more weighty. They tend to have one big bolted hinge in the middle of the crossbar, making them not particularly worth folding.

Maybe some well-meaning benefactor or ambitious entrepeneur saw an opening in the market some years ago and sent out a shipload.