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One of many Vietnamese restaurants in Phnom Penh. This one is run by a 48-year-old Phnom Penh native who escaped to Thailand at age 5, then emigrated to Singapore at 8, where she lived for 21 years. She can speak Vietnamese like a native, "I studied it for three months in Singapore. It was easy. Vietnamese is like French, but with all the accents." The last bit is clearly nonsense.

I heard her speak rapid Mandarin to someone on the phone, then fluent Cambodian to an employee. She also knew English, French, Japanese and Russian, she said. That's seven languages altogether. "I have the gift."

Now, she's stuying Thai. "I didn't like Thai people when I was there as a child, but now I love them! I go to Thailand all the time!"

Many of the accent marks on the menu are off, but still legible.



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