Cambodia: The Tonlé Sap

The Tonlé Sap is the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia^. 














It's also home to the largest and poorest Vietnamese community in this country. 

The Tonlé sap was shrunk dramatically this dry season when we visited.











However, when the year's heavy rains begin in the next couple of months, it would back up to form an enormous lake, at least 10 to 15 times than the current volume of water.









We could see clearly the marking of the high water season on the banks. It was like 30-50 feet higher than the current level.








 The Lake is also an important commercial resource, providing more than half of the fish consumed in Cambodia. In harmony with the specialized ecosystems, the human occupations at the edges of the lake is similarly distinctive - floating villages, towering stilted houses, huge fish traps, and an economy and way of life deeply intertwined with the lake, the fish, the wildlife and the cycles of rising and falling waters.






We rented one of the huge tour boats offered here for around 20 US dollars. Coincidentally, it was operated by a Vietnamese family. So they promised to offer us to visit and to see the lives of the Vietnamese community on boats.
The local tour guide warned us about allowing the boat take us to these communities, the Khmer, The Muslim and the Vietnamese. To the contrary, we specifically asked them to take us there to his disdain.











We heard about it but we wanted to learn first hand on how our fellow Vietnamese people whom were being forced to live away from their own country during and after the war, struggle to survive here.










The boat trip through these floating villages took approximately 3 hours. We stopped by to talk to many different Vietnamese floating households, their floating markets, fisheries, clinics, schools, pigsty and other boatloads of tourists.

It is tough to live and survive here. There are school for children, but the majority of them have to quit school and to help their parents to make a living. There isn't many choice of what kind of jobs one wants to do here. Fishing and working as day laborer are their only choices. Some children are as young as 7 or 8 years old, working fiercely to compete for a couple dollars a day.



The saddest part is the poorer they are, the more babies a couple would make here. A typical young mother under 25 years of age at home were always to be surrounded by many of her children, and their ages different one can tell is no more than 2 years apart.

All the children seem to be under nourished and malnutrition. In many households, the parents were gone working somewhere else, and the older children had to take care of the younger ones alone, many of which were no older than 10 years of age themselves.

We brought a lot of dry food for donation, but not enough. It'd never been enough anyways. In exchange for this short coming, monetary was gladly substitute.

On the way back, it broke my heart when a young boy about 10-11 years old approached me and tried to sell me sex boldly with his broken English. It must have been rampaged here with many pedophiles from all over the world to come and take advantage of this situation.

I fell into an isolation filled with sadness about this issue on the way back to our hotel.

Cambodia: Hidden Ancient Temples - Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom

I was fascinated to see it first in the movie Lara Croft Tomb Raider years ago by Angelina Jolie. Today I had a real chance to see it with my own eyes.







  We left our hotel at 6:30 in the morning. Our local tour guide led us through gates on the opposite sides of the park from where the others were gathering and walking through silent forests, sometimes stopping at small temples such as the 12^th century Ta Nei, unrestored, tranquil  and off the beaten track, and the major sights such as Ta Prohm, a temple with a massive skein of ficus and silk tree roots wrapped around it.









































Along the road to the main entrance, there were quite many palm trees. Most of which carried an abandon of fruits. They look so appealing during this hot day. 




















Angkor Wat is one of the true wonders of the world. The exquisite colors of a sunrise above the temple was mesmerizing. I was transfixed by the view above the horizon. 








It was built in brick and stone and created some of the most amazing structures I've had the privilege of seeing.









From hidden gems with Lara Croft Tomb Raider sets to civil engineering master pieces the temple of Angkor is so large it defies the imagination.









Walking is the only option here, and it is very hot and humid during the summer, so plenty of sunscreen and water are a must.









At the same time, all the roads surround the area are dirt roads, the red clay type, which in the dry season are full of dirt. That made it very hard to breath in.






It's so massive in size that I couldn't in relative term to be able to imagine the whole structural lay out.










This view must be breath-taking from the sky or from a helicopter, but during this time, there was none to be offered.









The plan of Angkor Wat is difficult to grasp when walking through the monument because of the vastness.









Its complexity and beauty both attract and distract one's attention.










Words and superlatives failed me. In simple terms this is one of the world's religious mysticism.








From a distance Angkor Wat appears to be a colossal mass of stone on one level with a long causeway leading to the center but close up it is a series of elevated towers, covered galleries, chambers, porches and courtyards on different levels linked by stairways.





This site is one of the largest religious monuments in the world and represents the architectural pinnacle of the Khmer Empire.



















We at our lunch at a huge restaurant within the area. This restaurant can accommodate a couple thousand of tourists a day easily. I am not so much enjoyed the Cambodia dishes because they are similar to ours with fish is the mainstay.

















We rest for about half an hour after meals, then set out to see some more.









We started to head out to the main gate where our driver were waiting. It was time to go visit the largest lake of Cambodia, the Tonlé Sap.

Beyond the gate, there were a few fruit vendors selling pineapples, mangoes, corn on the cobs and soft-drinks on pushed carts.










There were a few local fruit stands selling other exotic fruits grown and harvested locally.

Cambodia: Phnom Penh

Phnom Penh situated on the banks of the Tonlé Sap, Mekong and Bassac rivers. Phnom Penh metropolitan area is home to about 2.2 million of Cambodia's population of over 15 million^.

This city is the wealthiest and most populous city in Cambodia and is the country's political hub even though it remained a bit rough. However, things are improving, although roads remain shabby, traffic chaotic and electricity strained at times.












The city is slowly gaining high rise buildings and traffic lights. The beauty that made it a 'Paris of the East' before 1970 is unfortunately well hidden, though there are a few French colonial buildings remaining.








The wide boulevards and promenades envisaged by the French have become parking spaces and market stalls: pedestrians are not in favor.










The most pleasant strolling is to be done along the park-like river frontage, which hosts street food vendors, push carts, coffee shops and restaurants aplenty. The most dominant business is Foot Massage. There's one per every 3-4 shops we passed by.










Standard tourist sights are few, which makes the city a place to relax, to watch the street life and to absorb the local color.









 Phnom Penh is a worthwhile destination for those who enjoy an 'edgy' experience and can brave the downsides of reckless driving, noise, and poverty.









Touts and beggars abound, the worst area is the tourist strip along the river. Strolling here we found many nice and clean enough street food vendors that sold fresh corn, fresh fruits, and soft drinks.









There were plenty of souvenir shops, clothing stores, shoe stores, and more foot massage parlors along the river banks and night central market.











Right in the middle of this bustling area is the food court with many diners to offer all kind of ethnic foods in Asia and other Western countries for a very good price.









Weather by then was a bit hot and humid, cooling down a little in the late afternoon and at night.












Here in the capital, are many interesting touristy sites. Beside the Royal Palace, the Silver Pagoda, the National Museum, the Toul Sleng Genocide Museum, the Choeng Ek Killing Fields and Wat Phnom, there are several market places selling carvings, paintings, silk, silver, gems, antiques and even war memorabilia.





Phnom Penh was also previously known as Krong Chaktomuk (Chaturmukha) meaning "City of Four Faces". This name refers to the confluence where the Mekong, Bassac, and Tonle Sap rivers cross to form an "X" where the capital is situated.








Phnom Penh, like many other Asian-City tourist destinations, is in the midst of rapid change.














Over the past few years the number of restaurants and hotels have grown considerably and in the last year there had been a huge increase in the number of visitors.












Constructions are everywhere and it won't be slowing down anytime soon.














There are so many temples in Phnom Penh that I could remember which one is which. They scattered all over the city but all within a few minutes of driving from one to the other. Some big, some small but the designs are almost the same. They are so unique to compare to temples of Thailand or Vietnam.







But they are all the same in one thing that is all the statues are made or coated with gold or in the color of gold.

















Crossing the river in the afternoon brought us to Phnom Penh Casino. This place attracted lots of people. Its surround area were full of junkies and in a poor neighborhood, but once you set foot inside, the casino was a fancy and as luxury as any medium size casinos in the world.









We are not gamblers at any capacity so we strolled along to take some pictures, to sit down for a few drinks and to watch other people searching for their lucks.









There were a couple of fancy coffee shops and restaurants in the main floor. Unlike the casinos in the U.S, here the menus were a lot higher to compare with restaurants outside.











I guess that people came here for serious gambling not for eating so this couldn't be their number one priority.








Spending no more than a couple of hours, we left heading out to enjoy another night in the capital.

Phnom Penh symbol Krong Chaktomok translated to English as City Of Four Faces

We found almost everything here in Central Market. From faked brand like Channel, Louis Vuitton to Iphone. It was so hilarious and blatant when a guy showed me an Iphone 5 (the latest at the time), looked very much like the real one, except its operating system was Android.

This market is always crowded with shoppers.

And lots of tourists.

There were so many different type of beautiful fresh flowers sold here.