Tomle Sap Lake - Cambodia

Were we done for the day? We may have though so, but Mr. Teng had other ideas. After a quick stop at the Angkor Artisan Village (generally a tourist trap), we headed off to Tonle Sap for what was billed as a trip to the floating markets. Now, we had just seen the Floating Markets of Damnoen Saduak, Thailand, so we didn’t know what to expect.

We headed through downtown Siem Reap and down a country road lined with palm-thatched primitive huts (many of which were on stilts). Very much of a Latin America feel to it (except for the stilts). Newer two and three-story houses were incongruously built between many of the huts, a dramatic contrast in living standards. Almost as if those who became wealthy didn’t want to leave the old neighborhood, so they built where they grew up. Or land prices anywhere close to downtown Siem Reap are sky high because of the huge tourist-fueled economic boom, pushing people building new homes into odd locations.

Siem Reap is growing dramatically. Lots of luxury hotels up or going up – names like Sofitel, Meridien, others. And no small investment either, with large and ornate properties. The Siem Reap economy is all about tourists and the Temples. Get a job at a hotel or as a tour guide, and your standard of living gets a whole lot nicer. Some of this explains the very service-oriented nature of the people we met, but I think some of the friendliness we saw if just the nature of the Cambodian people – warm and engaging, and for many a great command of the English language.
As we got further away from Siem Reap, some of the huts were actually restaurants for the local populace, with an interesting and unusual feature – hammocks strung up overlooking the flooded fields – presumably so people could enjoy a bite, then lounge in hammocks after dinner. Happy hour! Great concept, not sure it would fly in Minnesota.

As we got closer to the lake, there was trash strewn everywhere on the ground. Very much unlike Thailand, which was very clean – a lot more like Mexico. They could benefit from lining up everyone in a long line, when slowly pacing across the ground (just like Boy Scouts clean up a campsite) – but somehow I don’t think that’s going to happen anytime soon!

The lakefront was located at the bottom of a large hill – a major geographical anomaly, given that the majority of Cambodia is flat. The lack of hills and mountains may explain why Cambodia has been the battleground for warring nation-states for centuries – and this large hill sure wasn’t big enough to stop anyone.
On to the boat – about 20 feet long, 8 feet wide, with sides that kept water splashes out and a flat curving front. We had the boat pretty much to ourselves, unlike some tour groups which were packed in like sardines. This is clearly a major stop on the Siem Reap tourist trail, and the buses filled with Koreans were front and center. Headed up the channel to the lake, passing lots of residences built on floating barges as we went … easy to pick up the house and move it down the lake (which extends all the way to Phnom Penh). In fact, we say one ‘houseboat’ being towed. The houses are built on wooden or bamboo platforms, with palm frond walls and roofs (and the occasionally corrugated tin)and not a lot of privacy! This is a fishing community, and we saw a good number of fishing boats with large nets hung on wood frames on the boats as they headed out to the lake. Also sampans (smaller, almost canoe like boats).

As we approached the floating market (which is just a larger barge), a sampan motored right next to us and a little girl (seven or eight years old) with a bucket of beverages hopped onto our boat. Just like the beer cart at a golf course! We each bought a beer, then she headed to the back of the boat to jump back onto her sampan. Then her older brother (at the helm) pulled ahead of our boat and then immediately cut in front of our bow to the other side – cheap thrills, river style! The floating market included a crocodile pen, and a pen of catfish (to feed the crocs!). Then off to the edge of the great lake itself (massive in scale, like one of the Great Lakes), and back up the channel to the landing.