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Cambodia Day 4
Today's Travel:
Car: 30 kms
Boat: 5kms
Map: Today's trip
Tonle Sap Lake is the largest freshwater lake in SE Asia, being roughly 250km by 100km although relatively shallow. It is fed by the Siem Reap River that flows passed Siem Reap and the Angkor complex, as well as being filled by the Mekong River during the wet season (The floods in the Mekong cause the Tonle Sap River to flow 'backwards'). It is a major source of seafood for the Cambodian people but it has a somewhat questionable future as upstream countries bounding the Mekong River are building dams, and pollution (mostly plastics) seems to be getting out of hand.
We met up with another couple, Andy and Lesley, and were driven down to a docking area on the river to board our own boat for a cruise to the floating village and to see where the river entered the lake.
Our boat featured a novel gravity-fed fuel system with built-in suspension.
There are a number of 'floating villages' which remarkably seem to be populated by a majority of Vietnamese rather than Cambodians. Our guide seemed to think that this was due to the Vietnamese invasion to remove Pol Pot in 1978, and then those who didn't bother returning home stayed here.
Quite a popular spot for tourists.
This type of boat runs 7~12 day cruises on the Mekong River and Tonle Sap Lake
Boy with Python (electrical tape has many uses)
Floating croc farm
Typical floating house
Community rice store
Start them young! (Although our guide says most can't swim)
This was out last day in Siem Reap. Tomorrow we're off to Phnom Penh (by road!)
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