Cambodia: Floating Villages and Beng Mealea

At the end of October, my parents finally made the long journey to Singapore for a visit.  We were excited to show them around and introduce them to Asian culture as this would be their first time here and their first time even using their passports!  They were only in Singapore for a day before we rushed them off to Siem Reap in Cambodia for a long weekend.

For our first full day, we headed out to Tonle Sap Lake to see explore the floating villages.  Tonle Sap is the largest freshwater lake in southeast Asia and the size changes dramatically depending on the season.  We were there near the end of the rainy season so the lake was near its peak.  The villages we visited are built on stilts so that as the water rises throughout the season, they stay dry.  During the dry season, the lake empties and the houses are standing on dry ground.  At some places we could see huts or tanker trucks that were submerged in the water next to some of the houses and even some houses that weren't built high enough.

We arrived at the pretty early and were surprised to see buses and cars parked all along the road.  Our guide was confused because this was supposed to be one of the non-touristy spots on the lake.  Fortunately, it wasn't tourists but a large group of locals who were boarding several boats to take them out to a temple to make a donation.  They were all dressed in their best attire, playing music, and dancing as they rode down the river.  Such a sight to see!  In all the years our guide has been doing this, she has never witnessed one of these boat parties so we were really lucky.

A little blurry but this was the landscape on the way to the lake.  Our first time seeing water buffalo in the wild.

Our little boat with a LOUD motor 

The party boats

They had some monks with them as well 

Dancing, clapping, and having a good time! 

Into one of the village

Kids playing at the schoolhouse

Some of the local fisherman selling their fish at the edge of town

A short drive from the lake was Beng Mealea which is a 12th century Hindu temple.  This was one of our favorite temples we have ever visited because it is unrestored.  Not many tourists make the trip all the way out to see it so at times it felt like we were the only people there.

The main entrance to Beng Mealea

How could I forget to wear something orange!

Thankful that this area has been cleared of land mines.  This is an ongoing effort around the country.

 Along the roadside there were many stalls selling rice with coconut milk and red beans cooked in bamboo over a fire.  We had to stop and give it a try!

Once we returned to Siem Reap, we visited a spa so that we could all get massages.  We visited one of the more expensive places in town but it was nice and clean.  $21 for an hour massage still seems like a steal!  We had to relax and rest up for the next day which would be all about Angkor Wat and the surrounding temples.