Most people who read this review will be familiar with the classic four seasons, which are whittled down by half in Cambodia to the “rainy season” and “dry season.” This duality accounts for several oddities in the country, including a reversal in flow of the Tonle Sap tributary of the Mekong River (!), and an increase in the area of the lake by a factor of four to five. Tonle Sap is the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia and is home to over 90,000 people who inhabit 170 floating villages. Several of these are tourist destinations, with Kompong Khleang being the largest, but given the distance from Siem Reap one of the least visited. I toured with a guide on a day trip from the city during my first full day in the country.
My visit to the village was divided into two distinct phases. The first was a boat ride from the dock to the lake itself. After boarding, we spent about 40 minutes traveling down the inlet and observed the “floating” aspect of the community in all of its aquatic glory. Primary schools, pontoon shops, mobile convenience stores, crocodile farms, and innumerable local fisherman (and women) were visible in all of their day-to-day activities. We spent maybe twenty minutes on the lake proper and then returned in a bit faster fashion to the village. The second half of the visit was on foot through the town proper. We visited a stilted guest house, watched the activity from above, and proceeded to meander around the town to observe the terrestrial daily activity. Among the unique observations were the processing and selling of smoked fish, street food vendors (try the clams), and the local Buddhist temple. The entire visit took a little over four hours.
In summary, this was an absolutely superb experience and for several reasons I count it as one of the highlights during my two weeks in Cambodia. First, it was the only sustained exposure I had to the local population during my trip. Hey, the temples and S-21 are a must but they tend to draw us away from the daily inhabitants and this visit emphasized the latter. Second, it was a superb example of humans adapting to their local environment. Yes, the “floating” aspect of the surroundings is an obvious example, but more subtle ones included recycling of shoe soles for buoyancy of the fishing nets and reuse of parts in the repair shops for boat motors. Third, it was a welcome break from the Ancient Khmer-themed aspect of the rest of the trip. I learned about modern issues such as the recent political election and potential future steps for the ecological preservation of the lake itself.
A superb overall experience and highly recommended.
Tips:
*If your time in Siem Reap is tight, feel free to skip an extra day of the temples and come here. It doesn’t replace Angkor Wat but is a close second in my mind.
*Guided tour is a must! Consider booking through Tour by Locals.
*Morning visit only on the lake! It gets a bit toasty as the day goes on.
*For those with extra time, consider a homestay for 2-3 days in the town. I stopped by to visit a family that does this and the premises was clean, spacious, and had running water and electricty.