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Published: January 14th 2008
Mekong @ Fast Shutter
Getting scurvy on the MekongSo, this blog will include two places: Kratie and Ban Lung.
On 1/10 we left for Kratie which is about 5/6 hours from Phnom Penh in central-eastern Cambodia:
*The night before in Phnom Penh, I watched a dog take a dump on a pile of trash around a light post. I thought to myself, that is a very smart dog, as it could have crapped anywhere.
*Our bus was freezing and was filled with mostly upper class travelers, very few locals. A man spoke for almost 5 minutes in Khmer though, and then spent 10 seconds explaining what he had said in English. He spoke with a loudspeaker inside the bus. My eardrums bled.
*Along the way, we stopped at a rest stop and Dan and I got mobbed by some young girls trying to sell us pineapple, mango, and sticky rice. We took turns telling the group to try asking the other person. We refused for a while, and they started mocking us, so we got back on the bus with our emotions in tatters. While we were waiting for the bus to leave the girls came up to the side of the bus
Irrawwaddy Dolphin @ Sunset
The closest they got, or at least the closest my weak 55mm lens can get. to make faces at as and harass us even more. The girl selling the sticky rice says she'll sell it for a 1000 riel (she started at 4000), and I told her to try Dan again, so they all walked to the other side of the bus to puppy face him. He succumbed to their magic, but only bought some bananas. The girl with the sticky face walked back over to my side and stuck her tongue at me and pouted. I am such a jerk.
*Dan and I ate something called "Mr. Potato", something very similar to Pringles in the states. We feel authentically Cambodian. Later, Dan's stomach reigns terror on him for eating non-Cambodian food.
*We get to Kratie and went immediately to see the only freshwater dolphins in the world, at least I think they are. They are called Irrawaddy Dolphins and they live on the Mekong River, which is Southeast Asia's Amazon. We took a moto (motorcycle with a driver) and fly 15 kilometers holding on for dear life. We passed many rural areas with lots of interesting sights like men riding flat horse carriages, chickens in the middle of the road, people working
Sunset on the Mekong
One of my favorite experiences. on woodcrafts for sale. My driver made fun of me for not knowing Khmer. The ride was amazing. At one point, another driver on the road gets so close to Dan that he patted him on the back. Dan looked nervous.
*We got to the dock and went out by small boat with an traveling British couple, and catch glimpses of the shy dolphins for an hour and a half. It was a very beautiful place, and the Mekong felt eternally vast. I appreciated the experience a lot. We didn't meet Flipper though, and for that, I will forever hold a grudge against the Khmer people. The dolphins are endangered, as they were hunted during the Khmer Rouge's reign for their oils. I felt lucky to have seen something so rare (some scientists think that there are only close to 45 left in the world)
*We stopped on the way home to climb Mountain Somethingcambodian to see an active wat. There were a billion steps. My legs felt like hulkish redwoods.
*That was all of Kratie, as you can see, it is basically known for the dolphins.
On 1/11 we left for Ban Lung which
is in the very north west of Cambodia, bordering Laos from the North, and Vietnam from the East:
*We took a bus to Stung Treng, about 4 hours north of Kratie. Along the way we pick up a hitchhiker and pass three cars with men with AK-47s inside. We all pulled out our glocks to rep our set and flash the westside sign even though we are in eastern Cambodia. Gangsta. In all seriousness we all were silently rather scared.
*While we waited for the taxi a young boy traveling with his family asked us for permission to play the guitar, we told him yes, but if he didn't play well there would be dire consequences. Apparently, he didn't play well enough because a few seconds in the cafe manager came to tell him to shut up.
*Our taxi driver takes us through a ridiculous road to Ban Lung that made the car feel like those push toys they give kids that pop the little balls around inside when you roll them on the ground. For all those who don't know what I'm talking...you had a sad childhood. Imagine a bright orangish dirt road with ditches
Ban Lung Market
Inside the dark depths of the life blood of a lot of Southeast Asian communities. about a foot deep running randomly almost 75% of the time. Our taxi driver was, however, one of the most entertaining parts of this trip thus far. He didn't speak a word of English, but was very animated. He talked outloud/grumbled to himself when we passed anything. He would then laugh to himself and then look in the rear view mirror to see if we were laughing at his indecipherable jokes. Dan and I adlibed in the back for some time, speculating that the whole time he was trying to speak Khmer to Paul in the front seat, but some three hours later discovered he didn't speak his language. We also were pretty sure he told us a couple times that he had farted and also that he couldn't wait to get back home to his sexy wife. He was also rather brash, simply laughing at a car wreck he slowed down for, then looking at us too see if we enjoyed his amusement. It was hilarious to us as we stared while passing our possible future demise. At one point I started to whistle to myself and he promptly turned on the radio and turned it up even though
we didn't get any reception. I'm that good of a whistler, yes. Dan made fun of me quite a bit, and I lost face and my family's honor.
*We finally arrived some grueling 3.5 hours later and discovered Ban Lung is the dustiest place in world. It seemed as though I was a giant crushing the small mortal world beneath me with every red dust blowing step I took.
*We did nothing the first night because Dan wasn't feeling too well. Paul and I rolled our eyes. What a faker.
*I took a nap, and it was as good as it sounds.
*The next day Paul and I explored the town a bit. Then Dan and I explored the surrounding smaller roads and discussed American foreign policy, Communism, and Iran. It was highly intellectual, and I will look for my Ph.D when I get home. I literally felt my brain grow, and it hurt, as my skull could not.
*We explored the local market, which was quite an experience. It was not a very clean place, but it felt like home to a lot of people there, and I thoroughly enjoyed being there to see
Ban Lung Streets
Cows contemplating how to break into this house. everything and watch people's reactions to us. I saw giant tubs of tobacco, packs of 1000 cigarettes, children toys, lots of jewelery - all things I love. I also saw the most fermented, foul-smelling, fly encrusted pieces of previous pig I have ever seen sitting in the sun. I wondered if that was what we were eating at our guest house. My mouth literally salivated in hunger.
*We walked to East Patomak Mountain and climbed it to see Ban Lung's reclining Buddha. When we got there we found some kids playing Chinese jumprope who asked us a hundred times, "Hello. How are you. What is your name," only to laugh a hundred times before we could answer each time. I imagined picking a fight with the boy, and saw myself getting beat up, so I decided to withhold my savage American Adopted Korean Jujitsu skills.
*A woman asked me twice for money just to be there. The 2nd time I just smiled at her, and she knew the jig was up. She giggled and walked back down the hill. I felt like a master negotiator. A lawyer of sorts.
*I took a shower and the dust wouldn't
come off.
*We played cards, and I dominated no matter what anyone else tells you.
*The next day we met two Swiss travelers. We could have sworn the girl was the Swiss Miss spokesperson.
*We start a day tour going all around Ratanikiri Province. This included all day of sitting in a pick-up with dust enveloping us and a metal hold bar digging into our backs. Professional Travelers we are.
*Our tour guide was amazing, although I don't remember his name. He lost his parents some time ago, and he grew up with his sister, who owns a store close to Phnom Penh. She paid for all of his education, and he wanted to learn English and French, but could only afford to learn English. After his schooling he left for Ban Lung with only 20$ to his name. He only knew one person there. He lives 30 minutes from Ban Lung in a one room apartment which isn't large enough to hold a bed, so he uses a hammock, which he prefers to beds anyway. He lives next to a rubber refinery and he says it pollutes everything around it. For this room he pays
Ban Lung's Reclining Buddha
+ little boy with giant rubber band around his head. Priceless. 40$ a month for rent and utilities. He learned to do tour guiding and jungle trekking as a luggage carrier for old guides. He can't afford to live in the wet season (May-Nov) because Ban Lung is very inaccessible due to the mud (aka the invasive dust/dirt from Dec-April) so each summer he applies for various other jobs to help compensate him. He once got a tattoo of a king cobra on his left hand and cried like a small child. All of the tourists see it and think he is some kind of gangster and he has to convince them that he is a good man. Once while trekking, a tourist was bitten by a king cobra but he survived with the help of plant teas the guide and a forest ranger found for him, he was very proud of this. He also contracted Malaria once, but fought it off. In these areas of the world Malaria is a "fever" that you get treated for, not something you prevent. He also can't swim and almost drown three times. He told us a legend of the Irrawaddy dolphins which involved a woman who had been swallowed by a snake but
Giant Buddha Lies on Ground in Complete Zen
+ incense. I got a fever. And the only cure is more incense. survived only to have slipper scales from her breasts down to her feet, so she tried to commit suicide by keeping a jug over her head underwater but was saved, only to have become a dolphin.
*We saw Katieng and Cha-Ong waterfalls and they were both very impressive. We stopped to have lunch next to a 3rd waterfall that doesn't have a name, at least in my memory it doesn't. We then visited a rural Tnoo tribal village. They had been living here indigenously for some time, and are just now receiving aid from NGO's and education about conserving their land and protecting their rights. It was interesting but I also felt invasive with a whole group. I'd love to return with just a guide. We did catch a glimpse of a 106 year old man who came out to take a gander at us. Yes, very amusing tourists. He looked like he couldn't see far enough to make us out. We then went to Yeak Lom Lake, which is about 5000 feet deep in the center, and in almost a perfect circle. It was a great way to end Ban Lung, and there were many local children swimming,
Shadows @ Sunset on Patomak Mountain
That's me in my fantasy NBA height world. laughing, and trying to jump on each other in the water from the dock. We swam out to a fallen tree and soaked up some sun and talked to two girls from Denmark about heir travels before heading back. Before we left I tried some local smoked deer that had been sitting in the sun with about 10000000 fly larvae on it. It was very good, sweet, and salty.
*Back at the guesthouse we ate dinner with a man who had traveled all of Latin America and discussed Cambodian economics, Southeast Asian poverty, Mynamar, 9/11 conspiracy theories (Dan went off on a rant about some so called reputable documentaries), Machu Pichu, Howard Zinn, Malaria (ooooh scary), and Canada.
*Today we took a 12 hour bus ride back to Phnom Penh. It was assbreaking and mindnumbing. I am in high spirits. I also ate 2 pieces of break all day and am in the best shape of my life.
*Tomorrow onward to Sihanoukvile along the southern coast then back to Bangkok. This has been a lot of writing, and I thank you for your attention.
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Karen Motenko-Neal
non-member comment
Fracking funny!
Kam, I so appreciate your blogs. I laugh out loud a lot. (Fracking, by the way, comes from "Battlestar Gallactica" (Jason lent us the season one dvd and now we are hooked)). I also appreciate your humility related to the comparison between the economy and education of Cambodia versus the U.S., as well as the unimaginable horrors of the holocaust in Phnom Penh. As you travel and share your thoughts and experiences through words and pictures, we can learn from you about the world and stay aware of the realities that we need to aid. Thank you, Kam.