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Published: April 19th 2008
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Siem Reap to Battambang
The water route from Siem Reap to Battambang is supposed to be the most scenic in the country. In the wet season the trip takes 4 hours, in the dry it takes anywhere from 6-7hours. I didn't have anything better to do than enjoy a long boat trip and take pictures while moving past floating villages and fisheries so I chose to take the boat rather than the 4hour bus that zoomed along paved roads.
Too much beer and not enough sleep the night before meant I was dehydrated and exhausted before we even got on board. Water I had, food I did not. Nearly every mode of transport I've taken over the last 6 weeks has involved loads of vendors at the start, middle and end of the journey selling food and drinks. This is not really the case for the boat to Battambang and the snacks I had been hoping on were not to be seen. I was starting to get a little grouchy and we hadn't even left the dock. Little did I know I had 9 hours on a boat in the relentless sun to look forward to.
The early
Heading Out
Our front deck hours of morning were cool, and the light soft and beautiful. I clambered up on the flat roof of our boat and dozed for a while, enjoying the cool breeze and distant drone of our motor. Waking up as we entered the first major floating village, it was unlike anything I had ever seen. Houses, restaurants, shops and churches floating on the Tonle Sap lashed together to make a town. Bright blue and pink paint was used on lots of the homes and there was a color and vibrancy to it that made me want to hop off and spend a few hours. Not an option on this journey, but it would have been interesting to make my way in a small wooden boat and experience it.
When we left the docks, there were about a dozen tourists en route to Battambang across the Tonle Sap. Once we hit the first village, there were suddenly 25+ locals on the boat with us too. Maxed out!
Luckily, I squeezed my way downstairs just in time to secure a small piece of the hard wooden bench sandwiched between a woman from New Zealand traveling with her husband and two small
boys and a Cambodian woman traveling with her daughter and two small puppies. The guys who stayed upstairs were hard-pressed to find space later in the day and spent most of the ride roasting in the 40+C sun.
The ride itself made its way across the lake and wound through small villages fishing areas. Local fishermen set up complex net systems to make their catches which supply 60% of the Cambodian's protein intake and 75% of the annual inland fish catch. The Tonle Sap is a combined fresh water lake and river system which covers about 2,700 square km in the dry season, but explodes to 16,000 square km during the monsoon season. This is because water reverses direction in the Tonle Sap river and pushes water up from the Mekong into the Tonle Sap lake.
Temperatures steadily rose over the course of the day, as did my temper with increasing hunger as well as frustration at the puppy abuse I was witnessing. Treated like stuffed novelties and not given any food or drink during the first 5hours of the ride, they would occasionally wimper and get vicious smacks for it. Several people on board - locals and
tourists alike - looked on with amazement and exchanged horrified glances. There are those people you meet once in a while that rub you so wrong all you can think about is throwing them overboard. I contained myself.
At noon we pulled into a village restaurant and got some grub. Hooray! I was thrilled. One heaping plate of steamed rice with stir-friend long beans, mystery meat, and chilies later I was much more human and in excellent spirits.
The rest of the ride was uneventful. Around 2pm everyone on board seemed to be done with it and eagerly anticipated our arrival. No one knew exactly how much longer we had to go, we had already passed the 6hour mark. The young boys on board had been going up and down to the roof all afternoon coming in for snacks and juice boxes (how I envied their juice boxes!) and chattering about what they saw or were experiencing. I dozed sitting upright, restlessly shifted in my seat, adjusted the tarp to get some shade when the sun moved, and read a few pages of Obama's Dreams of my Father over a friendly traveler's shoulder when he came in from
Fisherman's Toss
Casting nets for a catch the roof and we squeezed him in on the bench.
By 3pm, I was ready to jump in the river and swim to Battambang. The water was so shallow and our boat so heavy we created an immense wake even when moving at a crawl. Out of respect for bathers and fellow boaters, we slowed when passing. It seemed we would never arrive. Because the intensity of the sun had diminished somewhat, I moved out onto the front deck of the boat to get some fresh air, change position and experience the remainder of the trip from a different perspective. Besides, it had reached the point I was going to steal the puppies or kill the mother-daughter pair. I hear Cambodian prison is not a nice place to stay and the last thing I need is to add to my luggage.
Once on the deck, my mood lifted and I was excited at the prospect of getting some pictures along the tributary. We had moved away from floating villages and now the tributary was lined with boats tied to shore and steps leading up to the banks where homes, temples and mosques would appear with increasing frequency as
Chong Khneas
Village at the docks where boats depart we neared Battambang. As afternoon waned, people moved into the water to play, bathe and wash and we were greeted with choruses of "Hello!" and excited waves when we motored past. Kids delighted in the wake our boat left behind, jumping in the waves and balancing on the edge of their boats as they were rocked by the water.
At 5:30pm, we finally arrived. Clambering up a steep, rickety staircase with our heavy loads we were greeted by a dozen or so drivers pushing their services and hotels. Frazzled and exhausted I pushed past them and made my way to the edge of the crowd to collect myself and decide where I would spend the night. Battambang is the second largest city in Cambodia, but is infrequently touristed. This may be why the touts actually respected my request to be left alone for a few moments rather than follow me to the ends of the earth in order to get my patronage which is what happens everywhere else I've been. Hooray!
Checked in to the hotel after another 4 floor walk up (this is getting old quickly), had a cold shower and made our way over to the
White Rose restaurant because we read they had amazing fruit shakes and some of the best food in town. The menu covers 300+ food items and lists 35+ fruit shakes. Of course, I order a fruit shake that isn't on the menu: pineapple, jackfruit and coconut. MMM MMM GOOD! Followed by stir-fried prawns with ginger and some fried spring rolls with meat and vegetables, I was satiated and happy.
While eating, we had a couple young boys come beg for food. At best, the situation is awkward as I lift a ginger filled fork to my mouth and a hungry 5 year old stares at me begging for a meal. At worst, I discover some horrid things about my instincts as I debate the merits of succumbing to their escalating requests. In the end, we bagged up some food and ended up giving it to a woman down the street who was collecting plastics to claim the deposit. We just couldn't bring ourselves to reinforce the young boys in their approach. Who am I to 'teach a lesson' anyway?
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Miracle
non-member comment
Hmmmm...
Vanessa, I am just happy that I was NOT there with you. If your temper was just under boil.....let's just say I might be enjoying a night in the Hotel Cambodia...the one with iron bars. Sounds perfectly uninviting but I am happy for you that it is going well.