David & Zina Cox: Day 164 – Tonle Sap Lake to Ho Chi Minh City

We were able to chat with Seth and David’s mom for a little while this morning. It was still his birthday in the US. In my haste to leave the room and get checked out, but also let David have as much time as he could talking with his mom, I failed to see the power cord for the computer on the floor, so it was accidentally left there. Not a good start. I didn’t realize it until we were at the airport. They usually come check the rooms right away after you check out, but I guess because we left on the bus so soon after we checked out, they couldn’t catch us.

We did arrive at Tonle Sap Lake, the largest lake in Cambodia, after a trip along the Mekong River. We got on a boat and started along the lake to the floating village of Chong Kneas. The captain was about 17 years old and he had two siblings along that were about 13 and 10. They gave massages on your neck and shoulders and then asked for a dollar afterward.

The houses along the river are built up on stilts so that when the rainy season comes, they don't flood. During the dry season, they plant the rice and use the river for irrigation.

Camping on the dry land next to their boat.

Climbing in the mangrove trees.

Floating homes.

A larger part of the village.

Tombs of their ancestors. Each year they are flooded in the rainy season and when the waters recede, they repaint the tombs.

The engine didn’t sound very good, and as we were going along, the engine would cut out. They got it going about 3 different times, but finally it died altogether. We drifted to the side of the lake until a rescue boat came along to pick us up and take us the rest of the way to the floating city of Chong Kneas.

Our rescue boat.

The people that live in the village (there are about 1600 families) are very poor, and mostly fisherman. A lot of them are also refuges from Vietnam during the Cambodian Civil War and have lived here long enough that most of them speak Cambodian now and are considered Cambodian citizens. They moor their boats on the lake during the dry season and then move inland among the mangrove trees during the wet season. The lake becomes about twice the size of the dry season during the wet season. They have floating schools, stores, police stations and medical clinics.

This kids mother put him and his younger brother in a small boat with a motor and then came along side our boat. He wanted two dollars for a pictures with his snake. Someone gave him only a dollar and he wasn't too happy about that.

Building a new one.

Floating village, all clustered together.

Local restaurant.

I caught the flag furling perfectly for this show of my 60 year husband. (he he)

This plant was growing on the tourist trap boat. The spines looked wicked!

They also farm the crocodiles on the boat and then turn them into purses, wallets, belts, shoes, etc. And sell them of course!

These girls also wanted money for you to take their pictures with their snakes. Then they fought over who would get the better shot.

Crocodile hides drying.

That boat let us off at the floating restaurant and gift shop for tourists and after we wandered there for about a half hour, our original boat made it there and we went back on it, but not after one of the BYU teachers, who knows about engines, went back there and helped them get the engine started again.

We rode the bus back to the hotel and picked up the three people who had come down with the flu during the night and were allowed to stay in their rooms until we came back. Then we headed to the airport.

We were too early to check in for our flights right away, so we stood in line and took turns walking around and getting some lunch while the other one watched our bags. We were supposed to have about an hour wait, but the plane was delayed in getting there, and we were over an hour late getting to Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam.

They immediately took us to our hotel and we were able to get some down time while we waited for the guide to meet us in the lobby at 7:30. We then walked to the Saigon River and got on a riverboat where they fed us dinner and gave us a show as they cruised up and down the river. Then we walked back to the hotel. Dinner was nice, but a little too late at night for us to really enjoy it.