We exited Banteay Kdei around 3:40 and Set insisted that we had more than enough time to make it to the Tonle' Sap River to see the floating village and the sunset. Set took us through back neighborhoods of Siem Reap and we saw how many Cambodians lived in the city. Along the river houses (mostly wooden shacks) were built partially on the land and partially on stilts in the river. We were shocked to see TVs inside of some of the shacks. The city gradually gave way to the countryside and rice fields. The homes along this road were completely built on very high stilts. Set stopped briefly and explained that in the monsoon season, the water was so high it covered the road. Most of the people living in that area left during the monsoon season and moved to the foot of the mountains where it was drier.
G- They are adorable, but they're babies. She looks no more than 5 and he can't be older than 2 or 3.
P- It is bizarre that they're allowed to walk along the road.
G- Bizarre by American standards.
We waived at the children and they smiled and waived back, but the older sister was very purposeful in preventing him from becoming distracted and keeping him walking to their destination. Before we pulled away, we were passed by a man on a motorcycle. Not an unusul site, but.................
P- What did that man have between his legs? (Her eyes were wide and one eyebrow was raised.)
G- Um, you saw correctly.
G- You just want me to say it, don't you. (We both started cracking up.) He had a large cock between his legs. A black & red one to be precise.
P- Was it alive?
G- It was very much alive. I think he was gripping its feet with his thighs and his hand was around it's neck.
P- That's the first time I've seen a guy choking his chicken on a motorcycle. Bwahahaha!
G- Bwahahahahah!!!
P- Freakin hysterical!!!!!!
After about 45 minutes we rounded a corner and could see the river in the distance. The road ahead was also lined with wooden houses on stilts. We reached the river, purchased our tickets ($20.00 each) and were put on a long thin wooden boat with 8 rattan chairs placed 2 by 2 down the length of the boat. Each traveling party was assigned a different boat and we found it extremely bizarre that they didn't fill each boat to capacity. Most boats had no more than 2-4 people aboard, even though they could take 8-10. We surmised that this was how they ensured that everyone made some money each day. But to us, it seemed crazy nonetheless.
motor looked like some kind of Frankenstein contraption and didn't sound like it was going to get us out of the tributary to the river. As we pulled away another boy, maybe in his late teens, jumped aboard. He came to sit by us, introducted himself and began to ask us the usual questions: what's your name, where are you from, etc. I raised an eyebrow at Phyl. It appeared that we were going to have a “tour guide” whether we wanted one or not. Not long after the "tour guide" arrived, a small boat pulled along side our boat and a child of about 7 years jumped, as though we were all on solid ground, from his boat to ours, with a basket of ice and cokes. We declined and he jumped off as quickly as he had arrived. It was so startling and unanticipated that we sat in shock about his gazelle leap , the speed of the boats, and his young age. As we rode, he gave us the history of the area, the lake, and the Vietnamese people (now so long in Cambodia that they consider themselves Vietnamese- Cambodians) who live in the floating village. Basically it was everything we had read in the guidebook.
Phyl stayed in the boat and I jumped off to find change. I purchased a beer so that they'd break my $20.00. When I returned she was pinned in by a canoe type boat filled with children and one woman, cigarette dangling from her lips, all begging her for money. They were grabbing at her arms and our backpack. Phyl's anxiety level was through the roof and she looked at me imploringly.
G- I got back as quickly as I could.
P - Get me the hell out of here.
The boat driver began to back away as the 'tour guide' got back on the boat. We drove around the village for a while. Any time we'd stop moving for even a minute, a baby (literrally a child under 6 years old) would start paddling the large wash basin in which he or she floated over to our boat to beg for money. Some of the babies had a huge snake in the wash basin with them as an enticement to take a photo in exchange for money.
Our hearts breaking, we could not take one minute more of this!!! We told the 'tour guide' we wanted to be taken into the middle of the lake to watch the sunset. This was his cue to get off, after we had given him a tip, and after he had advised us that the government takes all the ticket money, leaving the driver with nothing. We instucted the driver, via pantomimes, to take us to the middle of the lake and stay there until it was time to go.
P- When did they take those pictures?
G- I saw a guy with a camera as we walked to the boat, but I wasn't sure what he was doing.
P- Unbelievable! Now that's like Disney World.
G- You gotta admit that it's the most creative thing they've tried to sell us.
P- There are pretty many TVs in these shacks.
G- It is kind've surprising to see isn't it?
P- Very surprising out here in the middle of nowhere.
G- Did you just see that pool table? How in the hell did they get that in there? Maybe it was a bar shack.
P- I'm about over these bugs hitting me in the face.
G- Ah! OMG! The one that just hit me was very large! (I felt around on my lap and on the seat.) Where did it go?
P- I don't know, but don't let it crawl on me.
G- Pretty soon I'm going to open the umbrella to protect us.
P- This wind will break that umbrella.
G- If another one of those large bugs hits me in the head, a broken umbrella will be the least of your worries.
When we arrived at Rosie's the artist brothers were sitting at our favorite table. They showed us the picture of the tree that they had painted that afternoon. We discussed the location of the tree and remembered seeing it during our exploration of the temple. We were thrilled that they had actually painted it for us and delivered the paintings. After thanking them and again complimenting their work, they left and we sat down for a beer. It had been a great day, but we were still shaken by the events at the floating village. We worried, not for the first time or the last, that the poverty and begging in India may just be too much for us to withstand.
