52. Phnom Bakheng - Sunsets & Elephants

The phases of the setting sun
After seeing the sun peeking through overgrown trees and not being able to see much, I moved around a bit and found a spot where you had a good view - the space between the trees was wide and the misty haze surrounding the distant hills and forest was like something out of a children's fairy tale.

Above: Sunset at Phnom Bakheng
Rather than post up seven different photos. I've made them into a collage which not only takes less space but also makes it easier to see the different stages. I haven't numbered them as this would detract from the pictures, they are from the top row going from left to right - 3, 5, 1, 7, 6, 4, and 2.

At the beginning the sky was a light pink with a touch of blue which deepened to a darker shade of pink with a purpley mauve. As the sun sank lower this changed to a pale apricot, with shades of light yellow deepening to a fiery golden orange. I long for the day when I can afford a really good camera which captures the bright orange ball which is the sun and show the brilliant fiery colours I saw.

Above: Elephant riding
As people started leaving, I looked around for my elephant - where were they? Walking along to the right I saw a sign and turning left went towards them. Showing my ticket I was led to "my" elephant. She is a female, aged 42 years old and her name is Tao.

Remember the children's song we used to sing?
Heidi, Heidi, Ho,
The great big elephant is so slow,
She swings her trunk from side to side
As she takes the children for a ride.
Heidi, Heidi, Ho,
The elephant is so slow!

Above: Coming down the mountain
One of the things I really, really wanted to do was ride an elephant, I've ridden Harleys and camels, and an elephant was a "must do" - well for me it was. Now, you might think that sitting on top of an elephant like a British Memsahib from days of yore in colonial times, gently swaying from side to side while you look down and around you from your wondrous height would have you feeling like some Duchess, n'est-ce pas? - but think again.

A 1200 - 1400 pound (that's 545 - 635 kg) elephant plodding along a flat path is one thing, but a 1400 pounder going down a very steep hill/mountain is an experience to remember! With every heavy step thumping down, I was at a forward angle and each time we moved I found me rear end slid forwards - almost off the seat. How embarrassing if I should go zoom, woosh, splat! With arms out-stretched, I held onto the wooden sides. It felt like my arms were coming out of their sockets some of the time - but Oh! It was a wonderful experience, and yes, I'd do it all over again given the chance.

There were wonderful views coming down that hill, trees so close I could have touched them (well I could have were it not for me arms hangin' on for dear life to the wooden sides of me elephant basket) - through the trees I could see Angkor Wat. First it had greenery around it, then later as night drew in it was dark blue and grey - as you can see in the collage above.

Tip
Make sure you wear cotton clothes - don't wear shiny, silky pants - they don't have very good grip!☺

 

Above: The "Book" Salesman again!
Remember how I said in the previous post (No. 51) that the local people have memories like an elephant, and I'd explain later? Yes, well...

When we reached the bottom, I thanked my driver and looked around me - there were people everywhere, and the "book boy" rushed towards me wanting me to buy books, and the lady I called in my mind "The Scarf Lady" - both of them were jabbering (in English) for me to buy this scarf, buy this book - "You said you'd buy this when you came back and I waited for you. You say you buy, I wait for you now you buy." Oh mama mia - this was when the rule of "Never say maybe later" hit me. To us, it means just that, but this boy (and the woman) thought I meant I would definitely buy later. Well, I like to think that's what they thought and not that they deliberately misunderstood on purpose - if you know what I mean. (Sigh).

Well, anyway, as much as I didn't want to buy a scarf - I didn't like the ones she had anyway, and I really didn't want to buy something straight away, they sort of made me feel obligated to buy something. The young lad wanted US$25 for one book and $15 for another one - he had an assortment of them. I told him I'd think about it and perhaps tomorrow. His reply? "But tomorrow I go to school"

Hmm....he kept asking $25, I kept saying no, he offered $20, I shook my head, the scarf woman was on the other side buy my scarf, buy my scarf - I flipped through the pages of two books, he offered two for $15, I said no, (I didn't like one of them) so....I looked him straight in the eye and said, "I'll give you $10 for that book" Then it was buy both for $15, etc etc etc, but I'd offered ten - after both of us dancing around and skirting the issue of "two for $15" and "$10 for that one" he looked at the woman who nodded her head slightly, and it was then I realised she must have been his mother.

During all this exchange, I spoke softly and smiled as I spoke. Even if you've been accosted and asked for the 500th time if you want to buy a bottle of water (or whatever else it is), don't raise your voice and show your annoyance, you'll lose all respect and the people won't think very much of you. Just smile, shake your head and above all - be polite.

Above: The way back
After having had my first exchange at "bargaining" I climbed into my tuk tuk and we were off. The night air was pleasantly cool with the breeze fanning my face and it was quite dark. This was my view - or one of them. The back of my driver as we motored through the countryside the sounds of night around us.

51. Temples - Phnom Bakheng

Having set my alarm clock to make sure I didn'g oversleep, I woke feeling refreshed and ready for my main reason for going to Siem Reap - the ancient temples of Angkor Wat. Fortifying myself with cups of tea, my driver was waiting for me and we set off around 4.30pm. (Da said if you leave at 4 o'clock, they will stamp your pass for today) and we arrived at the first check point - buying the temple pass.

 

Above: Buying your temple pass
As you can see, there are many people all waiting to get their pass. You stand in line, (pushing and shoving were not the order of the day - people were polite) when it's your turn you give your name, "Smile" for the camera, hand over your Oxford scholars and stand to the side until they call your name. And Voila! Temple Pass and you're ready to start. Back in the tuk tuk, there were many ahead of us - but my driver was shifty - he neatly drove his trusty steed to the left, puhed in between two large vehicles whizzed along the small space and we were through. Michael Schummaker eat your heart out!

 

Above: First glimpse
Travelling along you go up this long avenue with trees on either side. At various intervals are policeman, some in pairs, some by themself with their motor bikes, I noticed them because they seemed to be spaced less than a km apart. I wondered why there were so many, but it was comforting to know they were there - I don't think there'd be too many would-be baddies around.

At the end of the avenue, we turned left and the river was on our right. We did another right hand turn and the first sight of Angkor Wat came into view. It was exciting seeing this and I gawked like any good tourist does, camera at the ready, eyes as big as saucers.☺

I thought we were stopping here but my driver had other ideas. I did ask if he would stop so I could take a few photos.


At Phnom Bakheng
We travelled further on and on asking where we were going, he replied, "Phnom Bakheng". I said I'd like to ride an elephant. When we arrived there were lots of people, and Pookeah took me over to where the elephant people were. I wanted to ride the elephant up as well as down. It's $20 going up and $15 coming down. Alas there were no elephants available going up, but I did book one for the return journey.

Sellers and Hawkers
After this, I was assailed by hoards of people all wanting me to "Buy this lady". Despite saying, "No thank you" repeatedly, and not wanting to appear rude, I gave the time honoured answer, " I'll think about it, maybe later." The boy (and a woman) then said, "You buy later" to which I replied I didn't know, maybe, I don't know - BIG mistake. The first rule when dealing with the local people wanting to sell you stuff - never, never, never, say "I'll think about it" or "Maybe later". Whereas we take that as neither yes or no, but generally meaning you aren't interested and you don't want to, it's a pretty firm guess that "maybe later" means no.
Not with the local people. They have memories like an elephant, as I'll explain later.

 

Above: The "Book" Salesman
This is the young lad who wanted me to buy books. He'd make a great used car salesman some day!


Walking up the hill
To get to Phnom Bakheng, other than by elephant, you have to hike up this very steep hill - up, up, up, panting and huffing and puffing (you realise just how unfit you are) - the path seemed to go on indefinitely. I can quite see why all the elephants going up the hill had been booked. Even in "normal" weather, that is, nice cool climates, it would be tough going - combine this with 40º or so - you'll get the picture. Every time I thought we were at the top there was another path around the "corner".

Finally we really did arrive at the top and oh - the sight of that temple with all those people sitting on the top and the sides of it. Waiting - what were they waiting for? I didn't know.

 

Phnom Bakheng
This was my first sight, I had approached from the right.
Phnom Bakheng is a Hindu temple and was built toward the end of the 9th cedntury and dedicated to Shiva during the reign of King Yasovarman (889-910 A.D.).
It is a popular tourist spot for sunset views of Angkor Wat - of course I didn't know this then and wondered what I was supposed to do. Why had my driver brought me here, was I meant to climb the steps of this temple, or look around at the ruins or something?

Above: Phnom Bakheng from the left
Walking around, this photo was taken from the left side. By dent of speaking with other people and asking questions, I gathered that the whole idea was to watch the sunset from here. I didn't know then that the idea was to actually climb up the temple, sit (or stand) at the top and from there view the sunset.

Above: Close-up
A close-up of the central "door". I didn't have time to go exploring, as the sun was sinking lower and I had finally found a good spot through the trees to see the sun going down for the day.

Did you know?
The view of the Angkor Wat from the top of Phnom Bakheng is featured in the movie Tomb Raider (when Lara Croft looks through the binoculars upon arriving in Cambodia).

50. Fiesta and Siesta

Lunch, a shower and a nap
Arriving back at the Two Dragons, I arranged with Pookeah to go to Angkor Wat later in the afternoon to see the temples at sunset. Sitting down in "my" chair and perusing the menu, I wanted to eat local food and after consultation with Da, decided on noodles with beef and egg, so long as it had vegies in it I was happy.

Above: Pat Mee Leung with beef (58) - lunch
This was my first Asian meal - Pat Mee Leung which was $3.95. Da told me if you order over $3 you get a free can of drink. This was a nice surprise and a welcome one too. Not being an aficionado of that revolting stuff called coca cola, I chose lemonade. You get a small can - about 250ml. Lunch was delicious and afterwards my eyelids were starting to droop. I realised I was falling asleep.

Above: The "Bar"
Going to the bar to pay for my meal I was told it would be put on my bill. I'd never stayed anywhere before where they add it to your "tab". It was a nice feeling.

Above: The Shower
Reaching my room, all I wanted to do was lie down and sleep, but I had to have a shower first, somehow I couldn't hack lying down all hot and sweaty with my clothes sticking to me. Best decision I ever made having that shower. I felt so clean...and so - I lay down and slept, the air conditioner quietly whirring keeping my room cool.

49. Artisans d'Angkor 4 - Cafe garden

Oops, I nearly forgot!
After buying the lovely things from the shop, I walked out and then realised I had forgotten to get something for my Mum. So I went straight back and as the ladies looked up at me (I had spent an inordinate amount of time deciding what to buy), I said I forgot to buy something for my mother. I didn't take long this time around, found a lovely purple eye glasses case and I was finished.

One thing I do know, next time I'm there, I'll be able to make my mind up far more quickly - oh yes, I definitely plan to return to Siem Reap. Now...if I could just refill my pocket up quickly! I'm keeping an eye out for "specials" - cheap flights from Melbourne to KL.


Time for a cuppa
As I stepped out of the shop door for the last time, I thought I'd love to sit under the trees and have a tea or something. There was a lovely little cafe in the garden and a gazebo with timber table and chairs. The weather by now was very hot indeed, and I bought an icecream. Not the shop bought stuff like Peters or Streets - no, this was the real thing - home-made icecream. Cambodian ice-cream is delicious. I bought a local fruit variety. From memory, it was one ringott 50 sen.

Above: Outdoor dining area
This is where I sat while enjoying the most delicious ice-cream. There was a faint breeze which while not cool, was nonetheless very pleasant. Especially sitting in the shade inhaling the fragrances of the flowers and gardens.

Above: Silk Farm gardens
As you can see, there are a couple of undercover picnic areas here with lush gardnes full of greenery, Hibiscus and Frangipani - everywhere you look in Cambodia there is Frangipani. Such a lovely flower with velvety textured petals. Just as I was thinking I really should be gettign a move on, my driver Pookeah came across and I could see that he wanted to be off. The poor man, having to hang around and wait for me when he probably wanted to get home for lunch. I was a bit thoughtless I suppose and hadn't thought of this.

Above: Silk Farm Roadsign
After clambering back in the tuk tuk we set off and as we started to turn onto the road, I asked my driver if he could stop for me so I could take a photo of the sign. He did and I did then we were on our way. Funny thing, the drive back seemed to take no time at all - no more touring around, we went straight back to the Two Dragons.

I had had a lovely time, seen some amazing things, bought some of the most beautiful hand made items and was very happy. It was really relaxing just sitting down and being driven along - not a care in the world. It's a nice feeling.

I would recommend anyone going to Siem Reap to visit the silk farm at Artisans d'Angkor, it is well worth it and even if you're on a very tight schedule, do make the effort to go there - you won't be disappointed.

48. Artisans d'Angkor 3 - Silk Museum and Shop

The Finished Product

Above: Colours worn by Khmer Royalty for each day of the week
These are the colours worn by Khmer Royalty - a different one for each day of the week. Starting from the left, the pink was worn on Mondays, the orange of Tuesdays, the royal blue on Wednesdays, the green on Thursdays and so on. I remember thinking at the time, what a marvellous idea, you wouldn't have the problem of "What should I wear to the party?" - you'd just go with the colour of the day. An eminently suitable idea too, think how easy it makes it to match handbags and shoes!

Above: Cambodian traditional dress
As we were moving along I saw these lovely clothes which are the traditional Cambodian style of dress, although I think many people today wear a more modern style, they still retain some of the traditional styling in the way the garnents are cut.
The sampot is a lower-body, wrap around cloth and is the national garment of Cambodia. There are several variations of the sampot, each is worn according to class.
A regular sampot known as the sarong was about one and a half metres long and both ends were sewn together and tied at the waist. These were worn by men and women of lower class.

Sampot Chang Kben worn by ladies of middle and upper class, was 3 metres long and a metre wide. It was wrapped around the waist, stretching it away from the body and twisting the knot which was then pulled between the legs and held by a metal belt. Regardless of class, all Cambodian women wear the Sampot Chang Kben for special events. Men may wear it, but the traditional patterns depend on gender.

Above: Cambodian traditional Royal dress
As you can see, the clothing worn by Royalty is far different from that worn by the rest of the population. Notice the richly embroidered gold thread and the many sparkling jewels sewn on. Lovely though they are, you wouldn't be able to sit for long in them. And those head dresses would give you a headache and a half. They look pretty heavy to me - imagine having to wear one on your head all day. You'd be longing for nightfall just so you could get the thing off! Still, maybe the kings and queens didn't have to have them on all day.

Above: Silk Panels
I asked Bunneano if he could hold the silk panel out for me so as to get a better shot. These panels were at least 12 foot long and almost a metre wide and are woven so fine as to be almost sheer.

Above: Bed Cover
This lovely sample could be used as a bed cover and has at least seven or eight different colours running throughout. Below is a close-up.

 

Above: Closeup of the bed covering
Click on the photo to enlarge it and you can see the intricacy of the patterns. And it is all woven manually by hand.

Above: Framework
These were on the floor near the bed cover, I'm not sure what they are, but the vibrant colours were very striking.

I was hoping there were silk products available for sale, and yes, there is a largish shop with many lovely things. The ladies working there were very polite and friendly and didn't mind that I seemed to take forever making up my mind what to buy. I was like a child in a toy shop, there were so many, many beautiful things to choose from. I eventually settled on the gifts I would take back home with me - two coin purses, a ladies wallet, eye glasses case, two card holders, which was funny as I thought they were small rectangular coin purses!

Above: Purchases
I also bought a small evening bag which isn't shown here but was in a lovely shade of green called Anise. I had wanted a pink one but there were none left. For myself, I settled on a scarf and a handbag.

 

Above: Bag and scarf
I really liked two bags they were both the same but in different colours. The one I wanted was the same colour as the red striped wallet but I also liked the one in the above picture. I hummed and haa-ed over them, taking forever to make up my mind. I knew I should get the red/fuschia one because those colours suit me especially as I planned on buying a matching scarf. Yet something held me back and I ended up buying the one you see above with a blue/green scarf. The inside silk lining is more a green although it looks a bit yellowy in the photo.

The bag really looks quite elegant but I still wish I'd bought the red striped one. I wish I'd bought both bags, but like a lot of things in life, we think of these things when it's too late. The straw bag with the navy silk fabric down the middle is what the sales lady put mu purchases into. I thoguht this was a nice touch and so - I have another bag.

I couldn't get over the cost of the items - I thought they were very reasonably priced. Where would you get a hand woven silk handbag for US$49? It'd cost a lot more buying products of this calibre in western countries.

47. Artisans d'Angkor 2 - Yarn Preparation

From Cocoon to Yarn
We now move to the next phase of the silk making process - that of turning these furry little golden yellow cocoons into beautiful silk thread.

Above: Boiling the cocoons
Silkworm cocoons, known as golden silk, are boiled to help detach the silk from the worm. This process is called degumming and after it's done the cocoon goes into another boiling pot to have the fine silk layer fished out.

The girls working here all seemed very shy and let me take their photos. They were all very industrious and I could see the look of concentration on their faces. They really care about what they do and seem to take great pride in their work.

Above: Extracting the silk thread
The next stage - another boiling pot for the fine silk. It was so fine, I could barely see it - even though I had my glasses on. I swear it was so fine that even Superman with his X ray vision would have had difficulty. The guide lifted some threads up for me with the aid of tongs and let me feel it, remarking on how strong it was. It may be finer than the finest spiderweb, but the thread was very strong in spite of it's delicate look.

Above: Extracting the silk thread
Further on in the process, the extracted thread is spooled and wrapped on to big wheels to give it more tension.

Above: Spinning racks
The big chunks you see in the foreground is the raw silk - the yarn is wound on the spinning racks.

Above: Natural dyes
The silk is dyed naturally, using plant roots, extracts from plants, leaves and even bark and rusty nails to get the beautiful colours you can see here.

 

Above: Weaving
In this photo, the young girl is moving the shuttle (threaded with the silk thread) from left to right. I stood watching as she, and others wove the silk. The shuttle was moved from right to left, then the weaver places both hands on a piece of wood which is the width of the fabric and pulls this towards her, she then moves the shuttle from left to right, then pulls the wide piece of wood towards her again. This is repeated time and time again. It takes one day to weave one metre of silk.

There were several girls weaving, from the simplest of plain fabric to the more intricate patterns. One fabric which was very beautiful with many colours had fourteen different shuttles - one for each colour! The work is back breaking and the constant motion of moving the shoulders and arms would no doubt have me running for the nearest doctor with backache! Honestly, I didn't know how they could do this for it is arduous and not for the faint hearted.

And seeing these young women at work, gave me an insight as to why hand woven products are so highly prized. No machine could produce such beautiful fabrics and designs.

Above: Lunch!
As we moved along, I noticed these fish and thinking they were part of the dyeing process asked, "What sort of fish are they and what are they for?"

Bunneano looked at me and said, "Lunch!"

Oh, I felt like it was foot in mouth time!☺

46. Artisans d'Angkor 1 - Silk Farm

On the way
A few things that stand out in memory which I forgot to mention earlier, after visiting Preah Promreah and crossing over the bridge, we were driving along and crossed yet another bridge and as we turned right, my driver slowed down and made to pull over on the corner saying to me, "You want to visit the crocodile farm and do a tour?" to which I replied, "No". He turned his head and asked didn't I want to see the crocodiles? People like to see crocodiles. I told him, "No thanks Pookeah, we got crocs back in Darwin". Evidently, this was something he hadn't enctountered before and thought it strange that I wasn't interested.

No crocodiles thanks, I'm Australian!
How to explain Australia has plenty of crocs - big salties up around the Top End and FNQ? (Far North Queensland) - I remember when I went to Darwin, Kakadu and Arnhem Land and went to Litchfiled NP, the "Jumping Crocs" cruise on the Adelaide Queen was included and I was so excited at actually seeing them instead of just in pictures or on the telly. And of all the many photos I took trying to capture a decent shot. I didn't have a digital camera then and when I think of all the money I spent paying to get the film developed. Anyway, at other places I've been to on my travels around Oz, overseas tourists are amazed that I don't want to "See the crocodiles" - crocs, like anything else, you've seen one (croc) you've seen 'em all!☺

I have water
There were a number of little stalls along the way and I wanted to stop at least one of them, not so much because I wanted to buy anything, (although I would have purchased something, otherwise I'd have felt like a real heel), but more because I really would like to have sat and chatted with people. So, after seeing yet another stall with colourful umbrellas and children running around, I called out to my driver, "Oh, could we stop here please and go back there?" Pookeah asked me why, and I said the first thing that came into my head (well I thought too that it was a reasonable request and sounded much nicer than saying I just want to have a look around and mix with the locals) - I said I'd like to buy a bottle of water.

"You want water? Is no problem, I have water here." And with that, he stopped, hopped off, went around the back of the tuk tuk, lifted up a lid and produced a bottle of water. Damn! Naturally I thanked him and smiled. And made sure I didn't let the disappointment show on my face.

That's not the silk farm
Driving on and drinking my water and having a few fags along the way (one of the greatest things I noticed in Cambodia - people don't get in a tizzy when you smoke, not like back home where you're made to feel like a leper) I saw a place on the right hand side on a corner saying "Silk Farm" - there's the silk farm are we going to stop there? "No that's not silk farm". But it says silk farm says I, not there says my driver, silk farm is up this way. Not understanding why he didn't stop, I sat back and enjoyed the ride. It wasn't till we had gone for a further twenty minutes or so, that I understood - for there, with a big sign was the silk farm. And it bore no resemblamce to the other little place we passed.

The silk farm I later found out, is located about a 20 minute drive from Siem Reap in the Puok district. As my driver was taking me on a "countryside" tour, it took far longer than the said 20 minutes, and I got to see so much more because of it.


About Artisans d'Angkor
Artisan's d'Anglor began in 1998. It was created to help the young people to find work in their home villages by providing them with high skilled training and a vocation from which they can earn a living.

 

Above: Artisans d'Angkor

Over a thousand people are employed by Artisans d'Angkor today and the establishment of rural workshops has helped to slow down the rural depopulation of Siem Reap surroundings by increasing income of rural Cambodian families. Cambodia has long been famous for its silk, and much of the country and population was decimated during the reign of the Khmer Rouge. By supporting its people and enabling them to find work, the government is trying to get the country back on its feet and learning the almost lost art of traditional hand-weaving is a value which can be handed down for generations.

Teaching
At Chantiers-Écoles young girls from the villages are brought here and learn all about the silk process and how to weave. Many of them live a long way from the town of Siem Reap - about 15kms. The Cambodia government and the French government pay for this. They sleep at the school and have their meals there. They have to pass a test and when they do, they go back to their villages where they can get jobs as weavers. This is how it was explained to me by Bunneano who showed me around the farm.

 

Above: Bunneano my guide
My driver said he'd meet me "over there" when I came out and showed me where the entrance was. I walked up this path with lovely shady trees, to the door and this lovely young man introduced himself to me saying his name was Bunneano and took me on a tour of the silk farm.


Silk Farm Tour

 

Above: Entrance
This lovely shady entrance is a welcome retreat from the heat and is set in lovely gardens.

 

Above: Three Angels
As we walked along the path on the right hand side, these little children were playing and let me take their photo. I asked their names but didn't write them down. Something I noticed, whenever I asked permission to take a photo, whether in Cambodia or Malaysia, they always make the "V" sign with their fingers.

 

Above: Mulberry plantation
Next we went passed the Mulberry plantation - lots and lots of trees, there are eighteen species grown here. We have a white mulberry tree in our back yard at home which has white mulberrys which I'm told by my landlord are edible and taste very nice. I said this to Bunneano and asked was it the same. It isn't, it's a different one to the trees which produce the leaves the silkworms eat.

 

Above: Silkworm eggs
The female moth lays many tiny little eggs - as many as 300 at a time.

 

Above: 12 day old silkworms
A little caterpillar hatches out of the egg. The caterpillars above are twelve days old, steadily getting bigger and fatter from their diet of mulberry leaves. As they get bigger and bigger, they go through four molts. They eat for three days and sleep for one day.

 

Above: Cocoons
The caterpillars spin a cocoon of silk thread around themselves and inside the cocoon, the caterpillar changes into a pupa.

 

Above: Lifecycle of cocoons

 

Above: The silkworm room
Here are a number of "plates" with silkworms of varying ages on them busily eating blissfully unaware that their little lives are almost over and they will go on to become a silk scarf around your neck or a pair of silken slippers on your feet.

Above: Silkworm harvesting - the old way
When the cocoons are the right age, they are harvested. This was the old way of harvesting and they could often get caught on the rough bits of tiwgs.

Above: The new way
The newer, more modern method is far superior to that of the old.

Above: The new way
Twenty per cent (20%) of the silkworms bred are kept for breeding and to ensure reproduction, while the remaining eighty per cent (80%) are used to extract the silk thread. Did you know Cambodian silkworms are unique, as they are yellow in colour compared to white ones of other countries?

The next post is about the next stage in the silk making process.

45. Countryside - The Real Cambodia 2

The countryside was flat and quite green. Lush trees in parts, then smaller vegetation. Crops were growing though from my view in the tuk tuk I was unable to make out what they were.

Above: Father and son
This man and his young son were walking along the riverbank collecting things which the young boy carried in the bag.

Above: Searching for food
A young ox eating grass - he was not as thin as the other animals I saw, perhaps because he was only young.

Above: Swimming
When I saw these two animals swimming I was so excited - I thought they were hippos because that is just what they looked like. It is only now as I'm typing these words, after enlarging the photo for a better look that I realised they are oxen! Just as well I did zoom the photo isn't it, otherwise I'd have made a big boo-boo!

Above: Baskets to markets
The lady taking her baskets to market - the one on her left at the back (right side in the photo) is filled with what looks like green vegetables and something red. A cloth perhaps to protect them from the sun?

Above: Cambodian houses
The man appears to be working on something and in the shelter on the right side there's a hammock and a number of household items hanging up.