Pictures: Lyle Such
Words: Thu Buu
Camera: Canon 5d Mk IV and Mavic Pro
Our trip to Cambodia started with a long flight from LAX to Guangzhou, China. The sky, as expected, was solid grey. From Guangzhou we had a short flight over to Siem Reap.
The Villa Amalia was our choice for a hotel. It was small, locally operated and had a nice, isolated atmosphere.
Our first stop was a Buddhist school for monks. Traditionally, most Cambodian boys spend a few years of their lives as a monk learning the religion. However, most resume normal life and only a few remain within the monastic order permanently. During the Khmer Rouge Regime in the 80’s, this practice was cut down significantly and to this day has not regained its popularity.
We roamed around the temple and easily found the cemetery. Ornate sculptures of the Snake God and the four-headed Buddha were common themes found on the tombstones.
On the road to the countryside, we saw many shophouses. We stopped at a stand to get freshly pressed sugar cane drinks. The drinks were incredibly sweet. To create “to go” cups, the vendor taped a narrow strip of plastic on either side of the plastic cup.
I think the butterflies loved the sugar cane even more than we did! Any time we saw a press, we also saw butterflies.
Thu was finally getting a handle on the e-bike. We rode into a second monastery to explore the tombs.
The 3 headed snake appears all over Cambodian mythology.
A monk presiding over a blessing ceremony is pouring water over the family as he chants.
A little distance outside of the city, we stopped at a temple built next to an ancient ruin. This temple seemed unkempt. There were dust and cobwebs all over the place. I did my religious duty and swept the floor of the pavilion.
There was a small set of ruins at this temple. However, there is only one location where you can purchase the ticket for the temple complex, so without knowing people arrive to see this temple and aren't allowed to enter. The system of entrance fees needs a lot of work, and is also under protest because the price is nearly doubling soon.
Finally, we got out of town and the landscape opened up into farms and open spaces. Exactly what we were hoping to see!
Besides visiting ancient temples, our other goal in Cambodia was to find opportunities for Lyle to practice flying Crevit, our little drone. Empty rice paddies seemed like the perfect candidate for some drone flying. As Lyle and Laurent flew Crevit, I wandered off into the next paddy where a farmer was just starting his planting season by tossing seeds from his bamboo container into grayish muck. When he finished and stepped up on the narrow levee that separated the paddies, his legs were caked up to his knees with gray mud. He graciously agreed to let me take a couple pictures of him.
The farmer’s two daughters saw me from their home and came running out. I pointed to Crevit hovering in the air above them. They were curious but hesitant about coming closer. In no time at all, a group of young, inquisitive kids had gathered outside to stare at the drone. But when Lyle flew the drone towards them, they would scream, laugh and run away down a narrow levee to hide behind a bush. Lyle would then recall Crevit, and the kids would leave their hiding place. They’d bravely approach us again. But then Crevit would chase them back to their bushes. And the cycle looped itself again and again until it was time for us to leave. We don’t know who had more fun...us or the kids!
Our ride through the countryside was so lovely. Ponds of lotuses bloomed on both sides of the dirt road. I’d never seen so many at once.
At the intersection where the dirt road connected with the larger, paved road, we found a restaurant that incorporated the lotus ponds into its dining experience. Customers ordered their food at the stand above. Then walked down to covered platforms built in the middle of the lotus ponds to enjoy their meal. What a romantic idea. What about the mosquitos at dusk though?
Further into the countryside, cement houses gave way to stilt houses, and the poverty of the population became more apparent. Along both sides of the road, against the banks of the rice paddies, families etched out a small patch of land, struck up some poles, covered three sides with whatever they could find or afford: corrugated metal, tarp, cardboard, and thatching from palm leaves or water reeds, and called it a home.
As evening approached, we witnessed a herd of buffalo leaving the fields, slowly lumbering up onto the one main road through the village. We stopped our bikes on the side of the road to watch the procession. We didn’t even see the buffalo herder anywhere near. These animals are well trained.
After another drone flight at dusk, we rode home in the dark. What a busy first day in Cambodia. We were well spent. Lyle was ready to fall asleep at the dinner table.
After another drone flight at dusk, we rode home in the dark. What a busy first day in Cambodia. We were well spent. Lyle was ready to fall asleep at the dinner table.
