- January 10, 2015
- 10:21 am
- Eman El Bakry
- no comments
Day 5: Today will be the Most Memorable Day on this Trip
I am still trying to absorb today and how beautiful it was in so many levels. After an early morning elephant ride to the Bayon Temple to start off day two in Cambodia, a visit to the Ta Prohm Temple also known as the Tomb Raider set which Angelina Jolie made famous after filming her movie there, we head to the “Floating Villages”. The floating villages are located along the Great Tonle Sap Lake which is one of the largest lakes in Asia. These villages move depending on the water levels and residents do not get out of there much as they are all mainly fishermen who rely on the fish in the lake. Schools, homes, shops etc are all built and settled there on floating platforms. We got to the villages through a boat ride.
On our way to the stop where we were taking the boat to the villages, Bunthin, our tour guide spotted a local wedding that was going on and he quickly stopped the bus and said “you want to see the wedding? Lets go”. What? Are we crashing a wedding? I thought to myself, of course not, we will probably just take a look from far and see the wedding that was taking place. It was in the outdoors along the fields in a tent with a lot of tables, food, happy people singing and dancing and loud music. The next thing we know, the bride and groom pull us all into the tent and into their conga line and we all start dancing along with them! Everyone was really excited and handing us something to drink. We all embraced the experience and danced so much. I loved how spontaneous it was and the fact that this is something that rarely happens if it ever does. Just like that we handed the couple a small gift as a thank you, walked back to our bus and left to the floating village. It was very humbling too because although we were guests in their home, I always felt this sense of royalty or higher status treatment from the locals. Perhaps an indirect cry for help…
No one from the previous courses has had a chance to get out of the boat and walk into these villages and we were lucky enough to be the first to do so and it was shockingly different than what we saw back in the city. Not one person came up to us to beg for money. People were just getting along their daily life and watching us like we were aliens coming into their territory but having no problem with it. It felt a little uncomfortable to be honest because we weren’t in a museum or monument or site seeing. Those were some of the poorest living conditions and areas in the country and we were strolling across it. What I enjoyed was seeing the beautiful detail and color on those homes. Just because the people were poor didn’t mean they don’t care to live in a pretty home. It seemed like it was one big house with many rooms because I felt that anyone can walk in on anyone and doors were open to all. People were hanging out at each others’ decks. Shops were open and kids were playing.
We noticed a volleyball net across the street, which by the way was not a street it was just land and an extension of the lake. There were young men and girls playing. Alex, who is with us on this trip has been playing volleyball for years. He had asked Bunthin earlier if he can arrange to play volleyball in the city but it didn’t work out. When Bunthin saw that there were kids playing he asked if we can play with them and before we knew it the entire village was watching 6 Loyola University Chicago MBA students play a game of volleyball with 6 girls from Seim Reap. (I attempted to play but quickly remembered why I don’t). The girls however were really good! They knew what they were doing and it was a pleasant view. You can hear laughter and joy and smiles everywhere. You could see the cheers and excitement whenever there was a good shot. I couldn’t stop smiling myself. The residents of this village may be living under very poor and difficult circumstances but they looked content with what they have and for that half hour, we showed them a good time which meant a lot. One of the purposes of this course is to immerse in the culture of the developing countries we are visiting and today was the perfect example of that and I am sure it affected each one of us significantly.
It was time to go and it was around sunset. We got on our boat to get back to our bus but took a different route. I remember missing this really good shot of the sun setting with the trees and floating villages and I was a little bummed about that. I had no idea that we were going further into the lake where there were no homes, no trees, nothing but water that looked like it was infinite with a clear sky, fluffy clouds and the most beautiful sunset I have ever seen in my entire life. I took all the shots I wanted and was able to sink into that sunset as if it was just me on that boat. We all did.
On our way back to the hotel, Bunthin made one last stop at the market and came back with a bag of different deep fried bugs; I especially enjoyed the beetle and the cricket, I ate those things like it were a bag of chips! Something I would never have access to back home. “You don’t know how something tastes unless you try it”—Don’t be afraid to try new things!