It’s not every day you can ride through a rural Cambodian village on the back of an ox cart. But that’s exactly how we on Jahan started off our morning. We set out before sunrise to beat the heat, and loaded up on the back the village ox carts for one of the most exciting rides of our trip. For many of us, this will be the most exciting mode of transportation we’ve ever experienced. We jump on the back of the ox carts, gently padded with hand-woven rugs layered on a bed of straw, and off we ride into the rice fields. The sun peaks up over the horizon, and the land is covered in the golden glow of the morning light. What a spectacular way to start the day!
Mid-way through the rice field, we stop to admire the lotus flowers that are growing alongside the embankment. The lotus flower is without a doubt one of the most beautiful flowers in all of Southeast Asia, and this makes for the perfect photographic opportunity to walk through the rice paddies and take images of this stunning flower. Finally we make our way to Kampong Tralach and finish our morning at a local school, another highlight of the trip. The kids are absolutely delighted to have us visit their classrooms, greeting us with songs and dance moves. It’s an action packed morning, and all of this before breakfast!
We return to Jahan after spending some time at the local school to enjoy a delicious breakfast and cruise down river towards the our afternoon destination, Koh Oaknha Tey, where we visit a Theravada Buddhist Pagoda and discuss Buddhism in Cambodia. After visiting the temples, we continue to a small silk farm and learn about silk production within the country. A demonstration of how the silk is produced, an industry that’s thrived for millennia, is a great way to spend our afternoon before heading back to the Jahan for a beautiful sunset cruise. It’s been yet another fantastic day on the Mekong!
