Tonle Sap and the Floating Village Seam Reap a UNESCO Site<<>>
Tonle Sap Lake Cambodia with its many floating villages. Is just outside Seam Reap. It is an amazing place and make for a great trip. It is a lake and river system that due to the shifting waters of the Mekong becomes the largest freshwater lake in South East Asia. Its ecological importance was recognised in 1997 when it was designated a UNESCO biosphere. The Tonle Sap (Large Fresh Water River or Great Lake) is unusual in that its flow changes direction twice a year. So the lake expands and shrinks according to the seasons. The depression where the lake is formed was created when the subcontinents of India and Asia collided. In Cambodia's dry season (November to May) the lake is fairly small, around one meter deep and with an area of 2,700 square km. But in June, when the heavy rains begin, the river reverses its normal flow to the sea and begins for flow back up the River. Water is pushed back up into the lake, increasing its area to 16,000 square km and its depth up to nine meters, flooding nearby fields and forests. It expands to 250kms long by up to 100kms wide over a period of 3 months. The Tonle Sap becomes a huge dumbbell-shaped body of water and the most prominent feature on the map of Cambodia, stretching across the northwest section of the country.
The inundated mangrove forests are full of crocodiles, turtles, macaques, otter and other wildlife. It is also home to more than 100 varieties of water birds including several threatened or endangered species and over 200 species of fish.
The Lake is also an important commercial resource, providing more than half of the fish consumed in Cambodia. The distinctive floating villages have an economy and way of life in tune with the lake as they follow its ebb and flow. Over 2 million people live on or around the lake and while tourism has brought in some income to the economy, fishing is still the mainstay of these communities.
Here you will see towering stilted houses, fish and crocodile farms, fish traps with the large baskets, floating homes, an elementary school with a caged basketball court attached, simple restaurants, shops and stores, and a floating church. As you sail in your tour boat you will be amazed at the children having a whale of a time in nothing much more then a plastic washing bowl. Families in canoes will brush past your bow and other small children will offer you live snakes and other delightful goodies. The most popular floating village, and an interesting place to visit, is Chong Khneas a village with well over 5000 people living in over 1300 houseboats.
On leaving Tonle Sap you will see by the road side at nearly every house small ovens and if you stop you’ll discover what they are used for. They are used to make traditional palm sugar sweets. These are made by many of the housewives by boiling down the juices from the palm for 2.5 hours. The result is a crunchy sugary sweet presented in little palm leave packets. They’re Great!
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If you’re feeling hungry after your trip, why not try the Cambodian speciality Amok Fish in one of the many roadside restaurant. It is cooked in a thick and creamy coconut sauce and flavoured with a combination of spices, including lemongrass, saffron, and garlic. The delicious combination is presented in a coconut and is served with a helping of plain white rice. Its delicious. Once you taste amok fish, you’ll quickly realize why the locals eat this so often.
Enjoy your visit to Tonle Sap Lake Cambodia and the floating villages just outside Seam Reap.
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