Sinam showed us how to do slow motion on our cameras. I never really understood why you needed to use slow motion but there was a butterfly with brown wings when closed but a beautiful color of purple in flight. Sinam got a great shot. I was impressed.
I tried it out today on this large buzzing insect. He and his buddy were hitting against our tent this morning. They were landing on top of the bamboo pole. It might be a cicada. Watch his landing in slow motion here.
It is windy. The staff told us that winter has arrived when the wind arrives. How different from the cold winter snows that we experience as winter in the USA.
Today was our last day at the Cardamom Tented Camp. I ordered bacon and eggs for breakfast and asked for the bacon to be extra crispy.
My waiter, Theara, called it cripsy. I found that cute. His English is way better than my Khmer.
Khmer is said to the most complicated language to learn with over 60 letters. The writing is Sanskrit. Also, they have many rules. For example saying thank you to a stranger is different than to a family member, and different to the elderly, etc….and the same complication for hello, goodbye, etc.
The greeting in Khmer is suo sdei which sounds like suess a day. One puts their hands to their nose and gives a slight bow.
After about a week of that, we learned that there is some fine tuning.
Aroun suo sdei pronounced Aaron suess a day is said in the morning.
Sayon suo sdei pronounced Sigh on suess a day is said in the evening.
If you want to learn more Khmer, here is a book that they were recommending.
Their numbering system is interesting. When they get to six, it is five plus one.
After breakfast I was walking back to our tent looking at my phone to see if I had a connection to the Internet. I missed a step and fell down onto the walkway. The staff came running. Just a few scrapes and bruises. Note: Never walk while looking at a cell phone…I knew better.
We boarded the boat and headed back to what is more familiar. We got a last look at this young recovering forest. Only 15 years ago there were no trees. I am very proud of the work that they have done and continue to do.
It seems odd to me that a government can sell off parts of a national park. I thought a national park is protected by the government. The Wildlife Alliance can only protect their part of the park which is outlined in green.
Here is the list of the other lands that were purchased by foreign investors:
We arrive to get in a van to drive six hours back to Phnom Penh. I pondered the wisdom of spending so much fuel to have this eco-friendly experience. If I burned up 12 hours of fuel, am I being environmentally conscious? Not really. However, I am now aware of the Cardamom forest and the animals that live there and the next step is to care. There is nothing like seeing to initiate caring. The buzzword for this is to raise awareness!
That is one reason that I think well-run zoos are important. To really care about a giraffe, one needs to see a giraffe. Also, their animal breeding programs serve to protect the species survival.
We check back into The Penh House. We have a view of a volleyball match from our balcony.
This little gecko has found his natural habitat in the restaurant.
Rob found a nearby French restaurant that was well reviewed. Since the French were here for over 100 years, a French restaurant isn’t so hard to find.
We were able to see the chef preparing our meal, not in the kitchen, but on a grill outside our window.
Rob was thrilled to order one of his favorites, Coq au Vin. He tried with no success in France. We were told that this dish is made from rooster meat, and it often is not available. However, in Cambodia, we see lots of roosters…and healthy ones, too!
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