family among them, so it is especially
touching to hear him tell his harrowing
story in the courtyard of S21—a former
school-turned-detention centre that
is now a genocide museum. (Hardly
any detainees survived.) I solemnly
tour a gallery of victim photos, every
few minutes returning to the shade of
a frangipani tree to allow my senses
the respite of something beautiful.
Our sombre group continues on to the
Choeung Ek killing field, a half-hour
drive away, where a tower of skulls
looms over mass graves.
After a quiet dinner back on board
the AmaLotus, we are especially grateful for the lighthearted entertainment
provided by a troupe of costumed children who regale us with traditional
dances. They prance and frolic, mimicking monkeys and deer, and we applaud
enthusiastically at the spectacle.
Some distance downstream, we float
into Vietnam. It happens gradually,
almost imperceptibly. After crossing
into Vietnam, the Mekong becomes
busier, and in the villages, firm handshakes replace the gentle bow. Culturally and historically, Cambodia (along
with Thailand and Laos) has a strong
Indian influence, whereas Vietnam has
more of a Chinese influence. Together
they form Indochina.
Downstream in Cai Be, there is a
Gothic cathedral to offer spiritual
cleansing, and later, after a short walk,
we receive a biblical cleansing in the
form of a torrential downpour that
causes us all to seek shelter in a sweets
factory. Rather conveniently, it is also
our intended stop on the tour. I watch
with amazement at puffed rice being
made, and marvel at a beautiful tableau of a young woman making caramel sauce. She’s wearing a jade-green
dress and tending a golden fire fed by
coconut husks—in all her finery, she
resembles a Tretchikoff painting.
Another woman calls me over and
offers me a sip from a glass thimble.
I gamely take a drink. It’s rough, like
bad tequila, and brings tears to my
eyes. She nods knowingly and points
to the bottle from which it came—it
contains a dozen venomous snakes.
But just like sailing the waters of the
Tonle Sap, it’s ex [\