Destination Cambodia: Waterfalls, elephants, and dirt...oh my!

The day after Christmas, Christine, Andreea and I embarked on a week-long adventure, venturing into the wild north-west of Cambodia. The trip began with a 10-hour bus ride (fun, fun). The one good thing about long bus rides is that you really get to see a lot of the country-side. There was a drastic difference between the bustling city of Phnom Penh, and Ratanakiri Province, which is well-known for the red dust that coats everything (trees, cars, and you!).

Besides the dust, Ratanakiri is full of natural beauty. It is an incredible feeling to catch the first sight of a waterfall as you are hiking through the jungle. And even better to climb and swim under it!

I think just about everyday we were there, we went swimming in the blue crater-lake. The lake is perfectly round and believed to have been formed by a meteor strike. Ratanakiri is home to many different indigenous minorities, some of whom believe the lake is inhabited by mysterious creatures (luckily, we didn't encounter any).

One of my favorite stories from the trip happened while we were swimming at the lake. Christine, Andreea and I had all dived into the water, when a group of Buddhist Monks arrived for a swim. I'm sure they spotted the three of us swimming in the water. Andreea, very considerately, got out of the water to move our stuff over to make more room for them. However, as soon as they saw a girl in a bathing-suit, they immediately turned their backs, covered their eyes, and ran away! Needless to say, Ratanakiri isn't quite as modernized as other parts of Cambodia.

The one thing I really wanted to do in Cambodia, was to ride an elephant. And I got to do it!!!

After all our explorations in the north-west, the three of us headed to the south coast of Cambodia for New Year's. Here are the three of us on the beach on New Year's Eve.