Explore Cambodia, one of the most bio-diverse countries in Southeast Asia, whose wildlife and climate is ruled by the impact of the annual monsoon cycle.
The great thing about visiting a place for the second time is getting to do all the stuff you missed the first time around. One thing I skipped during my first whirlwind trip to Phnom Penh was a chance to visit Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Center.
Luckily I had with me another animal loving fool- Freya. So while our travel buddies wandered the streets of Phnom Penh for the day, we signed up with Betelnut Tours to take a behind the scenes tour of Cambodia’s home for animals rescued from trafficking into the fur, Asian medicine, and pet trade. Betelnut Tours promised us unfettered access to some of the most popular animals, all with an expert guide who once worked in the center. Plus, we got to ride in an animal print Barbie jeep.
When we arrived at the designated meeting spot we found out we would be getting a private tour from the sweet and bubbly guide. Score! Oh, except the guide’s boyfriend was coming along as well. Who she hadn’t seen in a year. I naively thought they were kind of cute together and we hopped in the Barbie jeep for the hour long trip through the countryside.Betelnut’s website warns, “This is not a luxury air con tour. You will spend a lot of time in the sun, you will get dirty and sweaty… this trip is not for everyone.” When I read that I thought, well, sign me up! I’m not one of those whiny tourists! I’m one bad ass bitch!
Then we pulled over at a roadside butchers. When I realized we were buying lunch, I reconsidered my tough girl routine and briefly considered throwing up. I’m still not quite used to being inches from a butchered cow tongue. Well, at least we’d be eating fresh.
As we pulled up at Phnom Tamao, I noticed out of the corner of my eye that a monkey had escaped from its cage. Wait, more than one! Like, a whole enclosure’s worth!
My urgent attempts to relay this disaster to the driver and guide was meant with laughter. Those were wild monkeys. I basically did the equivalent of going to the Bronx Zoo and going bonkers trying to alert the staff to some escaped squirrels.
source: https://youtu.be/2OYUY5wG8lc
Comments
Post a Comment