Meandering along the Mekong River
Embraced by thick bamboo forests, scenic temples and rustic fishing villages, the Mekong River is the longest in Southeast Asia. The calm river—we were told by our guide that there are no typhoons in Cambodia—is the meandering ribbon that takes you from the ancient temples in Siem Reap, the most iconic of which is the Angkor Wat, to more modern Phnom Penh, and the quaint rural villages along the way.
From the ancient edifices and the rustic rural areas that we toured by tuktuk, we leapfrogged to the 21st century whenever we boarded the Scenic Spirit, the five-star luxury river cruise ship that was our cradle on the Mekong.
Top travel agency owners were invited by CITTI Elite, led by its president Shan Dioquino-David, to be mesmerized by the Mekong on an especially curated nine-day familiarization tour from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh.
With up to only 68 guests on board, and about 50 during our September sailing, the Scenic Spirit is a floating destination in itself with a five-star restaurant, a bar, a lounge, a pool, a gym, a spa, even a laundry room.
Expertly skippered by Captain Thu of Vietnam, the Scenic Spirit occasionally was tethered to tree stumps, I kid thee not, which our Hungarian cruise director Elvira found especially unique. Talk about Asian authenticity!
Scenic luxury cruises has a program called Scenic Enrich, which offered us not just gala dinners in monumental temples that took our breath away, but also took us to the hubbub of everyday Cambodian life, especially in the countryside. We visited several Buddhist temples as majority of Cambodians practice Buddhism (and have 200,000 monks!), interviewed a student monk, and received a fervent blessing from a full-fledged monk, both clad in traditional saffron-colored robes (we were told by the student monk they don’t wear under garments, but have swathes of cloth around their torso instead.)
As a symbol of the spiritual encounter, the monks tied a red string bracelet around each of our wrists and were advised to keep it there until it fell off. I still wear mine.
For travel agent Sheila Colmenares of Cebu, the Buddhist monk’s blessing in a pagoda in Angkor Ban was a highlight of the cruise, as was the dinner at the 10th-century Prasat Kravan temple in Siem Reap, where we partook of hors d’oeuvres and history.
“Aside from the wonderful bonds we formed, I loved the all-inclusive concept—unlimited food and drinks, plus shore excursions, with no extra payments. It made budgeting so easy! The spacious, comfortable cabins were another big plus. Truly, a memorable journey,” adds Marget Villarica, also of Cebu.
Marianne Velez of Alabang gushes, “This was a complete experience of culture and history in comfort and style. The tours were well chosen and showed all aspects of Cambodia.”
Chikie Cruz of Quezon City notes, “Every detail was perfectly orchestrated. From the pre-night accommodation at the truly awesome Raffles Grand Hotel Angkor in Siem Reap and the exclusive Prasat Kravan dinner, to our spacious balcony cabins (with a butler, no less!) and ultra-comfortable beds on board.”
Marites Palanca gives a special shoutout to the guides Hoan, Vireak and Dara, as do I.
“I learned so much from the Scenic guides and the well-curated tours. I now have a deeper appreciation of the history and culture of our Asian neighbors,” Marites says.
I, for one, was struck with what Vireak our guide said when he was asked if he was satisfied with the way things are now in his country.
“What is most important is that we have no war,” said Vireak, whose family experienced the bloody Khmer Rouge from 1975 to 1979, where an estimated 1.7 to 2.2 million people were executed or starved to death. “The wars we underwent brought us back to the Stone Age when once Cambodia was ahead of Singapore.”
The highlight of most everyone’s cruise was the glittering Prasat Kravan dinner in Siem Reap, hands down. We had our fill of champagne and history. But for me, it was the Angkor Wat, which holds the Guinness World Records title for the largest religious structure on Earth, that is the biggest and brightest gem in Cambodia’s crown.
Before we knew it, it was time to dock in Phnom Penh for another enriching and scenic tour.
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