Bon Om Touk

For those of you that haven't seen the Water Festival pictures on my Facebook, I decided to write a short post to share some of the details. Water Festival is celebrated all over Cambodia with boat races in the different provinces, however the big event is held along the Tonle Sap River in front of the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh. This is a 3 day event, and a public holiday which gives people all over Cambodia the chance to come celebrate.

We had briefly been told about the event and types of boats we would see, but it was so amazing to see in person. All the major streets by the Royal Palace were blocked off, thousands of people were walking around, and there were street vendors selling food, snacks, and various goods. At first we stood with others by the Riverside to watch the preliminary races, while most people had already claimed their spot, sitting on the river bank. After watching for a bit we decided to wander around the River Side and stumbled upon 3 or 4 different white tents with seating. These tents were free admission for foreign visitors, and gave us a chance to see and understand the boat races a little better. We sat watching each different boat pass by and admired the different colors of the boats, the colors the teams were wearing, how many people were in each boat, and the chanting and excitement they had before their big race. It was such a great experience to see these amazing boats as well as the teamwork and camaraderie the teams showed.

Concluding each night is a firework show lasting about 20 minutes, and then along the River Side you will see various illuminated boats. The festivities continue with thousands of people walking around, and street vendors continuing to sell their goods. During the celebrations, Cambodia also received the Guinness World Record for longest dragon boat - a title previously held by China. This boat was shown during the festival and accommodates 179 rowers, while other boats that participated in the racing usually held about 70 rowers.

Riverside boat racing