Inside the Golden Silk workshop

The Golden Silk plantation and workshops are located 30kms northeast of Angkor, Cambodia’s famed complex of ancient temples. Visits to Golden Silk are by appointment only, where the visitor will see the different phases of production (silkworm breeding, maintenance planting, spinning, and weaving) as well as daily village activities (fishing, farming, etc). The Golden Silk project has enabled more than 100 women to develop a skill, gained regular employment and secured regular income, with its stated aim to restore, to upgrade and to safeguard the Khmer traditional methods and techniques of silk making which are handed over to the present generation by the art craft ancestors. Entirely handmade, and made exclusively with natural dyes, each fabric is unique and one of a kind. A fabulous community-based, eco-friendly project of which Hanuman is fully supportive. Contact us if you wish to include a visit during your time in Siem Reap. It can be combined with a visit to the Banteay Srei temple for example, and Golden Silk also has the facilities to hold MICE events.

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Revealing Cambodia

An in-depth journey throughout Cambodia that will take you beyond the highlights and under the skin of this beguiling country, beginning with the Kingdom’s riverside capital, Phnom Penh. More adventures await you in the remote northeast in Mondulkiri, especially at the Elephant Valley Project before we follow the Mekong River and enjoy a close encounter with the rare and unique Irrawaddy dolphins near Kratie. We head off to discover the first temple city built in Southeast Asia at Sambor Prei Kuk. At Angkor, over 1000 temples were built between the 9th and 13th centuries, so we select the best of them including the world’s largest religious monument at Angkor Wat, the enigmatic and enchanting Bayon and the atmospheric Ta Prohm, consumed by jungle and fighting a losing battle with nature. Cambodia Revealed is a trip through an amazing country that will leave you with so many lasting memories.

The cost of the two-week land-only Cambodia Revealed tour is from US$965 per person, based on a minimum tour party of six persons. View our detailed fact-sheet on the tour at http://www.hanuman.travel/Tours/Cambodia/CT_Cambodia-Revealed.html. Contact the Hanuman sales team to book directly.

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Hanuman recommends the Elephant Conservation Center as an authentic Laos experience.

A female elephant at ECC named Mae Kham Ohn

Elephants are on the brink of extinction in Laos, so the Elephant Conservation Center of Laos at Sayaboury is the only place to meet elephants in their natural environment. Set at the tip of a naturally forested peninsula of over 100 hectares and bordering the Nam Tien lake, the Center boasts a stunning view over the Elephant Mountain range to the north east. It’s a good 3 hours drive from Luang Prabang.

The Center offers an experience of watching the elephants feeding and bathing, trekking through the forest to the ‘Buddha’s Footprint’, exploring the lake by boat or learning with mahouts, as well as finding out more at their living museum. ElefantAsia, a French-based non-profit organization, runs the country’s elephant conservation program from the facility. You can enjoy a day visit at ECC though perhaps the most ideal way is to spend a couple of nights at the Center with briefings from the vets and mahouts to better understand the elephants with whom you will interact freely for the next two days. Accommodation at ECC in bungalows and dorms is pretty rustic. There is better accommodation in Sayaboury town, a few kilometers away. If you are seeking an experience to tell your friends and family about, look no further than the Elephant Conservation Center at Sayaboury.

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The drum of truth in Mak Therng

Plae Pakaa, a program consisting of three rotating shows of Cambodian dance, theater and music will be presented year-round in the gardens of the National Museum of Phnom Penh. In April, NGO Cambodian Living Arts (CLA), which is leading this project, invested $9000 in building a roof and preparing the venue to accommodate audiences during the rainy season, thus allowing the creation of a long-term self-sustaining performing arts space in the heart of Phnom Penh’s heritage museum. Plae Pakaa now offers visitors the opportunity to see a regular cultural attraction in Phnom Penh, while also creating long-term work opportunities for emerging and established arts professionals. During the past dry season, the program was able to employ over 120 artists and other arts professionals, offering them a springboard toward future career opportunities in arts production.

The program will stage the dance show Children of Bassac on Fridays and the theater and music shows Mak Therng  and Passage of Life on alternate Saturdays until October when the program will  be back to six nights a week again. From November 2012 through the end of March 2013, Plae Pakaa welcomed approximately 6000 visitors to the shows six nights a week. This compared to only 1000 visitors during the same period in the previous year. Following the very positive feedback received by the audience, CLA saw the opportunity to create a sustainable model for the performing arts in  Cambodia. Plae Pakaa, which  translates  literally  as  “coming  to fruition”, symbolizes the emerging artists who are sharing the fruits of their hard work with us, with 65 of the 90 performers having been trained by CLA, including Nhok Sinat, music ensemble leader in the theater and music play, Passage of Life, who says “Plae Pakaa gives us a great opportunity to earn a living through art, to develop our skills, and to raise awareness about Cambodian traditions.”

CLA is a non-profit organization based in Cambodia that focuses on Cambodian arts. CLA implements a series of programs with the intention of creating a self-sustaining environment where individuals and communities can be empowered through the arts. CLA’s Community Arts program, offers Cambodians the opportunity to learn their country’s traditional arts, while in its Capacity Building program, motivated students receive education to improve their skills as arts professionals.  The Creative Industries program actively seeks out and creates regular, well-paid work in the arts sector through exhibitions and performances which  raise awareness  about Cambodia’s traditional arts among foreigners and Cambodians. As a true springboard for emerging arts professionals, Plae Pakaa plays an integral role in this program.

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Nick Marx is the man behind Wildlife Alliance’s Care for Rescued Wildlife Program at Phnom Tamao Rescue Center. In the course of his decade of work in Cambodia, Nick has rescued more than 45,000 live animals from poachers and traders, and cares for a vast array of rescued wildlife – from elephants and tigers to gibbons, sun bears, and endangered tropical birds. He talks about his personal commitment to save these animals, and the impact that he’s seen over the course of his work. For a behind-the-scenes insight into the work of the Wildlife Alliance team, join Hanuman’s full-day Wildlife Experience at Phnom Tamao for a close encounter with some of Cambodia’s rarest wildlife.

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HanumanAlaya Villa compliments the original HanumanAlaya Boutique Residence with just nine rooms and is an intimate boutique escape from the bustle of downtown Siem Reap, located with a view across to the Siem Reap River. The rooms are all finished in wood trim and our signature combination of traditional Khmer design and sophisticated international amenities. As well as beautiful decoration in the form of hand-carved wooden furnishings and traditional Khmer silk, modern touches are clearly visible with flat-screen televisions and contemporary bathrooms throughout.

Beyond the rooms, the Villa includes its own secluded swimming pool, tucked away from public view. There is also a small bar-restaurant around the pool, where the included breakfast can be enjoyed each morning before exploring the temples. A wide variety of drinks is available and a menu of light bites and snacks. A range of massages are available at the Villa thanks to our sophisticated Sita Spa at HanumanAlaya Boutique Residence. These can be enjoyed in the privacy of your own room or in small pavilions next to the swimming pool. HanumanAlaya Villa, more than just a hotel and your base to explore the Temples of Angkor.

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Chhouk, the celebrity elephant with a prosthetic foot

In April 2007, a World Wildlife Fund (WWF) elephant patrol in the Srepok Wilderness Area in remote Northeastern Cambodia came across a young male elephant, seriously emaciated and in obvious pain due to a severe foot injury. No more than a year old, the elephant was alone and having trouble moving around and feeding himself because the bottom portion of his right front leg had been lost, almost surely to a poacher’s snare, and was dangerously swollen and infected. Concerned about the seriousness of the injury and the level of care the elephant would require, WWF and the Cambodian Forestry Administration reached out to Wildlife Alliance and Nick Marx for assessment and assistance.

Nick, Forestry Administration veterinarian Nhim Thy, and two members of the Wildlife Rapid Rescue Team left immediately to make the cross-country trip to Mondulkiri province to assist with this emergent situation. Upon arrival, it was apparent the situation was even worse than advertised. Aggressive and nervous, the elephant was not eating the food that was being supplied to him. After spending time with the elephant, hand feeding him and calming him down, Wildlife Alliance administered immediate treatment to his foot and assessed the extent of the damage. Ultimately, Wildlife Alliance staff spent two weeks in the jungle gaining the elephant’s trust, treating his injuries and malnutrition, and assessing his long-term prospects. The staff recognized that the elephant would never be able to survive on his own in the wild and so arranged for Chhouk (“Lotus Flower”), as he came to be called, to be transported to Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Center (PTWRC) where Wildlife Alliance veterinarians and animal husbandry specialists could attend to his special needs.

Chhouk and the team set out on an arduous 26-hour journey through dense forest, on long roads, and through the disorienting experience of traffic in Phnom Penh, on their way to PTWRC. His personal keepers, Mr. Tam and Mr. Sarim, were waiting for him at an enclosure created especially for his needs. It was not immediately certain that Chhouk would survive his injury. With dedicated veterinary care, Wildlife Alliance staff was able to see to the healing of his leg wound and eradication of his infections. He was housed alongside the other four rescued Asian elephants at PTWRC and formed a special bond with Lucky, an older female elephant, who took the youngster under her wing. However, Chhouk’s hardships were not over.

The damage caused by his missing foot was threatening his spine and hips. The stress on elephants’ legs is already great and with Chhouk off balance, he was at risk of developing bone deformities. Wildlife Alliance animal care specialists determined that the only way to address his mobility and pain issues would be to fit him with a prosthetic foot. A partnership was formed with the Cambodian School of Prosthetics and Orthotics, with financial support from the SeaWorld Busch Gardens Conservation Fund, to build Chhouk a prosthesis, the first of its kind in Cambodia. Immediately after being fitted with the foot, Chhouk’s issues improved rapidly. He is now on his fifth foot as he continues to grow and require new prostheses to match his size and boundless energy.

Chhouk’s story and survival against all odds have made him a global ambassador for Asian elephant conservation and the plight of elephants in Cambodia specifically. He has been featured on television programmes all over the globe, as well as innumerable international print media sources. He is much loved in Cambodia, where he is a top attraction for PTWRC’s more than 200,000 visitors each year. As he’s got older, Chhouk has become less predictable and as such, to ensure the safety of his keepers, a steel fence always separates him from his handlers. He has been trained using a reward based system and the worst that can happen is if Chhouk does not do what is required, he does not receive his reward, a banana or an apple. He’s a smart guy who loves his food and has quickly learnt that compliance benefits all. This includes removing his prosthetic foot twice each day. Come and meet Chhouk for yourself as part of Hanuman’s Phnom Tamao Wildlife Experience.

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Here is a quick look at one of the traditional ceremonies incorporated into Khmer New Year by many families across the country. Its known as Sraung Preah where family members and friends purify the family Buddha statues with perfumed water, in a display of Buddhist merit-making. At the same time, the family elders are bathed in water by the younger family members as a sign of respect and good fortune. In this instance, one of the younger family members gets a dousing as well.

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Mandalay is Myanmar’s second largest city and the last royal capital of Burma. It’s located on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River and regarded as the center of Burmese culture. Under the shadow of Mandalay Hill, the city boasts a fine array of pagodas, teak-built monasteries and a centrally-located palace. Surrounding Mandalay are three former royal sites, Amarapura, Sagaing and Mingun, with sunrise or sunset on the U Bein Bridge, the world’s longest teak footbridge, a must for all.

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Showing respect to your elders – Sraung Preah

Continuing the Khmer New Year theme. One of the time-honoured ceremonies for Khmer New Year is one called Sraung Preah. This is an opportunity for children and grandchildren to show their respect for their parents and grandparents by splashing perfumed water onto them, for what they hope will be happiness, longevity and good advice in return. At the same time the family also purify the family Buddha statues with the same water, in another display of Buddhist merit-making. This ceremony is held by families all over Cambodia during Khmer New Year, alongwith visiting the pagoda, and enjoying time with family and friends. In the photograph above, Hanuman’s Managing Director Tan Sotho (green) is showered with water by her grandson Julian.

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