April is the most special month in Cambodia. It is the celebration of the Khmer New Year (Chaul Chnam Thmey, which literally means “Enter New Year”). While the new year is officially a 3-day holiday, most Cambodians treat it as a month-long period to visit family, friends and have a festive time. This is the last good, long holiday that everyone will have before the start of the long, hard rice planting season.

In Banteay Chhmar, villagers celebrated with food and dancing in the temple and parties with friends and family. Powdering faces is a common and fun activity. There are also a number of traditional games played and ceremonies observed during the new year period. One ceremony is when people build sand hillocks around the pagoda. Villagers mound up a hill of sand or dome which represents sakyamuni satya, the stupa at Tavatimsa, where the Buddha’s hair and diadem are buried.

Also, this year a number of villagers, shopowners and local authorities made a special trip to visit the poorer villages and pagodas along the Thai border distributing food, drinks and making monetary donations to the communities. It was a special day for everyone involved.

The month was not all fun and games, though. Before the start of the new year, the CBT members met several times to begin work on a 3-year business plan. As Global Heritage Fund begins to wind down its conservation project and support, the CBT needs to become more proactive in increasing its business sustainability. The CBT is looking at ways to increase its visitor numbers and income by adding new activities and increasing market awareness of Banteay Chhmar.

If you would like to get involved in helping the CBT with travel market research, business planning, networking, or helping to create a “Friends of Banteay Chhmar” group, please contact Tath Sophal or Andrew Marino. Thanks! 🙂

Banteay Chhmar CBT members prepare SWOT analysis

Ceremony for King Sihanouk

On February 4th, local authorities and villagers gathered at the pagoda to pay their final respects to the late King Sihanouk. The king, who passed away in November, was cremated in Phnom Penh after a three-month period of mourning and rememberance. Everyone was very honored to be part of this final ceremony for their beloved king.

A few days later, the Ministry of Culture & Fine Arts and Global Heritage Fund agreed to a 3-year MoU. The final phase of the conservation project will concentrate on reconstructing the west gallery of Banteay Chhmar Temple. Meanwhile, inside the temple, the major  work on Tower #18 has been completed and the scaffolding is being removed. The tower bears an excellent Bayon-style face. We all look forward to working with Kim Sothin and other ministry officials on the successful completion of this wonderful conservation work.

Tower #18 in Banteay Chhmar Temple with an excellent Bayon-style face.

Forestry officials discuss tree planting project in Banteay Chhmar Temple

Finally, officials from the Ministry of Forestry held a meeting to discuss a potential project. They would like to start a tree-planting project whereby visitors will have the opportunity to make a donation and “plant a tree” in the temple or in the community. The details still need to be worked out, but we think a lot of visitors will be interested in this project. It will help the environment, provide some additional income to villagers for managing the project and add some savings into the CBT community fund.

First Day of the Rice Harvest

December is always a wonderful time of year to visit Cambodia. The rains have stopped, and the weather is much cooler. It is also the time of the rice harvest, so the villages are alive with a flurry of activity. It has been an active month here in Banteay Chhmar. Unfortunately, this year was not a good rice harvest because of infrequent rains. However, the villagers will do the best they can with the harvest. If you are interested in learning how to harvest rice, please ask one of our tour guides. They will be happy to take you to the fields where you can meet the villagers and learn all about rice.

There is an absolutely fascinating archaeological project taking place about 4km from the Banteay Chhmar Temple. Workers from the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts are unearthing an ancient burial site. Heng Sophady from the Ministry believes that the remains may be around 2,000 years old. So far, workers have discovered human remains, a fire pit, some tools and pottery.

Kok Treas Archaeological Site

We had a great visit from our friends in Korea. Volunteers from the Gwang Ju Buk-gu Volunteer Center generously contributed their time and money to help clean the village, repair and paint the primary school. They also donated a generous supply of books, pens and clothes for the children. And, they still had plenty of time to play with the children!

A special THANK YOU! goes out to Travelers’ MAP Tours and the Gwang Ju Buk-gu Volunteer Center 🙂

Cleaning the village

King Norodom Sihanouk

October was, of course, a sad month here in Cambodia.  King Norodom Sihanouk passed away on October 15.  The king was living in Beijing, China at the time of his passing.  King Sihanouk was a much beloved monarch of the Cambodian people and saw the country through many trying periods.  We send our prayers and thoughts to all the Cambodian people and wish them a bright, healthy and happy future. For more on King Sihanouk’s life click here

Pchum Ben Family Offering

On a happier note, October was the celebration of the Pchum Ben Festival.  This annual 15-day festival is a time when Khmer people honor their deceased relatives.  Prayers and offerings are made during the entire 15-day period.  The culminating celebration takes place on the 15th day of the 10th month in the Khmer calendar.   On the final night, monks chant continously,  Supposedly, this time represents a prelude to the gates of hell opening and a time when the spirits, or ghosts, become very active.  It is believed that offering food helps the ghosts; some ghosts will end their damnation and others will temporarily escape only to return for more suffering.  The offerings and prayers may also benefit those relatives in heaven.  In Banteay Chhmar, some families with have  a ceremony in their house in addition to going to the pagoda to give an offering to the monks.

Finally, to end on another happy note.  Little Chamroun Sondey celebrated his fourth birthday on October 11th with a fun-filled party.  Sondey is the nephew of Soeung Savy, one of the CBT’s cooks.  All the children and adults had a marvelous time making balloons, eating cake and singing ‘Happy Birthday.’

Happy 4th Birthday to Day