Water Festival 10-13 November 2008

October 21, 2008 – 10:11 am

With less than a month to go until one of Cambodia’s biggest festivals preperations have already started for the Water Festival in Phnom Penh.

The Water Festival or Bon Om Tuk celebrates the victory of Jayavarman VII over the Chams who occupied Angkor in 1777. It aso marks the time when a strange natural phenomenon is seen in Cambodia. During November the natural currents of the Tonle Sap reverse and water backed up onto the Tonle Sap lake begins to empty back into the Mekong.

This festival is one of the biggest in Cambodia. It is also unusual in that Khmers from rural Cambodia arrive in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap en- mass for three the days of celebrations. It is a crazy, noisy and wonderful time to be in Phnom Penh and is highly recommended for anyone who will be visiting Cambodia during this time.

One of the highlights of the festival is the boat races that are held on the Tonle Sap and Siem Reap Rivers.  So far this year 396 boats have registered for the water festival races that will be held over the three day festival. Other entertainment planned for the festival includes fireworks shows and 23 decorative light boats. Thousand of Khmers descend on Phnom Penh over the three days to watch the races and cheer on their villages boat, which can be up to 20 meters long and contain up to 60 oarsmen, frantically paddling and chanting as the do battle in highly competitive races.