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Banteay
Meanchey
I
Battambang
I
Kampot
I
Kandal
I
Kep
City
I
Koh
Kong
I
Kratie |
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Kampong
Cham
I Kampong
Chhang I
Kampong
Speu
I
Kampong
Thom
I
Mondulkiri |
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Oddor
Meanchey
I
Pailin
City
I
Preah
Vihear
I
Pursat
I
Prey
Veng
I
Phnom
Penh |
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Ratanakiri
I
Sihanoukville
I
Stung
Treng
I
Svay
Rieng
I
Siem
Reap
I
Takeo |
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 Ratanakiri
is
located
in
Cambodia's
far
northeast
bordered
by
Laos
to
the
north,
Vietnam
to
the
east,
Mondulkiri
to
the
south,
and
Stung
Treng
to
the
west.
This
rural
rugged
province
is a
70%
ethnic
minority,
which
are
known
as "Chunchiet".
Ratanakiri
was
as
recently
as
2002
seriously
off
the
beaten
track
but
has
since
been
"discovered"
step
by
step.
Still,
while
you
won't
get
any
bragging
rights
for
coming
here,
it's
well
worth
the
effort
to
do
so,
and
once
you
get
away
from
it's
capital
Banlung
you
won't
run
into
too
many
other
tourists.
So
Ratanakiri
is
still
a
remote
province
in
Northeastern
Cambodia
worth
to
visit.
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The
word
"Ratanakiri"
itself
is a
derivative
of
two
Cambodian
words,
which
are
combined
to
mean
"place
of
gems
and
mountains."
The
word
comes
from
the
Sanskrit
words
Ratna
(gem)
and
giri
(mountain).
It's
quite
dusty
capital,
Banlung,
is
located
in
the
central
highlands
of
the
province,
approximately
365
miles
(586
kilometres)
from
Phnom
Penh
and
reminds
one
of a
wild
western
city,
even
if
it's
the
wild
east.
Its
wide
red
laterite
roads
are
bordered
by
new,
recently
build
houses
replacing
the
older
ones.
The
centre
of
the
town
features
a
lively
marked
with
all
the
needful
things.
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Lomphat
is a
small
town
in
the
southern
plains,
which
was
once
the
former
capital
of
Ratanakiri.
There
are
a
few
other
small
towns
like
Ta
Veng
and
Voen
Sai.
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The
province
is
getting
more
and
more
popular
for
thousands
of
tourist
every
year.
Especially
for
those,
who
seek
a
close
contact
to
originality,
hidden
roots
of
ethnic
groups
and
abundant
wildlife.
Therefore
the
Ecotourism
abounds,
due
to
lush
wildlife
and
remote
tribal
villages.
Most
of
the
inhabitants
of
Ratanakiri
are
indigenous
minorities.
Ethnic
Cambodians
make
up
only
10-20%
of
the
country’s
total
population.
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Remnants
of
an
ancient
volcano
exist
near
to
Banlung
in
the
form
of a
crystal-clear
lake
that
was
formed
after
the
active
volcano
went
dormant.
There
are
also
a
few
ancient
lava
fields
that
testify
to
the
fact
that
the
area
was
quite
lively
at
one
time.
Beautiful
waterfalls,
clear
rivers
winding
through
stretches
of
jungle,
and
rolling
hills
that
meet
mountains
near
the
Vietnamese
and
Lao
border
provide
a
full
agenda
for
nature
lovers.
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Non-structured,
low-impact,
custom
trips
to
outlying
villages
and
natural
areas
can
be
organized
(strictly
by
yourself
or
with
help
from
a
guesthouse).
There
is a
few
foreigners
living
in
Banlung
you’ll
definitely
meet
while
walking
in
the
streets
you
can
ask
for
actual
tour
offers,
prices
etc
(change
spontaneously).
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You
will
soon
realize
that
this
area
hasn't
seen
a
lot
of
tourists
in
the
past.
If
you
will
visit
the
hill
tribe
people
in
the
further
areas
outside
of
Banlung,
don’t
be
surprised
if
they
look
appalled
at
you.
They
just
haven’t
seen
many,
if
any,
foreigners.
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Yeak
Laom
Volcano
Lake
This
beautiful
place
is
not
far
from
town
and
is
great
for
a
swim,
picnic,
or
hike
around
the
crater
rim
of
the
old
volcano.
Due
to
the
lake’s
tremendous
depth
of
48
meters,
its
water
is
exceptionally
clean
and
crystal
clear.
The
lake
is
almost
perfectly
round
and
measures
around
750
meters
in
diameter.
It
has
a
small
informative
local
museum
thrown
in
to
boot.
In
1995
the
governor
of
Ratanakiri
officially
set
aside
a
5,000-hectare
(12,350-acre)
protected
area,
of
which
the
lake
is a
part,
and
in
1996
got
help
from
the
International
Development
and
Research
Centre
of
Canada
and
the
United
Nations
Development
Program
to
develop
an
effective
resource
management
program.
This
area
represents
Cambodia’s
finest
attempt
at
preserving
a
site.
Full-time
rangers
work
to
ensure
the
area
is
protected.
They
receive
regular
training
and
have
put
up
signs
throughout
the
area
reminding
people
not
too
littler,
wash
clothes
or
toilet
in
the
lake.
That’s
amazing
for
Cambodia.
The
main
swimming
and
picnic
area
features
a
nice
wood
deck
that’s
great
to
use
for
a
jump
into
the
crystal
clean
water.
Nearby,
park
rangers
erected
a
couple
of
examples
of
hill
tribe
construction
in
the
form
of
non
politically
correct
bride
and
groom
homes,
where
the
man
gets
the
elevated
home
(his
status
in
the
relationship)
and
the
woman
has
the
one
nearer
to
the
ground.
A
few
hundred
meters
down
is
the
Cultural
and
Environmental
Centre,
which
has
information
about
area
history
and
displays
of
local
hill
tribe
tools
and
handiwork.
They
also
sell
some
of
the
handicrafts
made
by
the
hill
tribes:
musical
instruments,
beaded
belts,
shirts,
and
hats.
From
the
centre
you
can
take
a
nature
trail
around
the
entire
crater
rim.
King
Sihanouk
had
a
chalet
built
on
the
shores
of
the
lake
and
used
it
during
the
1960s.
It
was
destroyed
in
the
1970
war
between
the
Lon
Nol
government
and
Khmer
Rouge
guerrillas.
You
can
still
see
the
remnants
of
this
and
also-indifferent
spots
around
the
lake-trenches
that
held
gun
emplacements
during
the
fighting.
The
original
inhabitants
of
the
area
are
the
Khmer
Leu
hill
tribe
people,
who
have
always
recognized
the
lake
as a
sacred
place,
home
to
the
spirits
of
the
land,
water,
and
forest.
Here
those
spirits
interact
with
humans
and,
according
to
the
local
legend
of
Yeak
Laom
Lake,
fabulous,
spiritual
aquatic
beings
reside
here.
The
surrounding
forests
of
the
area
are
also
said
to
be
the
home
of
spirits
and
therefore
can’t
be
cut.
This
helps
to
explain
why
the
hill
tribe
people
took
so
strongly
to
the
idea
of
protecting
the
area.
It’s
very
easy
to
get
there
-
just
go
east
from
the
Independence
Monument
circle
3 km
to
the
Hill
Tribe
Monument
circle
(two
indigenous
figures)
and
go
right
for
about
1,5
km
to
the
entrance
gate.
The
local
hill
tribe
community
connected
to
the
lake
get
to
collect
an
entrance
fee,
giving
them
a
source
of
income
and
revenue
for
protecting
their
resource.
It’s
US$1
per
person
and
a
few
hundred
riels
for
a
motorcycle. |
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