PHNOM TAMAO WILDLIFE RESCUE CENTRE!
John and I spent the morning researching the Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Center. By all accounts, it was a MUST SEE when in Phnom Penh! We also read that it was easiest to take an air conditioned car for the long trip on the bumpy, dirty, smelly roads. John and I looked at each other and said, “EASY? Who wants EASY? We didn’t come all the way to Cambodia to do EASY!” So we took a TUK TUK instead! First stop — gas. (That would be natural gas, if you can believe it!)
The two hour trip (Tuk Tuk speed) was EXHAUSTING, smelly (some GOOD smells, some GROSS smells), dusty (don’t need a facial now), nerve racking (how does this traffic work, pray tell), and teeth clenching BUMPY (the roads, OMG, call the dentist now)!!! It was, let’s just say, MEMORABLE! But we made it! The first thing we saw were monkeys! They were having a blast in the water! Can’t say we’ve ever seen anything like it before!
They were ADORABLE and FRIENDLY and best of all, they were FREE to roam WHEREVER they wanted! BEWARE: This post is filled TO THE MAX with videos! So grab a cup of coffee (or a beer), sit back, and we hope you enjoy these animal moments as much as we did!
We lucked into finding this guy to be our “guide.” He spoke a bit of English (just a bit) but was absolutely AMAZING with the animals! We are not kidding, this guy got the leopard here to wake up, walk over to us, yawn, and roll over on its’ back! He was, without a doubt, the ANIMAL WHISPERER! They loved him—and he really wasn’t an official guide—he drove around in a cart selling coconuts!
These gibbons were ADORABLE! The mom and her baby—OMGoodness! They GENTLY took the coconut out of our hands! AMAZING!
They were mesmerized when “our guy” cut into yet another coconut! They not only love him, they love his coconuts!
Please note the little one peaking out! This was one of the Mama Macaque monkeys running free!
The otters were something else! “Our guy” told us it was nearing their feeding time, so they were obviously HANGRY!
This bear was fast asleep in the shade when we walked up to its’ pen. Our guide started talking to him and, we kid you not, got him to walk over to us, stand on two legs, and then proceed to go soak in the pond!
Can you find the alligators? We put this picture in for you, Bev! Three gators just for you!
These lions were amazing! They literally were on the other side of their “spaces” and came over when ”our guy”started “talking” and “huffing” at them!
The elephants—oh my gosh! If you don’t watch any of the other videos, you just HAVE to watch these! There were a total of three elephants three and they had such personalities!
Read the story behind this little guy. So sad, however, he has totally adjusted to his prosthetic leg!
This wildlife rescue was HUGE, covering 2,285 hectare (you do the math) of forest. Lots of animals run free and huge pens are randomly placed throughout the woods. Our Tuk Tuk driver (bless his heart), stayed with us the entire day. Whew, that sure helped us navigate those hectares! Our guide (the coconut salesman) led us around in his coconut cart!
Oh what a day it was and, oh, what a ride back it was! 😳😳😳 It was certainly a day for the books!
And it ended well with a Cambodian dinner at a cute little restaurant in a cute little part of town! (Way to go, John!)
We each tried a Cambodian specialty. Fish Amok for me—it was delicious! And those tomatoes, while they didn’t look the best, were bursting with flavor! (There you have it, Cindy!)
John had a dish called Beef Loc Lac (or something like that), and he loved it!
And guess what we found a couple doors down from our restaurant? Yep, a massage shop! We guess it was just meant to be!
The two hour trip (Tuk Tuk speed) was EXHAUSTING, smelly (some GOOD smells, some GROSS smells), dusty (don’t need a facial now), nerve racking (how does this traffic work, pray tell), and teeth clenching BUMPY (the roads, OMG, call the dentist now)!!! It was, let’s just say, MEMORABLE! But we made it! The first thing we saw were monkeys! They were having a blast in the water! Can’t say we’ve ever seen anything like it before!
They were ADORABLE and FRIENDLY and best of all, they were FREE to roam WHEREVER they wanted! BEWARE: This post is filled TO THE MAX with videos! So grab a cup of coffee (or a beer), sit back, and we hope you enjoy these animal moments as much as we did!
We lucked into finding this guy to be our “guide.” He spoke a bit of English (just a bit) but was absolutely AMAZING with the animals! We are not kidding, this guy got the leopard here to wake up, walk over to us, yawn, and roll over on its’ back! He was, without a doubt, the ANIMAL WHISPERER! They loved him—and he really wasn’t an official guide—he drove around in a cart selling coconuts!
These gibbons were ADORABLE! The mom and her baby—OMGoodness! They GENTLY took the coconut out of our hands! AMAZING!
They were mesmerized when “our guy” cut into yet another coconut! They not only love him, they love his coconuts!
Please note the little one peaking out! This was one of the Mama Macaque monkeys running free!
The otters were something else! “Our guy” told us it was nearing their feeding time, so they were obviously HANGRY!
This bear was fast asleep in the shade when we walked up to its’ pen. Our guide started talking to him and, we kid you not, got him to walk over to us, stand on two legs, and then proceed to go soak in the pond!
Can you find the alligators? We put this picture in for you, Bev! Three gators just for you!
These lions were amazing! They literally were on the other side of their “spaces” and came over when ”our guy”started “talking” and “huffing” at them!
The elephants—oh my gosh! If you don’t watch any of the other videos, you just HAVE to watch these! There were a total of three elephants three and they had such personalities!
Read the story behind this little guy. So sad, however, he has totally adjusted to his prosthetic leg!
Here’s the leopard we mentioned earlier! Have you ever had one come up and roll over right in front of you? Our guide was petting it through the wire and we could hear it purring! (We kid you NOT!)
This wildlife rescue was HUGE, covering 2,285 hectare (you do the math) of forest. Lots of animals run free and huge pens are randomly placed throughout the woods. Our Tuk Tuk driver (bless his heart), stayed with us the entire day. Whew, that sure helped us navigate those hectares! Our guide (the coconut salesman) led us around in his coconut cart!
Oh what a day it was and, oh, what a ride back it was! 😳😳😳 It was certainly a day for the books!
And it ended well with a Cambodian dinner at a cute little restaurant in a cute little part of town! (Way to go, John!)
We each tried a Cambodian specialty. Fish Amok for me—it was delicious! And those tomatoes, while they didn’t look the best, were bursting with flavor! (There you have it, Cindy!)
John had a dish called Beef Loc Lac (or something like that), and he loved it!
And guess what we found a couple doors down from our restaurant? Yep, a massage shop! We guess it was just meant to be!
Comments