Beyond the Angkor Wat

From lotus farms to a colourful circus, Cambodia's Siem Reap is a city with much to offer

- Morgan Awyong

SAIL THROUGH A LOTUS FARM I did not expect to be presented with a bouquet of folded lotus flowers by a stranger - in this case, the guide steering our small wooden boat - but that is part of the charm of Lotus Farm Siem Reap (str.sg/uVTQ), located around 15 minutes by road from the city centre.

An initiative by local textile manufacturer Samatoa, the tour's highlight is a boat ride out to a nearby lake where the plants grow.

As Suan, a local farmer, steers our boat through the water, he occasionally stops to craft something from the surrounding flowers. He plucks blooms and shows me how to fold the lotus flowers into a bouquet.

Then he sees a green pod and pops out the seeds for me to sample. They are deliciously crunchy and sweet, like sprouted greens. When he catches me squinting in the sun, he grabs a leaf and fashions a hat.

The two-hour tour (US$35 or S$47) also provides an overview of the sustainable enterprise and how it has employed hundreds of underprivileged women in Cambodia since 2003 by hiring them as weavers.

On top of natural fabrics, the business also produces eco-friendly materials such as vegan leather made from mushrooms, which is turned into bags and available to buy online or at its shop.

After a demonstration by the women, I attempt to reproduce similar soft threads from the sap of lotus stems with a small knife. I learn to score the stems before breaking them, stretching the wispy strands of sap across a wet board before rolling them into a thread. The process is not difficult, but creating consistent threads requires skill.

I also use flower petals to decorate lotus paper made from mulch, make bracelets from its seeds and roll out some incense, before heading to the farm's rooftop for an afternoon tea of biscuits and lotus oolong tea, with a newfound appreciation for this side of Cambodian life.

TASTE CAMBODIAN PEPPERS