Water brings benefits

A storm cloud just outside Kompong Thom city

Kompong Thom was surprisingly wet on my recent visit to the province. It rained for long periods on my three days in the countryside and our temple-hunting adventure near Phnom Chi and whilst it made our travels much tougher on motos through flooded forest tracks, others found the benefits of a lot of water at the hottest and driest time of the year, a welcome relief.

These two water buffalo are having a fabulous time splashing around in this water-hole created by the recent rains

Children enjoying this water pool in the district of Tumring

These children were having a great time using this tree stump as a diving board to take advantage of the pool of water left by the recent rains in the district of Tumring, in eastern Kompong Thom province. This pool was next to a large rubber plantation - which was at the center of a logging scandal last year - and the children are from the families of the plantation workers. Once they saw my camera they re-doubled their efforts to show off their diving and jumping skills. Its a great way to keep cool in the middle of the hottest days of April.

Let's see who can make the biggest splash!