Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
GEM
MINING IN RATTANAKIRI
Gem-mining
is primitive and dangerous; miners dig a circular hole about 1m in diameter and
as deep as 10m, without any internal supports or reinforcement, and with only candles for
light. As the miner goes deeper, the earth is hauled to the surface in a wicker basket using a
variety of low-tech winches made of bamboo and rope. A series of small steps are dug in the
wall so that the miner can climb out. The main gemstone found in the area is semiprecious
zircon, which looks like brown glass in its raw state but turns pale blue when heated. Also
found in Rattanakiri are yellowish green peridot, pale purple amethyst, clear quartz and shiny
black onyx.
The sites where gems are mined in Rattanakiri province change regularly, so it's best to
check in Banlung before setting out to look for them. Most activity currently centres around
Chum Rum Bai Srok
, in Bokeo district. There's not much to see - once you've seen one
mining pit, you've seen them all - but the 35km trip from Banlung is interesting for the
scenery, the awfulness of the track and for the sheer exhilaration of having made it. The
gem-mining camp is di
cult to find without a guide (around $15-20/day; ask at your
guesthouse) or a good command of Khmer. South of Ka Chhang, the road soon turns into a
narrow churned-up track that winds up and down valleys and forks off left and right through
encroaching jungle, until it deteriorates into an even narrower rutted path. If it starts to rain,
the track can become impassable and visitors have had to spend the night in the site's
blue-tarpaulin-covered shacks.
Banlung
Situated 588km from Phnom Penh by road, the small provincial capital of
BANLUNG
feels a long way from the rest of Cambodia - and indeed from anywhere else. The town
sprang to prominence in 1979 when it was chosen as the new provincial capital of
Rattanakiri, replacing Voen Sai. Significant development followed (and continues to
this day), although Banlung hasn't altogether shaken off its Wild West atmosphere.
Most of the town's formerly dirt tracks have now been roughly surfaced but are so
indelibly stained with red dirt and mud as to resemble outback tracks, especially after
rain, while the combination of local chunchiet descending on town to visit the lively
market and marauding touts attempting to flog treks to the unwary add to the place's
slightly chaotic appeal. It's also notably cooler up here than down in the lowlands (for
once, hot showers are more important than air conditioning), while the town also
experiences significantly more rainfall than most other places in the country.
Most people come to Banlung to
trek
(see box, p.231), and there are also a number
of interesting day-trips in the surrounding countryside. The town itself is pretty
much devoid of attractions, bar the lively local market and the tranquil lake of
Boeung Kansaing.
4
Banlung market
Banlung
market
occupies a modern concrete building south of the Independence
Monument. It's most colourful in the early morning, when local chunchiet women bus
or trek into town,
khapas
laden with produce, to set up shop around the outside of the
market, pu
ng on bamboo pipes or large cigars made from tobacco rolled up in leaves.
The fruit and vegetables they display neatly on the ground often include varieties you
don't find in the lowlands, such as big red bananas, as well as outlandish-looking roots,
herbs and flowers gathered from the forest.
WHAT'S IN A NAME?: BANLUNG AND SEN MONOROM
Note that Cambodians habitually refer to
Banlung
as Rattanakiri and
Sen Monorom
as
Mondulkiri, as most provinces in Cambodia take their names from their provincial capitals.
