Two Years in the Kingdom- Floating Village

Hello All, and thanks for following me. Todays topic is Floating Villages

Here in Cambodia, we have officially entered the wet season. It begins sometime during May and runs through October. The day generally begins with a clear blue sky but by mid-afternoon the storm clouds continue to build resulting in a late afternoon or evening rain complete with wind, lightning and thunder. The rainy season is a welcome relief to the punishingly hot dry weather of March, April and May. This year April was so hot that there were days that I only left the house during the hours of 10 to 4 if it was absolutely necessary. Cambodia produces electric from hydroelectric off the Mekong River. This year the Mekong was so low that the government shut off power during the day in an effort to conserve. Temperatures soared well over 100 degrees without even a fan to cool you off.

Now that the rains are here, rice fields will fill up along with the rivers and lakes. Tonle Sap in Cambodia is the largest fresh water lake in SE Asia. There are communities along the shore that use the lake for income. However, as the lake level rises from the rain the surrounding areas become flooded. These pictures are of a floating village. It may not look one now but all these homes and shops are built on stilts because it won’t be long before this road will be under a considerable amount of water for a large part of the year.  I tried to touch the high-water mark on a pole but it was way out of my reach. The only form of transportation in and out of this village will be on boat.  I tried to capture how high some of these homes are built in the trees with wooden walkways between them.  It was a fascinating look at a very different lifestyle.

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This is a short description of one of my books called Azaleas Beyond the Prison Walls. This is my favorite book filled with twists and turns to keep the reader guessing.

It’s 1930 and Carson Jones is a prison guard at the notorious Eastern States Penitentiary in Philadelphia where some of America’s most violent inmates and gangsters are serving time. Amidst the desperation of the Depression and a crowd of hostile convicts, Carson finds solace in an azalea garden behind the Philadelphia Museum of Art and in helping an inmate he believes has been wrongfully accused of murder and sentenced to death. Carson’s life begins to take a turn when he meets a beautiful young woman through a coworker. Her father is a judge and agrees to help him, but at a price. Carson is forced to choose between a life of meaning and purpose and leaving his friend at the mercy of a threatening warden who is becoming increasingly more unhinged. Though the life he has always dreamed of is finally within reach, is it worth it? In a novel chock-full of history and suspense, James Rizzo crafts a suspenseful narrative full of real-life history and page-turning intrigue.

This is the book trailer for my novel Azaleas Beyond the Prison Walls. Book sales are increasing so I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all those that have supported me by purchasing my books. Although I’m no longer with Smart Cat Publishing, all my books are available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Links are on this website. Hope you will take a moment to listen and enjoy.

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