Logo of Phnom Penh Post newspaper Phnom Penh Post - Royal homecoming at park opening

Royal homecoming at park opening

Royal homecoming at park opening

H IS Majesty King Norodom Sihanouk opened the visitors' center at the Preah

Suramarit-Kossamak National Park in Kompong Speu on June 5 (above) - a case of a

Royal homecoming.

The center's site was once the King's residence, an

area he named Kirirom Plateau more than 50 years ago. In 1950 the Kirirom forest

was designated a reserve by Royal decree.

The King's residence was

virtually destroyed by the Khmer Rouge in the 1970s, with only the chimney

structure remaining.

The $10,000 cost of the new visitors center was

paid for by a sponsorship from British oil and gas exploration company

Enterprise Oil. It now stands as a permanent monument to King

Sihanouk.

The center, built by Roymar Services, will house a permanent

display about the National Park and will sell guide books and mementos. The

viewing platform commands spectacular views of the forest and a large freshwater

lake.

The Preah Suramarit-Kossamak National Park is 35,000 hectares and

is home to a wide variety of birds, tropical vegetation and animals. A Ministry

of Environment survey, again paid by Enterprise sponsorship, identified 105

species of plants, 195 species of birds, and elephants, tigers, leopards, and

bears.

"The park's inaugration by His Majesty King Sihanouk is an

important event in Cambodia's long-term environmental calendar," Enterprise

general manager Barry Rogers said.

"It seems particularly appropriate

that the park should be inaugrated on World Environment Day [June 5]," he said.

MOST VIEWED

  • Wing Bank opens new branch in front of Orkide The Royal along Street 2004

    Wing Bank celebrates first anniversary as commercial bank with launch of brand-new branch. One year since officially launching with a commercial banking licence, Wing Bank on March 14 launched a new branch in front of Orkide The Royal along Street 2004. The launch was presided over by

  • Girl from Stung Meanchey dump now college grad living in Australia

    After finishing her foundational studies at Trinity College and earning a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Melbourne in 2022, Ron Sophy, a girl who once lived at the Stung Meanchey garbage dump and scavenged for things to sell, is now working at a private

  • Ministry using ChatGPT AI to ‘ease workload’; Khmer version planned

    The Digital Government Committee is planning to make a Khmer language version of popular artificial intelligence (AI) technology ChatGPT available to the public in the near future, following extensive testing. On March 9, the Ministry of Post and Telecommunications revealed that it has been using the

  • Ministry orders all schools, public and private, to close for SEA Games

    From April 20 to May 18, all public and private educational institutions will be closed to maintain order and support Cambodia's hosting of the 32nd SEA Games and 12th ASEAN Para Games, said a directive from the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport. Cambodia will host the

  • Wat Phnom hornbills attract tourists, locals

    Thanks to the arrival of a friendly flock of great hornbills, Hour Rithy, a former aviculturist – or raiser of birds – in Kratie province turned Phnom Penh tuk tuk driver, has seen a partial return to his former profession. He has become something of a guide

  • Almost 9K tourists see equinox sunrise at Angkor Wat

    Nearly 9,000 visitors – including 2,226 international tourists – gathered at Angkor Wat on March 21 to view the spring equinox sunrise, according to a senior official of the Siem Reap provinical tourism department. Ngov Seng Kak, director of the department, said a total of 8,726 people visited Angkor Wat to