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The legend of Toum and Tiou
The Toum Tiou derives its
name from a traditional Khmer tale of
star-crossed lovers, the Cambodian equivalent of Romeo and Juliet, Toum
being the boy and Tiou, the girl.
This beautiful love story turned
tragedy features Tiou's mother, an
ambitious woman who wants to marry her daughter off to the king and Toum
as the awkward lover. The king, good-hearted and understanding,
eventually gives up on the marriage to make Tiou happy. |
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It ends tragically when a frame-up
involving the mother and the governor leads to the death of one of the
two lovers, the other committing suicide to follow suit.
This story is taught from primary
to high school. Many songs and pieces of traditional music allude to the
pair of ill-fated lovers.
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Construction
Built in the traditional style,
the Toum Tiou was christened in 2002 on the river at Phnom Penh, the
first Cambodian cruise boat with international standard
accommodation.
Fully-paneled in wood, with charm
and comfort in mind, we designed it in keeping with the local
style. Modestly sized and with the safety of a steel hull, its low
draught makes it possible for the |
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boat to access the smallest of
villages. With the tasteful decoration of a bygone era, it has 10 cozy
double cabins with private shower, a large lounge area, a panoramic viewing
space to the front, a half-covered bar-restaurant to the rear and a roof
patio. Air conditioning, hi-fi system and library are provided.
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The captain, boat hands, hostesses,
cooks and boat master are quiet and inconspicuous in the performance
of their duties.
Technical facts:
Leng:
38m
Beam: 7m
Draught:
1.7m
Cabins:
10 pax
Propulsion: 315 CV
Speed:
15km/h
Electricity: 220 Volt |
This traditional locally built boat
started out as a freighter
with a metal hull and a capacity of 150 tons, with two large but
low-ceiling decks in order to maximize storage space. Like all boats of
this type, it went up and down the Tonle Sap and Mekong, stopping at Siem
Reap, Kompong Cham, Kratie and Stung Treng.
We stayed as close as we could to the original line of the
boat, because we wanted to retain its slightly curved and elegant lines.
The Toum Tiou is 38 meters long and 6.5 meters wide in the
middle. It has 10 rooms in all (3.3 m x 2.5 m), 4 on the first deck and
6 on the second, each air-conditioned and with a bathroom (2.5 m x 1.4
m) including toilet, shower and sink. The water on board is taken from
the river, passed through a powerful filtration system and chlorinated
in the final step of the treatment.
In
order to make the best
possible use of the common areas from the standpoint of both size and
variety we have installed a library-reading room on the lower deck.
There is also a covered space at the front of the middle deck, a
restaurant to the rear and half-covered sundeck on top. |
