Jungle treks Ratanakiri Cambodia

 

'DutchCo' is a small company. It is a cooperation between a Dutch couple and a fixed core of Khmer and indigenous people. 'The company belongs to us' is our motto. This results in the fact that every individual working for their company is really devoted. Their company is their future. Our attitude separates us to be professionals.

 

Quality
Going for the easy business in the 'harvest time' (high season) is one thing, keeping the business is an other. Providing good quality treks and trips is essential to keep the business. There is no better way to keep the business than that our guests strongly recommend us to others who are planning to do a trek in Ratanakiri. No 'nonsense' sales talk, no 'no problem' replies to your serious questions. If we have the sense that we can not provide you a trek which suits your expectations, we will not sell it. Neither we give massive discount in order to 'get you'. A cheap trek equals a disappointing one.

 

Equipment
Save comfortable transport and well maintained equipment is crucial for a good trek. Besides the safety risk of transport by moto (often 3 pers. plus equipment on one moto!), the hard seat and collecting a massive amount of dust are in no way 'adventurous'. A car is the way of transport. The same goes for the equipment. We don't supply worn out hammocks with big holes even bats can fly in and out with ease! The only creatures that like holes in your hammock are bugs and mosquito's!

 

Management
All our guests are Westerners. So it is quite obvious DutchCo is Western managed. Speaking Dutch, German or English is one thing, understanding is another. There is no culture gap in our communication. We understand your questions and provide the right answers. Having the same perception of your expectations decreases the chance of dissatisfaction after a trek dramatically.

When it comes to improving our treks and trips, our cooperatives have a great valued influence. Our management policy is; 'Combining Western management with local knowledge into a homogeneous product'.

 

DutchCo' The Team'

	In the Netherlands i was working as a social care worker in a forensic psychiatric environment. It was a hard nut to crack. Physically and mentally violence was business as usual. Now that I am living in Cambodia for a couple of years, being a 'social care worker' became a lot of fun. Every day I enjoy to work with a staff with a complete different point of view and not at least a completely different culture and history. It is an amazing colourful and cultural mix between me as a Westerner, our Khmer and indigenous staff. When I am not on a trek it is everything but boring to listen to the interesting traveling stories of our guests. Travelers from all over the world all have their own experiences. I love people disregard their nationality or their point of view. This amazing colourful blend of daily experience, nature and people, makes my job for me the best in the world. Don't even think about changing Cambodia. At the end Cambodia will change you!
	Having studied Chinese, I was already addicted to the Asian culture. My first travel to Cambodia, especially to Ratanakiri, made me fall in love with this beautiful country and its colourful people and culture and I love to share this feeling with travellers and tourists!
	My name is Pow. I was born in Kampong speung province about 30 km west of Phnom Penh. I came the first time to Ratanakiri in 2008. I worked in a guests house doing almost anything and making long days. Then i heard the 'DutchCo' was looking for staff who can speak English. I applied for the job in September 2009 and got hired. I like to work here very much. It is almost as if i am the boss of the small restaurant and bar. I have a lot of free time and happy that i have a good income so i can support my daughter. On Monday a have a free day off and then i like to go to the Yaklom lake. I also like to work with foreigner so i can improve my English ever day.
	My name is Bouny, I am 23 years old, I am working for the Ducth Co and I speak Khmer, English and some of the trbal languages of Ratanakiri. I have four brothers and two sisters, I am the oldest brother in the family. I have been living Ratanakiri for about 8 years. We all moved to Ratanakiri for faming. I was born in Kompong Cham province in one of the small villages around 100 km from the city, called Bey Met village, Toul Snoul commune, Kroug Chmar district and Kompong Cham. In Ratanakiri we lived together with the Kruong tribal people around 12 km from the town Banlung. In the beginning it was very difficult to live here because we did not know so much about the culture. There were around 250 people in the village, all of them being tribal people, except for us . I spent around 4 years in the tribal village where I worked as a vegetable gardener and I worked for the rubber plantation. Then I changed my job. I left my parents house and I moved to Banlung town to work in a restaurant for almost two years, besides that I studied English. After that I started working as a tour guide for Dutch Co. I still take care of my family, especially of my two younger brothers. I really enjoy my job, I love to take people to the jungle and explain all about it. Being a tourguide is very interesting
	My name is Sok Khun but some travellers nick named me 'Johnny Walker'. Now even my boss calls me Johnny. Born in Phnom Penh and moved with my family to Ratanakiri in 2005. When i came to Ratanakiri my first job was to work as a constructor. After that i became receptionist in a hotel in Banlung. Because of working with foreigners a lot i learned the English language very quick. I did a course 'Eco guide' and now i work full time for 'DutchCo'. It is a great experience for me to work for a foreign company. I am really interested in western culture and i love to share ideas about the different cultures with the guests i take on a jungle trek. I feel very proud when i can answer the guests questions about all the new things they see in nature and of the indigenous people.
	I am 45 years old and have a wife and 6 children. I was born in Koh Peak. I am Kachah minority. When I was around 10 years old I worked with an oxcart to get the fertilizer to the fields, this was during the time of Khmer Rouge. I worked a few years in Phnom Penh while my wife and family stayed in Ratanakiri. Now I am working as a ranger and boatdriver for Dutch Co. I know the Sesan river as the inside of my pocket. Disregard the wet or the dry season. I was called 'Le capitaine' because were others run on a sand bank, i go around it.

 

The right attitude, the right philosophy your on the right trek!