It’s not very often that you get the opportunity to attend a 99thbirthday party. In fact, I decided it was such an honour that it was worth flying back to the UK from Cambodia just for the occasion. I don’t usually visit the UK in the summer – it had been two years since I had done so and I realised perhaps it was time to remind myself that it’s not always cold and rainy in Blighty.
Once the idea was in my mind, I knew this trip would be the perfect chance to surprise my family. I’d always wanted to organise a surprise visit but never quite knew how it would work. Without letting friends and family know of your arrival, you run the risk of returning only to find people already have plans and don’t have time to see you. Logistically, however, this wasn’t going to be a problem as I knew all of my family were gathering together for my grandad’s party. This ‘all’ included my older sister, Fran, who lives in Perth and was returning for the 99th party too.
Little sister, big sister, me
I decided to tell Fran about the surprise and we attempted (and failed) to coordinate our flights. Having someone on the inside really helped, however. I also told my friend Anna who generously offered to pick me up from the airport and drove me to the holiday home where my parents were staying for party weekend. Fran was able to provide us with all the details and even told us to wait halfway up the drive when my parents went outside unexpectedly.
You’d think after 28 years that my mum would recognise her daughter but there was a definite pause of about one second before she registered who was stood on the doorstep. My little sister, who I was next to surprise, started crying (although she claims this was shock, not an overwhelming love for her big sister …).
My first day back in the UK was typically English. Anna joined us for the day and we went for a walk through the woodland, had ice-creams and visited a pretty village. The afternoon was sent at a pick-your-own fruit farm, over the course of which we may or may not have snaffled a strawberry or two. That evening, we had a mega picnic outside, complete with Pimms.
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The other two surprises occurred on the weekend at my grandad’s 99thparty. Amazingly, yet unsurprisingly for people who know him, my granddad knew right away that I, out of his many grandchildren and great-grandchildren, wasn’t supposed to be there. There were other cousins and their children to greet as well and then finally my brother arrived with his kids and I was able to surprise him too.
The rest of my time in the UK was spent working and seeing as many people as possible. I was in the country for 8 days and only in Devon for 4 so everyone was squeezed in for a where possible. From chips in the local pub to a BBQ and movie in our field, this brief time reminded me that perhaps the weather in the UK isn’t always so bad. I even managed to see two friends from Warwick as I travelled through London.
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The final weekend was spent in Italy where I visited friends from Kampot. The logic here was that, compared to Cambodia, Italy is close … Sabina left in May (there’s a blog about that) and returned to her family home just north of Venice. I had three beautiful days in the mountains with her and her family where we caught up on one another’s lives, ate delicious food and drank spritz and Prosecco. It was short but sweet and definitely worth the two-hour flight. Also, my nice camera got an outing …
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After one more night in London, which I spent with my niece and nephew, it was time to head back to Cambodia. The whole trip took less than 2 weeks and was definitely busy but totally worth it. Back in Kampot it proceeded to rain for weeks on end, resulting in terrible flooding and people being forced out of their homes. For once in my life, I found myself wishing I was back in the UK to escape the terrible weather – fairly sure that sentence has never been said before. Life is full of surprises.
After an unacceptably long time, I’m back! Apologies about the radio silence but as my job now requires me to write 20+ blogs per week, I struggle to motivate myself to create for Lemon in Cambodia. However, it appears Lemon in Vietnam had me inspired.
It was my birthday last week and this celebration, combined with the imminent departure of my closest flatmate and friend, Jordan, inspired a week long trip to Vietnam. Although Cambodia’s neighbour, I confess I have only spent two long weekends in this country so far: one in Ho Chi Minh City in 2009 and one on the island of Phu Quoc in 2015. I have just returned from an eight-day trip to the north of this sickle-shaped country with a few tales of our adventures and more than a few photographs.
We flew to Hanoi from Siem Reap because Phnom Penh’s fancy new ‘international’ airport is still struggling with some basic amenities, such as flights to nearby countries. Our first night in a hostel reminding both Jordan and myself how much we hate backpackers. After our noisy roommates left early in the morning, we took a little longer getting ready and it was nearing midday when we finally ventured out onto the streets. This is the point at which we realised Hanoi was hotter than Phnom Penh and instantly regretted our laziness. We walked around the Old Quarters of this beautiful, interesting and busy city in 40+ degrees Celsius and were forced to take refuge in the Vietnamese Women’s Museum and St Joseph’s Cathedral along with several, less culturally significant cafes. Hanoi is a fun city to explore, despite the oppressive heat, and the streets are dotted with little pagodas, cyclo drivers complete with VietCong hats and food sellers.
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The next day we embarked on the main trip of our holiday: Halong Bay. We’d chosen to go with a slightly more expensive tour company to avoid the backpackers and ended up on Rosa Cruise with the tagline “Romance, Roses and Love”. Luckily few people had taken that seriously and we weren’t surrounded by couples for the entire time. Halong Bay is incredible. It’s one of those awe-inspiring places you just look at and ask ‘how?’ These mega limestone rocks jut dramatically out of the blue-green water with a truly prehistoric feel. Our boat was delightful with a cute little cabin, lounge area where we were fed copious amounts of food three times a day and a large sun terrace from which you could watch the scenery glide by.
Rosa Cruise, Halong Bay
Halong Bay isn’t all about lying on top of a boat and getting a tan, however. We also went kayaking, during which Jordan and I discovered we work really well as a team but overestimated our energy levels and got immensely bored and tired on the paddle back to the boat. On that first day we visited a pearl farm which is far less interesting than it sounds and then watched the ‘sunset’. For some reason, our boat docked directly behind one of Halong Bay’s iconic formations. Beautiful, but inconvenient for sunset watching …
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Our second day saw us and a couple from Singapore join a new group of people (most on our boat only did the one-night cruise). This day was led by a completely hilarious Vietnamese guy who was absolutely mental. Lovely, but mental. We first went to a cave where I sliced my food open climbing over rocks, Jordan dropped and broke her sunglasses and I dropped and broke my camera. Good half hour. And I don’t even have any photos of the cave. I was subsequently reliant on my iPhone camera which is good but has nothing on my beloved, currently-being-fixed Lumix FZ150. From the hazardous cave we moved onto more kayaking. This time Jordan and I, along with a few other people, paddled into a little cove, got out and just went swimming for half an hour. Upon returning to the boat we decided to jump off the top deck. Turns out that isn’t allowed and we got thoroughly scolded in Vietnamese. Oops. The day was fun overall, however, and we even got serenaded by our tour guide which was one of the most awkward and hilarious experiences of my life.
We finished our day with a hike up one of the islands. I don’t think I’ve ever sweated so much in my life and I was seriously regretting not taking a bottle of water or a cold beer up with me but the views were totally worth the near-death energy requirement. We finally got back to Rosa to watch the ‘sunset’ from behind yet another rock. The following day we went to the ‘Surprising Cave’, so called because you can’t tell it’s there … much like all caves. To be fair, it was massive had some great stalactites and stalagmites. However, the entire space was filled with other tourists and we were just part of an endless queue snaking our way through and back out into the sweltering heat.
That was the end of Halong Bay and we returned to Hanoi in the midst of a monsoon. It was still drizzling the following morning but we hired a moto to visit some of the further sights including the Hoa Lo Prison Museum and the Temple of Literature.
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That evening we rode over to Lotto Tower which is their equivalent of the Empire State Building or the Sears Tower. 65 storeys up and you find yourself with an incredible view of the city. They also have one of those glass floors which sticks out and after quite some time, I finally venture onto it. We then made our way to the rooftop bar and splashed the cash on a cocktail which we enjoyed overlooking the city at night. I considered it an early birthday present to myself.
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On my actual birthday we took a day trip to Tam Coc. I say day trip; for most westerners, a 3-hour bus ride each way would not be considered a day trip. When we finally arrived we visited the ancient capital city, where a man who couldn’t pronounce the word temples (temple-les) showed us round lots of temples(les). After lunch we went for a short cycle ride through some stunning scenery. At the end of the ride we climbed into some questionable metal boats and set off down a small waterway, being paddled along by a woman … using her feet! It started to rain but we donned our sexy ponchos and continued despite the lightening and the metal-boat-in-water combination. The trip took us through two caves which were fun but smelt like bats and then we turned around and headed back (but not before all of the women pulled from nowhere bags of crappy souveniers for us to buy). We cycled back to the bus and then returned to Hanoi. My birthday dinner at a delicious seafood restaurant was a present from Jordan. Mmmm, thank you!
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And that was it. Aside from walking around looking at art the following morning (and buying myself a beautiful piece for my new house – a subject for another blog), our time in Hanoi came to an end. I’m now back in Cambodia while Jordan continues to travel south, making her way to Ho Chi Minh City before returning to Phnom Penh. Here are a few more snaps of some of the food we ate during our adventures, including Hanoi’s famous egg coffee. Enjoy!
Ten years ago today, my feet first touched Cambodian soil. I had no idea that a decade later I would be living and working in that very same country with no plans to leave any time soon. I came to Cambodia as part of a one month expedition, which also included Thailand, with a company called World Challenge. We were doing their ‘Team Challenge’ expedition and I was part of a twelve-strong group of sixteen and seventeen year olds from my secondary school. We’d spent close to two years raising the £3,000+ each to go on the trip and it all boiled down to four weeks in South East Asia. At the time, it wasn’t one of the best experiences of my life, predominantly because of our incredibly unpleasant team leader whom we later got fired from World Challenge. I think our troubles in Thailand left a sour taste at the end of our travels but when I was planning my gap year two years later, there was only one country I wanted to go to: Cambodia. Since then, I’ve never looked back. In between finishing high school, getting my undergraduate degree and then my masters, I have spent a combined total of three years in Cambodia so far. Over the past ten years I’ve worked for numerous NGOs, taught hundreds of children, lived with lots of different people, and made some of the very best friends in the world.
In honour of this milestone, I’ve been re-reading the diary I kept when I was travelling. Some of it could have been written by me yesterday. Some of it was clearly written by a sixteen year old with no understanding of the possessive apostrophe (I’ve had to correct them grammatically to publish here because it’s just embarrassing). Anyway, here are some extracts for your enjoyment.
Saturday 15th July 2006 – Arriving in Cambodia
It’s beautiful and outside the city it reminds me of Spain/Mallorca but the hustle and bustle of the centre is amazingly different to anything I’ve ever experienced. There are thousands and thousands of motorbikes, many of which have two or more people on. The current record is 5! I saw a mother feeding a baby on one and very few riders wear a helmet … We passed the Royal Palace and saw lots of children begging. It was really sad as they were all so beautiful. We also saw a man who had been crippled, probably by a mine set down during the wars in Cambodia.
Sunday 16th July 2006 – Phnom Penh
I didn’t sleep too well as our window was open and Phnom Penh is the new city that never sleeps! … The killing fields, when we finally arrived, was a very sad place … The mass graves and the signs stating the numbers of the dead that were buried there was a horrible thought but I had no personal experience of it so it did not mean as much to me as other massacres … At dinner we all sampled some delicious Khmer food. It’s very similar to Chinese.
Monday 17th July 2006 – Orphanage Day 1
I was crammed into the minibus and it got called over by police but we don’t know why. The tuk-tuks in front had to swerve across a steady stream of traffic to stop and wait for us. The driving here is crazy! [At the orphanage] we were enthusiastically greeted by beautiful kids … It’s lovely to play with them as they’re all so friendly. I wish I could take some home with me.
Wednesday 19th July 2006 – Orphanage Day 3
Some people went to the market today to get sheets, a kettle and underwear as the kids here only have one pair each! Now, thanks to us, they have two … I ate crushed beetles which were actually delicious. In the restaurant we were served an un-gutted fish. It was great fun pulling it apart!
Thursday 20th July 2006 – Orphanage Day 4
It monsooned again today … When it was time to leave we had to wade up to the tuk-tuks. Sometimes the water was over my knees. It was great fun though despite the fact that the water was sewage water and Jo and I saw a syringe and a drip bag which made us really worried about stepping on a needle or anything else. It made us realise what environment these people live in.
Saturday 22nd July 2006 – Orphanage Day 6 (Now known as SOS Day)
A nurse came in to read my blood pressure and heart rate and to take a blood sample … When the doctor came in an examined my ankle he said it was probably a spider bite … and that the spider had left poison in my ankle. He gave me some pills to take every 6 hours and I was put on an IV drip … It was our last day at the orphanage too and the goodbyes were so upsetting as we’re never going to see those kids again.
Sunday 23rd July 2006 – Travelling to Siem Reap
The bus was going at a good speed but I have no idea what that speed was as all the dials had broken. There were loads of cows that seemed to be tied up but we still almost hit some. There were stray dogs and straggly chickens too … Siem Reap is really beautiful and I prefer it to Phnom Penh.
Tuesday 25th July 2006 – Angkor Wat
There is a terrific set of extremely steep steps, very worn and uneven. Adam, Kate and I climbed up them … This sort of climbing would never be allowed in England because of all the healthy and safety procedures! The views were so spectacular that we sat at the top in a window for about an hour … Before leaving Angkor Wat, we all decided to investigate the source of some exotic music. We found a current Buddhist temple. I felt that looking at them was a bit intrusive but I wandered up quickly. I also saw a line of red ants.
Wednesday 26th July 2006 – We say ‘lear-en-haoey’ to Cambodia and ‘sa-wat-dee’ to Thailand
The bus was absolutely tiny! … the road we were on was ridiculously bumpy. At one point I left my seat by 15cm and the sweets on my lap flew down the bus … Kate and Louise were passing the time by counting pigs! … We managed to cross the border without being blown up by a mine which is also very good.
Ok so I wasn’t the most eloquent of writers. But a few of these sentences could have been written in one of my current blogs! Some of them, of course, could not. I mean, was I really that insensitive at the Killing Fields? Possibly, I can’t really remember and I was a self-absorbed teenager at the time. But did I really think the genocide I was learning about didn’t mean much because my grandfather wasn’t involved? And just to clarify, Cambodian cuisine has very little in common with the Chinese take-aways I was referring to. Presumably it was because I’d eaten noodles and rice … And the way I talked about the orphanage kids like we were their saviours! It actually sounds like this orphanage was one of the ones the media now warns against. Clearly there was a regular influx of tourists and white money, each group believing they were helping these poor kids who were really just smiling and playing with them because they knew they’d get things bought for them. As for Angkor Wat, health and safety has encroached sadly and you can no longer climb like monkeys over ancient ruins. Although perhaps in terms of preservation, this is a good thing. I also don’t tend to write about seeing a line of ants … Oh and no one says that Khmer I used as a title of the final entry. I’m not even sure what it’s supposed to sound like.
But what is the same? The crazy roads, ridiculous driving, and lack of helmets. The beggars and cripples near tourist attractions. The noise of the city. Monsoon floods with discarded medical supplies floating in them. Saying goodbye to the kids I work with makes me cry. Buses with speedometers that never work. Cows, dogs and chickens regularly meet their fate on the roads. I still visit that little working temple near Angkor Wat every time I go. The border crossing in Poi Pet is one of the worst in the world.
Ten years has passed and Cambodia has certainly changed. I have too, thank goodness. Some changes have been good, others less so. Some of the Cambodia I wrote about ten years ago is recognisable today, other areas have faded away. But one thing remains the same; my unrelenting, deep, and enduring commitment and love to this country and its people. Here’s to the next ten years.
July 2006 – Me with some of the children from the orphanage in Stung Mean CheyFebruary 2009 – Me with Loung and Veronique at Sovann KomarJuly 2010 – Me with Laura, Marissa, and Orlando at Ta Mao wildlife reserveDecember 2012 – Me and Mandy with Cheng and two children at Aziza’s PlaceAugust 2014 – Me with Lucy, Aria, Andrew, and Marcus at Sovann KomarMarch 2015 – Me with my Grade 5 class15th July 2016 – Me with my Grade 4 class
It’s public holiday season in Cambodia and last weekend saw a group of a baker’s dozen heading off to Koh Rong. This is an island off the coast of Sihanoukville which I’ve not visited since 2014 and it was high time I returned!
Leaving at 3:30am, we’ve discovered, cuts the usual five hour road trip almost in half and we sped into a bleary-eyed Sihanoukville at 6:30 on Friday morning. Then we had a leisurely two and a half hours to wait before boarding out catamaran and speeding off to Koh Rong. Once we landed on the built-up, touristy beach, we grabbed a sugar cane juice before clambering ungainly into a far less stable, gaudily painted green and orange, water taxi. We were whisked, rocking and pitching, away to a quieter, more peaceful, and infinitely more beautiful Coconut Beach. Yes, there were lots of coconuts. Between us we had three bungalows perched right on the sandy shore.
I spent most of the rest of the time in the sea and on the beach. The water was crystal clear. So clear in fact that when I jumped off the pier and then lost my sunglasses, I could simply dive under, eyes stinging from the salty water and retrieve them with relatively little trouble. As a side note, I wouldn’t advise jumping from that pier when the tide is out. My second jump resulted in my shin colliding with a concrete girder I had failed to spot. But I’m fine!
After hours of swimming, frisbee and food, some of us walked over the hill to the small fishing village nestled in the cove on the other side. It was an adorable place and I briefly wondered whether I could justify setting up a SKOPE project there. For now, however, it seems a bit too remote!
We were accompanied on our trip by the young dog (for the purpose of the alliterative blog title, I’m considering her a puppy) who lives at our accommodation and she became a constant companion from that evening onwards. In fact, most of my photos of the holiday are of her! When we returned we were invited by some villagers to drink with them. Some spoke limited English but as the whiskey flowed, my Khmer improved remarkably and we all had a great time laughing together even if there was a language barrier.
Saturday saw a lazy morning after a somewhat inebriated night of games, chatting, midnight swimming and carrying various friends to bed (no names mentioned). There were two other accommodation sites on the beach: a pretentious, soulless hotel and another bungalow place, built into the cliff face. Rachel and I walked down to explore the latter on Saturday afternoon, particularly as we’d discovered our place was expecting a large group of Khmers and were going to be unable to cook for us. We were accompanied by the dog, naturally. This dog, whom we never actually named, also joined us in the sea. She swam out to us but then wanted to be held. She wasn’t small but she was so cute so I handed her off to Jordan and went to get my camera. Literal couple’s photoshoot!
There was some fishing action too. Whatever we caught (and by we I don’t mean me), the chef would grill for us. I think Nary had the most success. The crab in particular was delicious!
Sunsets are always hit or miss but we struck gold (purple and red) with the one we watched from the top of the hill. A group of us sat in complete silence, watching as the daylight slid from view and the sky was filled with the most beautiful colours.
That evening we mostly ate burgers which made a change from the delicious but sporadically served fried rice at our accommodation. I also got thrashed at chess by Eli before we all wandered back and the cards and booze came out again.
Time disappeared from us and the group gradually got smaller. Just after midnight, the owner of our place came over and asked those that remained if we wanted to see the phosphorescent plankton. Ok, he didn’t say that, he said “see plonkton?” The night before we had seen glimmers of light as we splashed in the water but knew the later it got, the brighter they shined. We were not disappointed.
As we waded out, clouds of light bloomed around our feet, tiny sparks of life glittering in the inky black water. Trailing your fingers through it made you feel magical, power emanating from a simple touch before fading once again into the darkness. They clung momentarily to our skin as we splashed each other with water, tiny pinpricks of light in the dark night. It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life and I wish I could have taken a photo. The images will have to remain in my head, however, but I urge every one of you reading my blog to add this to your bucket list. You won’t regret it.
Sadly our phosphorescent fun was cut short by some loud, drunken Vietnamese boys returning from a night out on the main beach. Their boat beamed a neon green light over the whole area and the plankton faded from existence. They returned, of course, as the boat headed back out to sea but somehow the magic had gone.
On Sunday we returned the way we came. The swaying, unnerving little boat, a huge, steady catamaran (once everyone had finally located their return ticket – no names mentioned again), and then our Speedy Gonzales bus driver. We pulled into a dusky Phnom Penh, tired, sandy, sweaty, salty, but wonderfully relaxed and even a little bit tanned.
Cambodian long weekends are simply the best and I’m already looking forward to the next one … this coming weekend!
And finally, this blog is dedicated to Mrs Sheila Yale, a regular reader of Lemon in Cambodia and someone who has supported my adventures for many years. When I briefly connected to the Internet on Saturday evening, the sun setting steadily in front of me, I received a text from my mother informing me of her passing. Sheila loved to hear about my trips and we regularly wrote letters to one another. Whenever I was home, I’d visit to catch her up on my life and she’d do the same. It was an honour and a privilege to call such a loving, caring, and genuinely kind woman a friend. I will miss her greatly and sincerely hope she has found peace now she is reunited with her loving husband, Henry.
Left to Right: Vanny, Me, Tony, Varsha, Rachel, Eli, Phaline, Sophorn, JordanGoodbyes are always hardSwimming puppy with Marion, Rachel, Jordan, and Varsha
Rachel and PuppySwinging fun
Sophorn and Puppy
One of Rachel’s own bucket list item I just helped to cross off her list!
When I was growing up I never imagined that the first time I would ever have ‘surgery’, I’d be in Cambodia. Now before people panic, it was scheduled, incredibly minor (it’s barely surgery actually), and I’m absolutely fine. But I am minus four teeth, or ‘useless bits of calcium’ as my mum termed them.
I had been told by Khmer dentist last year that I needed my wisdom teeth removed but had put it off for ages. When I visited again for a minor tooth ache in November, he advised me strongly to just get it done. So whilst every other expat in Cambodia took advantage of the week long holiday for Khmer New Year in April and left the city, I found myself lying in a dentist’s chair with a piece of green fabric across my face and a scalpel in my mouth. Don’t worry, I was so numb even my eye was slightly dopey for the next few hours. I’d also taken a valium to calm myself down!
I’ve never been afraid of the dentist but having all four wisdom teeth removed in Cambodia made me rather nervous. Luckily for me and my nerves (emotional not physical), the dentist decided against telling me that he had been worried before he started the surgery because the roots of my teeth were curved, making extraction much more difficult. He informed me this when I was staring aghast at the four ‘useless bits of calcium’ which were lying on the little tray afterwards.
“Yes, I was worried they were going to snap off but I was very good and I got them all out in one piece.”
I don’t care how big-headed he sounded, I’m 100% in agreement at how fantastic Dr Khyak is after seeing what he pulled from my gums. And apologies if you’re reading this and eating.
Which is something I wasn’t doing much of for the next few days following the surgery. Well, soup. And ice lollies which my darling flatmate made for me before she left for the beach. I spent a week lying mute on the couch, watching so much television my eyes were quite literally square and cuddling Nugget. In fact, the only vaguely nice photo I have of this delightful time in my life is with my furry little companion.
But yes, I’ll publish the awful picture too. I only chipmunk-ed on one side!
A month has passed since the extraction and my mouth is completely healed. I don’t miss my teeth at all and I’m certainly glad I got the surgery over and done with at last. I’m also not feeling any less wise than I was before they were removed so clearly they are inappropriately named ‘useless bits of calcium’. I can now add ‘remove wisdom’ teeth to things I would advise visitors to Cambodia to do. It’ll come right beneath ‘visit Angkor Wat’, and ‘tour Tuol Sleng and the Killing Fields’.
It will be seven years in January since I first left England to live in Cambodia, on and off of course. But it wasn’t until November 2015 that my parents finally came to visit me. And I had to make sure the holiday was worth the wait.
The route:
Siem Reap
Phnom Penh
Kampot
Phnom Penh
Mondulkiri
Phnom Penh
The reason we went to Phnom Penh three times? Because Cambodia’s road network looks like a spider with every highway stemming from the capital and none of them linking up outside of the metropolis.
So let’s start with the temples in Siem Reap. This wasn’t a difficult part of the holiday to make awesome. I mean, it’s Angkor Wat! The ancient structures wow over one million tourists every year and my parents were among them as we wandered through the colossal stone structures. We actually started, rather unorthodoxly, with Ta Prohm. This is my favourite temple and also the one where Tomb Raider was filmed (for about one minute). It’s been left partially to the jungle with giant trees draped over the stones and undergrowth slowly encroaching from all sides. It’s magical.
Big tree, teeny tiny parentals
On to Bayon which is part of Angkor Thom. Basically it’s the one with the big faces everyone knows.
Angkor Wat was our final stop on our first day. It’s just as amazing to me now as it first was almost ten years ago. Unfortunately some health and safety laws have come into play (yes even in Cambodia our fun is ruined) and because of building works we weren’t able to climb to the very top. Still pretty cool though, right?
Angkor Wat Selfie!
On our second day we headed out to the Tonle Sap lake where you can visit fishing villages which float on this giant body of water. To be honest, I wouldn’t recommend the experience. I went a few years ago and since then the site has become a money making, tourist extorting, generally unpleasant place to be. The village itself is picturesque but you get constantly asked to donate rice to children who are “orphans”. $50 for a twenty kilo bag of rice! It should cost about $10. And even after I explained that I work at an orphanage, they still tried to get us to donate money. It was pushy, rude, misleading and left us with a sour taste in our mouths. And then to top it off, as soon as we disembarked from the boat, a little girl appeared trying to sell me a ceramic plate with a picture of my own face on! Creepy or what?
Traditional floating village scene
The day got better though when we hiked up a stupidly steep hill to a temple and discovered a wonderful view over the Tonle Sap lake. In fact, after a brief meeting I had arranged for my SKOPE project, we returned that evening and watched a glorious sunset.
The final day in Siem Reap took us out to the remote temples: Kbal Spean and Banteay Srey. The former is actually not a temple but carvings in a river bed. Different, beautiful, and rewarding after the 1.5km hike up the hill.
Kbal Spean
Banter Srey was nicer before it made its way onto the Chinese tourist bus route. It’s a tiny temple made of pink sandstone with the most intricate and beautiful carvings over every inch of it.
Banteay Srey
On the way back to the city, we stopped at the Landmine Museum where we were lucky enough to arrive at the same time an American worker was starting a tour which was incredibly informative even for someone who’s got a Masters in the subject. That evening we went to the Phare Cambodian Circus – amazing!
That’s high!
I was glad to be leaving Siem Reap, to be honest. I was looking forward to going home and showing my parents a real Cambodian city rather than the tourist centre Siem Reap has become. The weekend in Phnom Penh was touristy too though: Royal Palace, National Museum, Wat Phnom, Riverside, accompanied by several of my favourite restaurants. They only got lost once (well, there was a miscommunication with Tuk Tuk Lady but she was terrified that she’d lost my parents when they didn’t reappear after they went to the Royal Palace!)
Kampot remains my favourite place in Cambodia and we spent three full days in the sleepy riverside town. To be honest there isn’t much to say about our wonderfully relaxing time. Our guesthouse, Greenhouse, was right on the bank of the river and my mum and I swam across at least once a day. We took a countryside tour to see the caves and rice paddies one day before having lunch in Kep, a seaside town famous for its crab. We also hired bicycles and cycled up to an old temple. The hill was incredibly steep but I was really looking forward to going back down … until my front tyre got a flat about thirty seconds into my downhill dash. Ever tried to carry a bicycle upside down on the back of a moto? The Khmers make it look easy – it’s not.
Swimming in the Kampot river
Back up to Phnom Penh and my parents came into work with me (after getting lost in a tuk tuk again the night before). It was great for them to meet some of the kids I teach and also the children at Sovann Komar to whom they’ve donated money several times over the years. They also met my bosses and saw me in action in the classroom. My parents wanted to get presents for the kids and I suggested some world maps. Their geographical knowledge is generally poor (one kid pointed to Canada when I asked them to find Cambodia …) and I am really pushing for them to get a greater understanding of the world and other countries.
Handing out maps in Grade 5Handing out maps in Grade 4
I then had to work on Saturday in the provinces (blog upcoming about that) so my parents spent Saturday morning doing the necessary but depressing genocide tour – Toul Sleng detention centre and Choeung Ek killing field. But then I returned and cheered them up with a takeaway and Tomb Raider (it’s obligatory viewing if you’re in Cambodia.)
Our final trip was up to Mondulkiri in the east of the country. I’d not been before so I was really excited. The town itself, Sen Monorom, is nothing special but the main attraction of the area are the elephants. There are several sanctuaries working up there to rescue these majestic beasts from logging work, tourist riding companies, and other industries. We first stayed at Tree Lodge in a wooden bungalow butit was a little too rustic even for me. I mean, the spider in our bathroom was, legs included, the size of my hand. And the frog by my bed was huge too. We moved into a place with a ceiling which connected to the walls which connected to the floor the next day. Not sure how much safer it was though because my mum still managed to trip over a drain and fall down that evening. Funny in hindsight, slightly terrifying at the time when heard clattering noise, turned around and saw her rolling into the road.
Elephants are amazing. I mean, they’re just incredible. We went with a group called the Mondulkiri Project who have four elephants in 30 hectares of forest. Sophie, Princess, Lucky, and Chi Chan (moon in Khmer). We spent the morning feeding them bananas (Princess lived up to her name and insisted we place the food directly into her mouth) and following them as they wandered freely through the jungle.
Feeding Sophie
We then had lunch before heading back down and over a “bridge” to a small waterfall where we were split into two groups so we could wash the elephants! One by one, Princess and Lucky waded into the water and sat down. You then see a rather strange sight of several Westerners in bikinis with scrubbing brushes around these amazing creatures. I washed Lucky with my parents and the whole experience was just spectacular!
Elephant scrubbing!
And that was it! We headed back to Phnom Penh, spent an afternoon on the silk island, went to Raffles, did some last minute shopping and stocked up for the Christmas Markets I’ve since done for SKOPE (blog coming soon) and we were off back to England where my parents returned home after seven weeks of holiday and I came back after ten months to celebrate Christmas in the cold once more.
Cheers to a bloody good holiday!Dad at Ta ProhmMum at Ta ProhmPosing at one of the smaller templesFamily PortraitKids playing in the moat around Angkor WatThe classic shotMonks in Angkor WatFishing in the floating villagePanorama from the top of the temple overlooking the swollen Tonle Sap LakeEven monks’ motos break sometimes
A working pagoda beside Angkor WatIn the mouth of a tree on the way up to Kbal SpeanFirst monsoon in a tuk tukFresh crab arriving in KepRice harvestThe view over KampotCavingDad’s new best friend after he used the parentals’ binocularsNew family pet?The moment mum caught the bag of bananas and nearly fell over in the riverJust showing off my camera here …I was waiting for her to fall … she didn’tSitting in the river on Silk Island on our penultimate dayFinal Cambodian sunset for me of 2015
I’ll admit I was somewhat apprehensive about my first Christmas in Cambodia. Not only was it my first hot Christmas, but it was also my first Christmas away from home. I feared that whatever the day brought, it would not measure up to those long held familial traditions I treasure so dearly. Regardless of my misgivings, I knew there would be one reason for me to smile on 25th December. My big sister would be here! Fran lives in Australia with her partner Rob, and they flew to Cambodia last week to join in with the humid holidays! Having one family member here immediately made me feel much more Christmassy and without her, I suspect I would have felt homesick over the past week, an emotion with which I am rarely afflicted!
Me and Fran on Christmas Morning – yes we have the coolest hats ever!
I booked three days off work to spend Christmas at the beach. To make up for not working, I offered to throw a Christmas party at Sovann Komar but as I wasn’t feeling very festive, I put off making many arrangements until Fran arrived. And Fran did not arrive empty handed! Her very generous colleagues and friends in Australia had donated 20 kilograms of presents for the children! Thanks to these wonderful people, we were able to give each of Sovann Komar’s 56 orphans and 12 additional children (the biological children of the foster parents) a Christmas present. With money kindly donated by my very own mother, I was able to purchase a very decent Christmas tree and a Santa outfit which Rob, in a moment of weakness, had agreed to wear. The Christmas tree was decorated with paper ornaments made by the children in their previous English lesson and I think it looked pretty damn good.
Sovann Komar’s Christmas tree
Every one of those painstakingly wrapped presents was handed out by “Santa”, with the help of his “elf” (Cambodian name pronunciations can be a bit tricky so I helped out donned in a green shirt and a bouncy Santa hat!). Rob was initially regretting his agreement to dress as Santa but as soon as he tried on his outfit in the middle of IBC, he took to the role with gusto! Interacting with every child, asking questions, and presenting their gift, he even got some of the younger children to sit on his knee! The smile on the faces of the staff and parents at Sovann Komar as they watched the children approach Santa was priceless. I also threw Christmas parties for my Grade 3 and Grade 4 classes, consisting of musical chairs, musical statues, pass the parcel, and a screening of The Snowman – they loved it! I have always heard the expression “Christmas is for the children” but, being rather materialistic, continued to believe it was mostly about me (and Jesus), but seeing the happiness and excitement on all of the children’s faces made me realise perhaps I was wrong!
Santa and 69 happy children!
The following morning, Christmas Eve, we were off to the beach! And for anyone who’s counting, yes this is my fourth trip to Sihanoukville in just over four months. I may have an addiction! We are staying in a delightful hotel call The Tamarind, whose pool I am currently sat beside as I type this blog. Whilst showing Fran and Rob around S’noukie we spotted a sign advertising Christmas Dinner for the following day. My prayers were answered!!! At least one of England’s traditions would be upheld. We enjoyed a BBQ on the beach on Christmas Eve and I introduced Rob to my favourite BBQ-ed squid – my nod towards the smoked salmon feast I always enjoy at my Godmother’s every year.
A slightly scared squid seller and Santa
Christmas Day morning saw us opening presents by the pool at the hotel. I’d collected quite an impressive haul from my lovely Grade 4s – most of which were cute presents, a few of which were just weird! I may not have been snuggled up on my parents bed but I still felt very festive surrounded by wrapping paper and a few decorations sent over by my mum. To get us even more into the festive mood, Rob decided to get out his Santa hat and beard. We hadn’t really thought that through though and as soon as he came out, two little French boys who were staying in the hotel stared at him aghast! Rob waved and jumped into the pool and we continued to open presents. Not long after, the French boys came over for a photo with Santa Claus and two American girls appeared shortly afterwards for the same reason. Oh and then a retired English woman wanted to sit on Santa’s knee (not kidding), followed by a couple of the waitresses at the hotel! Santa was well and truly a hit!
Santa in the pool on Christmas dayFran, Rob (Santa), and me with the present by the pool
Present opening followed by a sunbathe – not normal but damn good! Then it was time for Christmas dinner. As usual in Cambodia the food didn’t come out at the same time and it was all luke warm at best. But it was pretty good and the atmosphere was great – festive, jolly, relaxed.
Christmas Dinner!
Next on the Christmas agenda in the UK would have been a walk… how about a swim? Ok Christmas in Cambodia is starting to be pretty awesome!
Christmas Day Swim
Of course we haven’t forgotten the English peeps – time to Skype! Oh wait the entire internet is down at the hotel? It’s time to scour S’noukie for good wifi then! Mission almost accomplished and families greeted and Christmas wishes bestowed!
Dad’s giant head is partially obscuring Mum, Grandad, with Molly and Sam perched on the end!
Sunset time! Can’t get much better than that now can you?
Sihanoukville sunset, 25.12.2014
My first Christmas away from home was certainly different, and I still don’t quite feel festive, simply because it’s so hot here. But thanks to the numerous friends and family members who sent cards and presents, I feel I captured a certain something of the holiday season. Plus I got some good tanning hours in ahead of returning to the UK next month so who can complain! It may have not been a holiday snuggled up in front of the wood-burner, watching Eastenders, and eating Quality Street (oh wait we did do the last one), but I will never forget my Christmas in Cambodia.
Lemon in Cambodia 