Fran And Ruth Drive SWA

For anyone who follows me on Instagram or is friends with me on Facebook, the revelation that I have been on a roadtrip around Western Australia will not be news. My older sister lives in Perth and this month I visited her for the fourth time since she emigrated. While Cambodia may be an inconvenient distance from the UK, flights to WA are surprisingly cheap and quick. So I landed back on the dusty planes of the Australian outback, already keeping my eyes peeled for snakes, and was reunited with my older sister, Fran.

Actually, before I dive in to the roadtrip, I should at first say that the reason for the entire holiday was a certain young man named Ed. For my birthday, Fran gifted me tickets to see the genius that is in the city. So before we set off down to the coast, we at first had a little partying to do and we couldn’t have been happier. I’ve seen Ed Sheeran before and he just gets better and better. In fact, I reckon he’s perfect. I don’t think anyone else in the world can command the stage quite as completely as he does and it was a truly epic evening with Fran and her friends Katherine and Tara. Even as someone who knows they can’t sing, I couldn’t help but belt out every one of his epic hits, in between taking this photograph and a few videos.

Yes, I just shoved about 10 song titles into this paragraph: I regret nothing. What can I say? His music is in my bloodstream. Ok, I’ll stop now. Let’s take it back to what happened next and the content of my Instagram page for the subsequent week.

Hungover not from alcohol but euphoria, our trip down south began in earnest the next day. To be honest, I think this is where even my words (I’m humble) are not enough to sum up the amazing travels we shared together. So I’ll just offer you a brief review of our route and then let the photos tell the story. Needless to say, we had an amazing time and it was a real treat to spend some quality time with my big sister, eating and drinking out way through some remarkable landscapes.

We went from Perth to Denmark to Pemberton to Augusta to Dunsborough and finally back to Perth, all in the space of eight days. Sounds short? The reason for that will be coming up in another blog published in a couple of days time. For now, take in the sights of South Western Australia and feel that travel bug begin to itch once more. In that time we visited countless vineyards, walked amongst 50 metre high treetops, hiked to the top of a rock, graced several beaches with our presence, fed stingrays (well, Fran did), went caving, saw the biggest flag in Australia and ate our weight in free samples of just about every foodstuff you could possibly imagine.

Sister Selfies:

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Places and pretty things/food:

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

For those of you who are interested, my digital marketing brain didn’t switch off entirely (this was the first full week off work I’d taken in 18 months), so if you want to see all of our photos, search #FranAndRuthDriveSWA on Instagram.

Motor Up Bokor

I’ve always loved Kampot, as regular readers of my blog will know, so when I was invited to join a motorbike trip down to the province for the Buddhist festival, Pchum Ben, I could hardly say no, much to my parents’ horror (sorry parentals!) The roads in Cambodia aren’t exactly known for their impeccable safety record but I was riding with a Khmer friend who’s been driving motorbikes for half his life so I knew I was in safe hands.

There was a group of ten of us in total, riding down on six bikes: myself, Vanny, Emily, Veasna, Jacinta, Ehud, Jenna, Pov, Serai, and Yuri. The ride took about four hours, including a relaxed breakfast stop and the occasional break to ease our aching butts. We arrived completely unharmed, despite a slightly close call between my kneecap and a white van. But we made it: look!

And because the whole point of this holiday was motorbiking, after we settled into our accommodation we rode up to Ta Da Waterfall (yes, that is actually its name). A new attraction for tourists in Kampot, I’m sure this would have been an incredible site if half of Phnom Penh hadn’t decided to visit at the same time. We still had fun and the scenery was stunning but it was rather overcrowded. And the water was freezing cold!

The next day was the focal point of our trip: a drive up Bokor Mountain. This national park is one of Cambodia’s treasures and significant (Chinese) investment means the road up to the top is in great condition. We visited a second waterfall which was much quieter than the one from the previous day, thank goodness! And then, after literally driving through a cloud and getting rather wet, we arrived at the old casino, one of my favourite places in Cambodia. This old building was built by the French colonists but later used as a Khmer Rouge stronghold and stripped of its former glory. The result is an eery yet beautiful building, succumbing to the elements and perched on a cliff edge overlooking the sea. At least, it would be overlooking the sea if there hadn’t been a cloud there …

After meandering safely down Bokor’s jungle-covered sides, we headed to Kep, the small seaside town/province just half an hour from Kampot. Once again the beach was heaving with holidaying Khmers so our swim in the sea was undertaken semi-clothed (bikinis would have been wildly inappropriate). We then sat on the sand, played frisbee, and ate copious amounts of delicious squid. Kep is well known for its seafood so that evening saw feasts of crab, shrimp, and fish at one of the seafront restaurants. Crab is more hassle than it’s worth, in my opinion.

The following day it was back to Kampot for sunbathing, reading, and drinking coffee. Vanny and I went for a ride through the country and took in a little of the local lifestyle in the area, as well as visiting a pagoda. It was Pchum Ben, after all. The green of the paddy fields during the rainy season is just out of this world: it’s my favourite ever colour.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Amazing as it was to be riding around for the entire weekend, Vanny and I decided against slogging back up the inevitably busy road on the final day of Pchum Ben. So we took the train. Yes, Cambodia now has a fully functioning railway. Ok, not fully functioning … it runs from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville via Takeo and Kampot. And it was over an hour later arriving. But strangely it got to Phnom Penh bang on time, passing completely stationary traffic jams, much to the amusement of the train passengers! The journey itself was fine: very Khmer (karaoke videos, loud music, children wandering up and down the aisle talking to strangers, people snacking on baby birds etc) but it was cheap and hassle-free. Oh yeah and for an extra five bucks we got the moto back too …

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

All in all I had an awesome Pchum Ben, spending time with a great new group of people and seeing more of Cambodia than ever before from the saddle of a bike.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Helmet Handout Happiness

This week was all about red helmets for me! The order from Asia Injury Prevention Foundation (AIP) finally arrived on Tuesday and they look great!

Thumbs up for the helmets

This is the culmination of six months’ work for SKOPE which started in one of my first weeks back at school. I had always noticed, and been horrified by, the number of children coming to Sovann Komar School without helmets, especially since a law passed early in 2015 made it compulsory for all passengers to wear one. After I had started SKOPE, I realised I was in a position to instigate change in this area.

Two cousin nipping home for lunch … without helmets!

Most of the children within Sovann Komar Children’s Village don’t ride motos too often because they take the bus to and from school. However, when they do they are traveling along one of the busiest and most dangerous roads in Cambodia. I didn’t understand why the parents allowed this since they are so loving in caring in so many other ways. The students at our school however often come from very poor families. For some of them, a helmet is seen as an unnecessary expense and therefore they risk their child’s life every day. If you’ve not seen it, click here to watch a video I made.

Most of the funding for this project came from a few generous donors in the USA and Outreach International. Outreach is the volunteer agency I used when I first came to Cambodia and we have kept in touch ever since. They also continue to place volunteers at Sovann Komar and one of the mothers at the village acts as their in-country coordinator. Thanks to their contribution, SKOPE was able to finance the rest of the project with money raised in the UK in December.

I’ve written before about the helmets I chose so I’ll just briefly summarise here: they’re made in Vietnam and conform to US safety regulations. They’re bright red and have the SKOPE logo on either side.

I spent the day yesterday carrying around large boxes to every classroom in Sovann Komar School to fit and hand out the helmets for children who travel to school by moto. Here are some lovely smily faces to give you an idea of my job and why I love it so much.

Some happy children from Nursery 2

Grade 3 and their new helmets

Me and one of our Grade 1 classes with their new helmets

My Grade 5 class next to one of two signs we have had made for the project

 

Yesterday evening I stayed behind after work and when the older children returned from school, we had a little ceremony to give the helmets to the Sovann Komar families too. Each family got three or four helmets (the children had all been sized several weekends ago) because if the whole family are going somewhere, they usually drive.

Sovann Komar children and some parents with the helmets

Along with the helmets, Sovann Komar and SKOPE are implementing stricter road safety rules. Everyone who lives within Sovann Komar Village must wear a helmet when they pass through the gate. If they don’t, they must pay 50 cents to the guards there. Although we are not financially penalising the students enrolled in our school their parents will be informed that we are stepping up our game when it comes to road safety and our guards have been asked to keep an eye out for children who repeatedly do not wear helmets.

However, I do not think we will have much of a problem enforcing these rules. The children who received their helmets yesterday were all very pleased with their shiny red present. They understood the importance of them and so did their classmates. Parents too acknowledged these gifts and will be able to tell the helmets are excellent quality. That, coupled with the letter, and I hope we will instil a safety conscious culture into everyone at Sovann Komar.

A father admiring his son’s new helmet yesterday

It doesn’t sound like much but I think SKOPE accomplished a lot with this project. 117 helmets distributed and over 360 students educated about the importance of road safety. Hopefully these are lessons and practices which will continue for the rest of their lives.

Keeping this family safe!

Grade 2 and their new helmets

Grade 1 getting fitted for helmets

Kindergarten and their helmets

Our youngest students, Nursery 1, and their helmets

 

Helmets: SKOPE’s first success

The first of Sovann Komar Outreach Program for Education’s projects has almost come to fruition! Back in September 2015 I published a blog called SKOPE – Helmet and Road Safety Project and now, five months later, we’re about to order our helmets.

The project basically does what it says on the tin: highlights road safety and provides helmets for the children at Sovann Komar. I had initially planned to buy helmets for all 67 of the children living in the village in addition to their foster parents and the nannies. However, when it comes down to logistics, there is never a time when all the family are out on the motos. If they are all going somewhere together, they’ll take a car. So in order for the money fundraised and donated to go as far as possible, we are going to be providing each house with three or four helmets which can then be shared amongst the children.

Three sample helmets Protec and AIP lent SKOPE so we can order the correct sizes

Road traffic accidents kill 500 children every day throughout the world and six people die on Cambodian roads each day too. Collisions are all too common here: I myself have seen two accidents this week. It has somehow, worryingly, become an accepted part of life. Whilst I cannot singlehandedly make the roads safer, I can attempt to protect the children associated with Sovann Komar by providing helmets and this is what SKOPE is going to do.

Choosing the helmet brand was particularly important to me. I saw an advert for helmets outside a supermarket a few weeks ago boasting helmets for children for $1.25. Predictably, they were the flimsiest pieces of plastic I have ever handled and SKOPE is not going to be cutting costs when it comes to child safety. In fact, we’re going to order our helmets from Vietnam. The Asia Injury Prevention NGO works with US chaired company Protec to make US quality motorbike helmets. Today, I went to meet AIP and Protec representatives in Phnom Penh to see their products and speak to them about ordering in bulk for SKOPE.

I always knew I had a small head … this is me wearing a child’s moto helmet and it fit perfectly!

Helmets need to be sturdy, secure and protective. As soon as I felt the quality of the Protec helmet and the rigidity of the structure, I knew they were far better quality than anything else I have seen in Cambodia. They come in four different sizes which means each child will be able to use a well-fitted helmet and we are going to get the SKOPE logo on each one to advertise our project. Our first task is to fit all the children at Sovann Komar Children’s Village for the right sized helmet and then order them. As soon as this is done I will set about working on getting as many helmets as possible for the children enrolled in Sovann Komar School too. If you would like to donate, please visit our Crowdfunder page. Yesterday I spent some time outside our school filming children arriving and leaving to create a video highlighting how urgent this project really is. Please click here to watch my creation.

Every time a child climbs onto the back of a moto without a helmet they are risking their lives. A helmet reduces the risk of death by 42% and the risk of a serious injury by 69%. Wearing one is a no-brainer. No pun intended.

Within a few weeks, every child living in Sovann Komar will have to wear a helmet when they leave the village boundary. If they don’t, they will pay a 50 cent fine (2000 riel). The roads will still be dangerous but at least the children, families and SKOPE are be taking steps to protect these wonderful smiling faces.

Modeling Sovann Komar’s School uniform perfectly. How much better would they look with a shiny new helmet though?

 

SKOPE – Helmet and Road Safety Project

It’s always difficult to know how to begin. I founded SKOPE (Sovann Komar Outreach Program for Education) at the start of September and had a million different ideas of what we could do as a community organisation aiming to provide educational supplies to rural areas. But where to start? This week, SKOPE is launching its first project: Helmet and Road Safety.

A family of five on a moto: Mum, kid and baby both under a towel, dad (with a helmet), another kid. This is a typical Cambodian scene.

Sovann Komar School and children’s village is located along National Road Number One, the only highway leading from Phnom Penh to Vietnam. It’s a trunk road, basically, with trucks, buses and a myriad of other vehicles trundling up and down daily. It’s also in serious disrepair. Admittedly there is now an improvement project underway but for now I bump my way to and from school on what is little more than a dirt track. It’s dangerous. Roads in Cambodia generally are. This one is worse than most and the majority of the 300 students who now attend Sovann Komar School arrive by moto every morning. Without a helmet. Many of them live short distances away and therefore their parents seem to think a helmet isn’t necessary. This first project of SKOPE aims to right that misconception. The helmets we to get for Sovann Komar will have the school logo on the side. I hope this makes it look like an extension of their school uniform and therefore mandatory.

Helmets of the students at Sovann Komar school. We have 300 students enrolled …

Older siblings coming to pick up their little brother from Sovann Komar – all without helmets

Six people per day die in traffic collision in Cambodia. Wearing a helmet can reduce the risk of death by 42% and the risk of serious injury by 69%. It’s pretty simple really – wear one! Cambodian law stipulates, as of this year, that everyone over the age of three must wear a helmet when riding a moto. Please don’t get me started on why babies and toddlers are exempt. The fact remains however that this law, and the restriction to two people per moto, are not being enforced. In the western world, we immediately buckle our safety belt as soon as we get into a car: it’s second nature. That’s how helmet wearing should be here but, for now, it’s not.

The family groups at Sovann Komar have all been given helmets in the past but most have been broken or lost over time. SKOPE is going to replace every single one of them. Once each of the 68 children and 29 adults on site have their own helmet, we are going to implement a fine. Every person who enters or exits the Sovann Komar site without a helmet will have to pay 2000 riel, or $0.50. Hopefully this financial deterrent will ensure people continue to wear the helmets every time they ride. Any money collected will go straight back into replacing helmets when they get damaged.

It’s not enough to own a helmet, you actually need to put it on your head. The number of times I have seen people driving along with a helmet swinging jollily from the handlebars is ridiculous. When the helmets are handed out, the children are going to get a short safety demonstration about how important it is to fasten and wear their helmets when they ride a moto, even if it’s just for a short trip. They save lives every day. It’s hardly a chore to wear one and frankly it’s foolish not to.

Doing it right! Children leaving Sovann Komar School for lunch break.

And how is SKOPE going to do all this? I hope our funds will come through donations and grants from philanthropists and NGOs who work in this sector. Road safety in South East Asia is a significant problem and as such there are many groups working to combat dangers. SKOPE is currently applying to receive funds and we hope to have the children equipped with safety helmets relatively soon.

If you would like to get involved or make a donation to our helmet and road safety project, please visit our Crowdfunder site, comment below or email me at SKOPE@sovannkomar.org.

Alternatively, you can write a cheque directly to the organisation. Yes we’re back in the 90s with cheque writing – sorry! There is a temporary glitch with the website I’m afraid. Please include a short note mentioning SKOPE when you send the cheque so the money gets through to my projects. Here are the details:

Make Payable to: Golden Children Inc.

Send to: Anita Seizman, 16 E 69 Street, New York, NY, 10021, United States of America

Modeling Sovann Komar’s School uniform perfectly. How much better would they look with a shiny new helmet though?

Looking very cool in those shades … but are they really going to protect you in a crash?

Two cousin nipping home for lunch … without helmets!

Well the kid’s got a helmet … but what about the father?

Maybe bicycle helmets are the next project …