Cambodian Catnip

As an expat, I’m more than used to friends coming and going. But some people become a more important, more significant and fundamentally irreplaceable part of your life than others and when these guys leave, blogs are written.

My amazing flatmate and best friend, Jordan, left Cambodia this morning after almost three years in the Kingdom of Wonder. I’d known Jordan for over two years and we’d been living together most of that time. With other flatmates coming and going in our apartment, the two of us have always been the staples in one another’s lives so I know my life will never be the same as of midday today.

Living with other people is hard so when you meet someone with whom sharing an apartment works, you hold onto them! Jordan and I had rather different work schedules for the first year but we seamlessly slipped into living together. Whether it was the fact that we have similar taste in food, television and what we like to do with our free time or a combination of all three, I’m not sure. All I know is that the moment I walked back into the house this afternoon after dropping Jordan at the airport, I knew it would never feel like home again.

Although we’re very different people, Jordan and I shared a lot over the past few years. Whether it was our many nights out, during which she would befriend every single bar tender in each bar we went into. Or our Sunday ritual of watching an obscene amount of television lying in my bed. And our evening snacks of fruit salads and Smurf Haribo. Last but not least of course there’s dodgeball. The bi-weekly staple which our schedules revolved around where we made our closest friends and had some of our heartiest laughs. Basically, everything I enjoy doing in Cambodia is something which will now remind me of Jordan. It doesn’t mean I won’t still do these things – I’ll just make me sad when I remember that my friend is no longer by my side.

You may be wondering about the title of this blog. I call Jordan “Catnip for Khmers”. Basically, everyone here loves her. Although a recent trip to Vietnam reveals that a better term may be “Catnip for South East Asia”. Simply put, Jordan is a people person in the most incredible, bizarre and occasionally hilarious way possible. Anyone who has met Jordan will be able to relate to this. There’s something about her, something I jokingly refer to as pheromones but it’s more than that. Everyone loves Jordan from the moment they meet her. I think it’s to do with her personality, the way she presents herself as warm, friendly and welcoming, her genuine smile and the simple fact that she is accepting and open to everyone. Jordan makes people feel welcome and takes a real interest in everyone she meets. The way she interacts is quite simply intoxicating and she forms meaningful connections quicker than anyone I have ever met. That said, she has also been known to make friends with a car full of Khmers while we’ve been sat in a tuk tuk at the traffic lights. And if you leave her alone at the bar for five minutes, by the time you come back she’ll be friends with all of the workers on Facebook and making plans to visit their families in the province. It’s a curse, a gift, whatever you want to call it. Personally, I think it’s a testament to the kind of person Jordan is and I’m honoured to have been her friend for the past two years. Catnip or not, she’s certainly someone I want to have in my life for the foreseeable future.

And now I’m sat in my empty house, having taken sole custody of the cat Jordan and I shared. It’s weird. It’s quiet. I still feel like she’s about to walk through the door. And yet she won’t. She won’t walk back into the apartment and ask me what TV episode we’ve got to watch next and play hide and seek with Nugget (the cat) and help me cut up fruit for our evening snack. Jordan will come back to Cambodia, of that I’m sure. She has made so many close Khmer friends here and I know she will be back here to see them (and me) soon enough. Except it’s not soon enough. It would only be soon enough if she had appeared while I was writing this blog. I just checked. She hasn’t. But Nugget is sleeping on her bed, the room bare once more, wondering when her owner is going to come back and cheer up the other owner who’s been lying on her bed crying for half the afternoon.

So in an attempt to cheer myself up, I went through my photos for this blog. I have many photos of Jordan, mostly cuddling random animals or ridiculous hair after she’s been lying in my bed all day. I didn’t post all of them because I do want this friendship to survive now she’s back in the States (and it’s always good to have blackmail material). But for those of you missing Jordan, I hope the below photos put a smile on your face, like they did me.

Jordan, wherever you are, know that you’re loved and missed and always, always welcome back in the Kingdom of Wonder. The best of luck with your return to the US. I’m so proud of you for getting into grad school and I can’t wait to hear all about it. And in return, I will send you daily photos of Nugget.

I had to split the photos into three sets:

• Jordan and me/other people
• Jordan and Nugget/other animals
• Jordan being generally adorable!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

You’re one in a million, my love. Never change x

Happy Hanoi Birthday

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.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

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 …

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

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.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

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.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

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!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

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!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

That Time I Built A Library … With A Little Help

Well, 2017 began pretty fantastically for me. My charity built a library! Yes, an entire library. And all for just $1300. That includes construction, books, and the solar panel which allows the kids to, theoretically, have access 24/7 to their new education area. It amazes me how much further money can go in South East Asia and this project just goes to show that good, generous people are still on this planet. Sadly, they’re not pursuing a career in politics…

Back to that library, however. I travelled out on Friday to a village in Kampong Speu where Karuna Youth Cambodia, a fellow NGO, have a school. I had been a week earlier to drop off our latest volunteers, Emma and Reece, who are part way through a five week stint teaching at the school and living in the rainbow house. The day before I had received a shipment of 100 kg of books from England, which DHL had couriered door to door for free (seriously – you don’t ask, you don’t get). So I brought with me these books plus those donated by Paññāsāstra University of Cambodia and one of SKOPE’s new supporters, Association of School Aid in Cambodia (ASAC). That evening, powered by beer, Emma, Reece and I coded about 400 English books. We did the other 200 the following evening!

Onto the build. Well, let’s be honest I’m not a builder but luckily some men in the village are. A father of some children at the school is a carpenter and he took the reins when it came to directing the construction process, particularly the wooden frame. About eight men worked tirelessly for two full days, completely voluntarily, and constructed our library. It’s only three metres square but that’s still quite a feat. Emma, Reece and I tried to help where we could but when it came to hammering with the flat end of an axe, we decided we’d rather not lose an ear.

That Sunday saw the arrival of some Sovann Komar kids, handpicked to be the ones who always get stuck in on projects with SKOPE. Because we really needed their help. The walls weren’t entirely up by the time they reached the school but we began painting anyway. Despite me telling them explicitly not to wear their nice clothes, many of them ended up shirtless and splattered in orange. I am still finding orange smears of paint on me and it’s been over a week since I left!

We ate a delicious lunch cooked by the villagers and then headed down to a beautiful area of the village by the river where the Sovann Komar kids decided to go exploring upstream. Upon returning to the school, the kids were set to work clearing a newly acquired strip of land which KYC will build a volleyball court and football pitch on. Their earlier painting task wasn’t completed but the men were working on the roof with electric saws and we decided against jeopardising anyone’s life.

After the Sovann Komar children left, the roof quickly finished so Reece, Emma, myself and a load of the local children got stuck into painting and by sundown on Sunday evening, the library was up!

Sadly, I had to leave the next day to get back to Phnom Penh and work but thanks to the headteacher, Phearith, I was still able to keep up to date of all the happenings with his amazing videos. Which, naturally, I’ve turned into a story of the weekend, along with my own footage. Watch it here now! The following week saw a concrete floor poured and levelled, shelves built, walls decorated, and the solar panel fitted. As luck would have it, Reece is a fully qualified electrician so he was incredibly useful at this stage. Now, in typical Khmer logic style, we had chosen to construct the library under a tree to stop the building getting too hot during the dry season. But if the sun can’t get to the roof, it can’t get to the solar panel. Not to worry! Reece put it on the roof of the adjacent school building which is south facing and ran a wire the short distance across. Voila! Light!

I love all the work I do with SKOPE but this was by far and away the best project we have ever done. I don’t know if it’s because I love reading so much or because language and writing is so important to me personally but I am quite literally overcome with emotion when I see pictures and videos of what we’ve accomplished out in that tiny village. Those children now have the opportunity to truly learn. Their exposure levels to English went from one Doctor Seuss book and a few Khmer ones to 700 English language titles and 120 Khmer language books in the space of a week. And already it’s clear they’re hungry for knowledge. Thanks to Emma and Reece’s prolonged presence, as well, these children are not only picking up the language quickly but wanting to learn more, study harder and succeed in life. I hope with the support of KYC and SKOPE, they will!

Here’s another link to the video I made – can you tell I’m proud of it?

If you’re interested in donating to SKOPE’s next project, contact me at skopecambodia@gmail.com or leave a comment on this blog and I’ll get back to you. Alternatively you can visit the SKOPE website by clicking here.

The Sun Sets On Another Year

After the year we’ve had, I think most people are looking forward to waving a firm goodbye to 2016 and welcoming 2017 with open arms. I mean, it can’t get any worse can it? Brexit and Trump, the war in Syria, mass shootings, terrorist attacks, the loss of Alan Rickman, David Bowie, Prince, Victoria Wood, Muhammad Ali, Elie Wiesel, Gene Wilder, Leonard Cohen, and then in the final few days a flurry of George Michael, Richard Adams, Carrie Fisher, and Debbie Reynolds. I don’t usually swear on my blog but I think at this point it’s fair to say “2016, fuck off!”

And yet … it’s not been all bad. Ok, it’s been pretty terrible but a few good things did happen in 2016. They may have passed you by, buried beneath headlines about Brexit and the American election and nuclear weapons and Syria and the refugee crisis but they’ve been there. So I’m returning to my usual happy self and reminding you of ten happy events of 2016 to restore some faith in our planet and humankind.

10. Ebola was cleared from West Africa.

9. 200 strangers went to the funeral of a homeless World War II veteran with no family.

8. Humpback whales, grizzly bears, manatees, and giant pandas all moved (positively) up the endangered list.

7. 800 of the Boko Harem hostages were rescued and returned to their families.

6. The hole in the ozone layer has shrunk by 3.9 million square kilometres in the past ten years

5. Volunteers in India planted 50 million trees in 24 hours.

4. Scientific breakthroughs in chemotherapy are increasing survival rates.

3. The Paris climate change agreement became international law in November.

2. The worldwide charitable drive for ALS in 2014 has led to scientists isolating the gene responsible and they have begun to work on a therapy.

1. Charitable giving and acts saw a significant increase worldwide.

Of course, the last one is a subject particularly close to my heart. I doubt I can claim my own charity, SKOPE, had much to do with the increase in charity across the globe but I’m proud to have been part of it. Both in my role as SKOPE coordinator and as a happiness ambassador to More Good Deeds, I read a lot about giving to charity, philanthropy, and how to involve people in charitable works. But it seems I needn’t bother, because everywhere you look there are signs of generosity, both financial and in other ways. Giving your time, your energy, your commitment, and your money all help charities. With politics in turmoil across the globe, it is down to us, the little people, to do that work on the ground. Whether in refugee camps ladling out soup each morning, or in medical tents outside obliterated cities like Aleppo, or even my own charity, handing out library books or stationary in a school in Cambodia, it all matters. It all makes a difference. And every one of us can get involved.

So let’s end 2016 on a positive note and look forward to 2017 with hope in our hearts. After all, it can only go up from here! I hope every one of you has a great time celebrating New Year’s Eve tonight and I’ll see you on the other side.

More Good Deeds

Over the past few months I have started working as a freelance writer and my newest employer perfectly aligns my two passions – writing and charity work. More Good Deeds is an Australian-based initiative whose sole aim is to promote acts of kindness around the world. I began as a blogger for this kindness platform and thanks to the generosity and, yes, kindness of my new boss, have been able to use this work to support SKOPE. Let me tell you a little bit more about More Good Deeds.

Established in 2013, More Good Deeds believes everyone has not only the ability to do good but also the power to spread kindness. There is a psychological term, the law of reciprocity, which basically proves that humans are innately programmed to do something nice when they themselves have experienced or witnessed a kind act. It’s the simple ‘give and take’ theory. So if we help someone carry their shopping bags at the train station, that person is more likely to do something else kind for someone in the future, inspired by our own kindness.

More Good Deeds have an app, on which users can post their own good deeds, give thanks to people who showed kindness to them, gain followers, start chains of kindness, and generally put a smile on their faces. Because in today’s world it can be hard to remember there are still good people in the world. With the news being so, frankly, awful every single day, a little ray of sunshine such as the one More Good Deeds shone into my life is a blessed, wonderful, relief!

But More Good Deeds go a step further. For every ‘good deed’ their users do, businesses and companies donate $1 to the user’s chosen charity. Cool, right? What’s even cooler is they’ve put SKOPE on their charity list. So it’s now easier than ever for you to support SKOPE! Simply download the app, select SKOPE as your chosen charity, and then post every time you do a good deed. An example of a good deed might be: giving up your seat for a person on the bus, helping someone cross the road, donating to a charity yourself, or giving someone your parking ticket which still has time left on it. Each time you do something good, SKOPE will get $1 and you’ll get a warm and fuzzy feeling from being nice. Everyone wins.

So please spread the word, share the kindness, and support SKOPE and, theoretically, the other charities which More Good Deeds promote! Download their app here: iTunes – more good deeds

Go, do, experience. More Good Deeds.

Supermoon – super fun

The previous weekend was the Water Festival in Cambodia, an annual event which celebrates the moment when the Tonle Sap lake, swollen with monsoon rains, forces the flow of the Tonle River back the other way, reversing its direction. As people flooded from the provinces to celebrate this remarkable natural occurrence along the riverbank in Phnom Penh, myself and a group of friends sped the other way, towards the sea.

Friends + sea = yay! Me, Jordan, Ruth, Phaline, Meabh, and Elske

To avoid traffic, we left the city at 3am and, using indefatigable logic, decided not to go to bed and just party on through until the minivan arrived. My friend visiting from Ireland, Ruth, and her friend Meabh, decided to actually sleep. In hindsight, this may have been the better idea. Anyway, we arrived at the beach where we, unsurprisingly slept.

Whilst napping the waiters appeared to be overly concerned our white skin would be damaged by 8am sunshine …

After lunch headed off to the island of Koh Rong. I’d recommended the place where we stayed, Palm Beach Bungalows, as I’d had an amazing time there over two years ago. Private beach, amazing food, beautiful waters. And nothing had changed.

Some of the group – Jordan, Ruth, Phaline, Meabh, and Elske

Our days were spent sunbathing, reading, and playing games. The Sunday was Jordan’s birthday and our group expanded in size as the Ngin sisters, their partners and Thy’s son Jimmy joined us for the celebrations. Tash had come prepared for the evening with a barbecue, coals, a rice-cooker (literally), and food, ready for a cook-up on the beach. The walk to the local fishing village in the afternoon had failed to drum up any fish so we were left with vegetables. Fun as it was to build the mini-BBQ and grill courgettes and potato, I think the highlight dish was an amazing coleslaw Tash had prepared. Yes, she brought mayonnaise.

Dinner 

Getting a cake to a desert island is a three person job, apparently.

 

Because we’re cheapskates, we’d brought along our own alcohol and wiled away the warm evenings drinking on the sands. Sadly we didn’t get to swim with the phosphorescent plankton but the reason for this, the supermoon, more than made up for it.

Jimmy in the forefront of the moonrise – no filter on this or the cover photo

Now we’re back in the city. My friends are back in London and Dublin and I’m back at work. Not that I’m complaining, I’m heading back to the UK in two weeks! Happy Water Festival one and all.

Here are people photos:

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

And here are scenery photos:

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Hurray for Library Books

SKOPE enjoyed another amazing donation day last weekend when we returned to Kampong Thom to a school I first visited in November 2015. We’ve already done a stationary handout and supplied sports equipment in March (read more about that awesome day here) but this time it was all about books. Library books to be precise.

Hurray for Library Books!

The school, located in the grounds of a pagoda, provides education to approximately 450 children from the surrounding farming communities. There was already a library onsite but the shelves were either sparse or stacked with English language books neither the students nor the teachers had any hope of reading. SKOPE decided to change that. We did a fundraiser in Phnom Penh in July, selling books to raise money for the library project, and it was so successful that the entire project was funded by this day so thank you so much to everyone who supported us.

Rachana reads to a local girl

The library books were purchased from Sipar, a local NGO and publishing house. Titles ranged from a Khmer translation of James and the Giant Peach to traditional Khmer folk tales to science books. Each one was given a code and covered in protective plastic. The school has a trained librarian too, so the books can be loaned out and kept track of just like any other library. A big thank you to Sipar for their work and support of this project.

Lionel works with two girls to read this book

As always, I was joined on the day by some of Sovann Komar’s children and staff. They were all absolutely phenomenal on this trip and really got stuck into the tasks I gave them. They all read with the local children, helping them out on difficult words and explaining the stories. It was magical to see and I am anticipating blossoming teaching careers in their future.

Maya definitely has a potential teaching career ahead of her!

We also donated two laptops, one to each school we’re affiliated with in Kampong Thom. These laptops were to be used by the school administration who are currently doing everything by hand. I’d had them loaded up with a Khmer keyboard so they could type and then Sam, Jack, and Colin, three boys from Sovann Komar, spent time with the headteachers showing them the basics of Microsoft Word and Excel. A huge thank you to my cousin, Stephanie, and her school in London who donated these laptops to SKOPE.

Our tech-savvy teens were more than happy to help explain to the local teachers 

When it was time for the children to go home for lunch, they were definitely reluctant to leave their newly stocked library. They loitered for a while, chatting with the Sovann Komar children and staff before finally cycling away towards their family farms. We stayed at the school to eat lunch before making the journey back to Phnom Penh, during which every single one of my helpers passed out in the van.

I know I often say how much I love my work but this trip was particularly special to me for two reasons. Firstly, I got to return to where this girl, Srey Nang, studies. After taking this photo of her in November last year, she sort of became the face of SKOPEs campaigns. It was therefore an honour to go back and photograph her with some library books, proving that we can indeed “be the change”.

Secondly, I love reading myself and I was overjoyed to see the same look of rapt attention on these kids’ faces as I’m sure I get at times. They were so enthusiastic, so well-behaved, and so eager to get stuck into the new books, ready to explore the worlds captured within their pages. Already I’m launching a second library project, and am considering making this one of SKOPE’s speciality project types as the benefits are just phenomenal. Books and reading open so many doors for us and I think it is an area we can really make a difference in, especially in rural Cambodia where access to literature is limited. So please check out our next library project plans here, and see how you can get involved.

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.

Two NGOs and a Rainbow House

Last week I went on a two day trip to SKOPE’s newest partner school. Located in the heart of Kampong Speu Province, nestled amongst the trees, is Karuna Youth Cambodia. Founded in 2011 by their young director, Phearith, KYC is an NGO which focuses on community-based education projects. The village of Chherteal Chrum is unassuming and from the outside looks like any other rural Cambodian community. But the children here are luckier than most and six days a week 250 of them are able to attend free English and Computer Studies lessons at KYC.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

The school is small; just one classroom and a narrow corridor which acts as a computer lab. There’s also a small meeting room and performance area (Phearith is looking to begin a traditional arts education programme soon). The playground and surrounding greenery is beautiful and at the far end of the property stands the solar-powered Rainbow House, built to accommodate future volunteers, complete with bathroom, living area, television and mezzanine bedroom.

Look how cute it is! And I slept like a baby to boot.

My trip out to the village took three hours in a local bus-taxi. Usually there are upwards of twenty people crammed into a twelve-seater van but I was lucky. Just me and four Cambodian men. Oh, and a huge bag of alive crickets. The countryside in Cambodia is beautiful, especially in Kampong Speu which is home to the Aural mountain range, the largest in the country, so the drive was delightful. When I arrived at the edge of the village, a man took me by moto to the school where I met Phearith and got the tour of the complex. It is a little haven of comparative luxury; electricity, running water (sort of), English-speakers, and delicious Khmer food.

I was waited on hand and foot by the family whose property borders the school. The women cooked incredible dishes for me throughout my time there and I was very impressed by their skills and hospitality despite them not speaking a word of English. The school ran until four in the afternoon at which point Phearith and I went for stroll around the village. I’ll let the photos speak for themselves here … Basically, it was one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

That evening the villagers were all invited to join us at the school as a celebration. Whether it was because Phearith was taking his monthly visit to the site (he is based in Phnom Penh where KYC also operates) or because I was there remains unclear. But I’d like to think it was the latter. Of course dinner wasn’t on time so we wiled away the wait by singing karaoke (not me, don’t worry) and watching a zombie movie which had all the women who had already arrived screaming and the kids hiding behind their hands. Due to the fact that I was sleeping in a wooden house on my own at the end of a school garden in an unknown village, I opted to read on my phone rather than watch …

The following day I spent time with the school children who had come to study. The centre is open all the time and many came hours before their lessons to play with friends and hang out in a safe, clean space. I wandered around, chatted to a couple of them, and then settled down to read a Dr Seuss book to a group of students who were waiting for their class to begin. They were so engaged in it, despite not understanding a lot of the text and I suddenly remembered how much I enjoyed teaching.

The teachers at the school are past students who have studied in Phnom Penh on scholarships from KYC. Whilst their English is good, there is no substitute for native teaching and this is what KYC and SKOPE are partnering on. As of October 2016 we are launching a volunteer program. These volunteers will live on-site in the Rainbow House, be provided with free meals and teaching supplies, and get an incredible experience of life in Cambodian countryside. The program is free although if volunteers want to make a donation towards the school or to cover the costs of the food/housing, they may do so at their discretion. Transport to the site will be organised either by me or Phearith and I may even come with volunteers to settle them in (plus I loved in there and would happily go back any time).

Some of the children in Pre-School

Here I must point out that there has been a lot of press recently about the negative impacts of ‘volunteerism’. KYC and SKOPE are working together to ensure that any and all of the issues raised regarding volunteerism are addressed and eliminated. Both organisations believe in sustainable, community-based practices and we endeavour to do our best for the children we are working with. I will be writing a blog some time over the next few days on volunteerism, SKOPE, Cambodia, and my thoughts more generally.

If you’re interested in volunteering for KYC, please fill out the form below. Alternatively you may contact me (SKOPE@sovannkomar.org) or Phearith (kyclub.info@gmail.com).

Name(required)

Email(required)

Comment(required)

Submit

Δ

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

“Burn it to a crisp or leave it raw”: Cambodian Proverbs

I’ve always been interested in cultures, specifically the differences between them. Anthropology was one of my favourite subjects at university and I continued this interest by focusing my masters’ research on Cambodia. Oh, and living in Cambodia. The culture here is unique, special, and fascinating. Recently I’ve been doing some research work which brought me into contact with some traditional Khmer proverbs. I thought I’d share some with you today as a way to offer an insight into this amazing country in which I live. And then comment on them in humorous ways, naturally.

• “Negotiate a river by following its bends, enter a country by following its customs.”

This is important everywhere and recently Cambodia has had some problems with tourists. Naked selfies at Angkor Wat, for example. I mean, what? Who in their right mind would do that? Angkor Wat is the largest religious monument in the world. You wouldn’t walk into St. Paul’s Cathedral and strip down so why is it ok to do so at Angkor? It isn’t, they got deported.

• “Don’t let an angry man wash dishes; don’t let a hungry man guard rice.”

Well, yeah, that makes sense. Although in Cambodia men rarely do the washing up so I’m not entirely sure where this came from. It’s logical though, I’ll admit.

• “A bunch of sticks cannot be broken.”

I take this to mean alone one person can be weak/vulnerable but together we can be strong. Agreed; teamwork is the way forwards. Although, let’s be honest, a chainsaw would get through a bunch of sticks … *cough* CPP *cough*.

• “If you know a lot, know enough to make them respect you. If you are stupid, be
  stupid enough so they can pity you.”

So basically don’t get Cs in your exams …

• “The tiger depends on the forest; the forest depends on the tiger.”

I’ll amend this to the tiger depended on the forest … Cambodia no longer has any tigers left in the wild since they were hunted into extinction. So I suppose whoever was making their living from selling the skins didn’t hear this proverb. But more broadly, everything is interconnected; everything is important.

• “The immature rice stalk stands erect, while the mature stalk, heavy with grain, bends over.”

Respect your (hunchbacked) elders. True, and Cambodia does this more than most western countries.

• “Active hands, full bellies.”

Tend your crops and reap the rewards. Makes sense, right? The more rice you plant, the more you grow to eat/sell. That can be expanded out though; work harder to earn more money.

• “For news of the heart, ask the face.”

I like this one. Emotions show on our faces even without our knowledge. You can always tell when a friend is upset or happy or confused or in love. And they can’t hide it from those who know them best.

• “Catch a fish without muddying the water.”

AKA be discrete. True; if you catch one fish and the water is still clear, you’ll be able to catch another. Two fish – yummy.

• “If you are doing wrong, make sure you don’t get fat from it.”

I have no idea what this means, but I like it. Does it mean, don’t eat pizza?

• “You don’t have to cut a tree down to get at the fruit.”

This is important in Cambodia because most people favour immediate gratification over long-term gains. So yes, you could cut down a tree to get every piece of fruit from the highest branches but then what happens next year? Make a ladder, climb up, be patient and work hard and you will receive more in the long term.

• “Burn it to a crisp or leave it raw.”

If you’re going to do something, commit to it! Obviously this doesn’t apply to food. You can cook without taking this proverb seriously …

• “Love is blind.”

Awwww, how cute! My Khmer friend told me this one and clearly it’s a worldwide belief. It’s true; sometimes who we’re attracted to has nothing to do with physical attributes. And why should it? It’s what’s on the inside that counts.

• “Physical death is better than the death of your reputation.”

Is it? To be honest, I disagree but it highlights just how much importance Cambodians put on how they are viewed by others.

• “If there is water, there is fish.”

My friend told me this one … he was rather upset when I told him I was drinking a glass of fish-less water at the time.

• “Men are like gold, women are like white cloth.”

This sums up Khmer traditions perfectly. Scandals stick to women but the men can walk away from the mess without any repercussions. It’s accepted that men visit prostitutes before they are married but women are expected to be virgins. If a man cheats on his wife, oh well. If a woman cheats on her husband, all hell breaks loose. Different expectations for different genders are increasingly archaic as a concept and I hope to see Cambodia moving on from this soon.

So there you have it; a few of my favourite proverbs from Cambodia. There are many more but some of them don’t make sense, some of them I don’t understand and some are just plain weird! But I hope they’ve entertained you and contributed to your understanding of this amazing country.