COUNTRY: Cambodia
PROGRAM: UniBreak
PROJECT: Health & Education
WRITTEN BY: Leah Daniels
When each of the volunteers arrived at the airport we were greeted by Dayvy and Siphuong (our in-country partners), with the heat and a few bugs also welcoming us, as we walked out through the door. The next 10 days we stayed in Jasmine Lodge at Siem Reap which is a small hotel run by Mr. Kunn, his family and other locals who are all exceptionally nice and continue to go up and beyond in providing us breakfast each morning, friendly smiles and seem to be entertained by our large, and slightly crazy, volunteer group.
On the first day we had staggered international volunteer arrivals, with everyone introducing themselves to others. That night we went to Amazing Angkor for a buffet welcoming dinner which had traditional dance on the stage while we were eating. The place was amazing, with extremely high ceilings and many choices for food. Some of us were game (and others not too much) to try the various desserts that weren’t labelled. Siphuong later told us what each were (sticky rice, banana soaked in palm sugar etc).
The following day we met Dimong, who was going to be one of our translators and he gave us a basic run down on the history of Cambodia. He took us to explore the old markets and artisans where they make sculptures, silk scarfs and paintings. Later that afternoon Dimong and Bota (another one of our in-country partners) took most of us on a bike ride along the roads and through more terrain until we ended up at the outside of Angkor Wat. Although we got a 'little' wet I’m sure all the volunteers who went would agree that it was an unforgettable experience that was a lot of fun.
As part of the volunteering orientation we went to a concert child protection training which educated us all on the nature of street children, orphanages, and how our acts as tourists can reduce or increase poverty. Also on the importance of understanding cultural differences as volunteers, with a number of do's and dont's. During lunch we went to Haven, which I would highly recommend for some delicious food. After this Lia and I had our first massage! We also went to the landmine museum which was interesting although a little confronting. We had the Military Handicap Development Centre welcome which is where we will be having our placements. We also went to Hannah’s (someone we met at the conCERT training) orphanage and she answered any questions we had and showed us an interesting powerpoint.
On the 5th – 7th days we did our volunteer placements. The education students and some others taught English and health promotion to different ages of Cambodians at the centre (children and adult classes), and the health students went around to home visits to see what is needed for each family. It was really eye opening to see how small and basic their houses were, with many people not even having what we would call necessities such as blankets for every family member, toothbrushes, soap, or a roof that does not leak. Many people also had health concerns that could be solved very easily in Australia, but due to the lack of resources here we had to try and problem solve other ways we could help them.
On the weekend we rode on bicycles (with some tuk-tuking) to Bayon Temple and Angkor Wat with Chet (another in country partner/our driver) and Bota. Tamara used her ability of inquisitiveness to find a unique view point for opportune pictures, with Australian Emma even able to perform a handstand against a window opening for a photo. Most of us got a little sun burnt... but Maryann tanned immediately. We also rode to Ta Prohm Temple – or the Tomb Raider Temple. We had a long-awaited lunch of spring rolls outside before we went in. When we got inside we were mesmerised. This would definitely be my favourite temple so far and I would definitely urge anyone to see it, as it is worth every minute spent there. It looked spectacular, with trees winding around it and some of it in ruins just adding to the aura of how nature prevails. The volunteers then rode again and climbed up to the top of Bakheng mountain to see the sunset, which was beautiful although a bit disappointing due to large clouds covering the majority of it. Most of us had dinner at the lodge, with Lia and Beth finally winning over stubborn Mr. Kunn’s adorable son with the help of an angry birds iPhone game – angry birds (along with gangnum style) seem to be very popular here.
At the start of this week, we were proud to finally have the whole group come to the placement (due to sicknesses) and spent the time after our lunch, which is normally siesta time for sleeping on the mats, brainstorming and discussing our main priorities and ideas for the project. We also got to try some sugar cane which Siphuong chopped for us while we were conducting a home assessment. Tomorrow is the start of the water festival and is a public holidays but we were told that the students still wanted to attend school which was really sweet.
Until next time,
Leah Daniel and the November Group.
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