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Published: November 30th 2011
Life in Siem Reap is so much different to Phnom Penh. On a personal level, I’m only at school for half a day and so I’ve started the transition from working full-time and moving into holiday mode....it’s taking some getting used to, but I confess to loving the lazy mornings...Mind you, I’m still overseeing things here at Alan’s guest house and most mornings are spent assisting the staff or talking to guests and making sure things are running as well as possible. Alan’s back late Friday, so as of next week I’ll play tourist in my spare time.
SR has changed considerably since I was here last time – it seems to me that there are far more tourists here now than there were in 2003, though the locals are saying there’s actually a decline in tourist numbers, largely due to SARS and the world economic melt-down. The house guests are telling me though, that the temples are crowded with tourists, so I’m not really sure what the real situation is with the tourist numbers. By comparison PP is much less a tourist town which makes sense, as apart from the Killing Fields, S21 (Khmer Rouge prison/museum), and
Sign near a now non-existent park
Check out the second last line, second last name, and how they've squished the writing in as they ran out of spacethe mighty Mekong, there aren’t as many tourist drawcards and it really is a stop-off point for the rest of Cambodia.
SR is a much smaller town and therefore easy to get around on foot or bicycle, and I don’t miss having to catch tuk tuks all the time (as was the situ in PP) and the associated haggling over price. I’ve noticed here that even though prices are generally higher than PP, the tuk tuk drivers charge fair prices, and more often than not, offer you a fair price first time, so you don’t feel the need to negotiate....it makes life so much easier.
Talking prices – in PP I was getting a pedicure for $2.00 (once I had to pay $2.50)....but the other day in SR I was charged $5.00, which is an incredibly jump in price. I will shop around next time for a more reasonable price....though it was mildly entertaining to have my pedicure done by a LadyBoy at the $5 place.
On Saturday night, I went along to a concert by
Beatocello, with one of the other house guests (Madi). Dr Beat Richner (commonly known as
Beatocello) is a Swiss paediatrician that was working in one of the hospitals here when the Khmer Rouge swept into power and booted out all foreign doctors etc. Once the KR was overthrown and some sanity was restored in the country, the King asked Beat to return and to assist in the rebuilding of the hospital system. He has done an incredible job and there are now 5 Kantha Bopha (named after the King’s daughter) hospitals in Cambodia. Each year Beat raises funds to the tune of $30+ million to run these hospitals, and one of the fundraising events is a weekly cello concert. He’s an eccentric fellow, and looks a bit like a mad scientist, but he plays the cello beautifully, and is also very good at telling his story in an intelligent and amusing way....you can’t help but admire him. If you’d like to learn more about him and the hospitals, here’s a link
www.beatocello.com Sunday I went for a long bicycle ride with another of the long-term house guests, Tom. We went out to the flood plains and towards the floating villages (couldn’t go all the way as you need to buy tickets to
some of these areas – they’ve learnt the art of milking every riel from the tourists). Some of the roads were good, but most were pretty poor, and some were absolute disasters. There were potholes everywhere, the roads were rough and also very busy with tourist buses, trucks, cars, motos, tuk tuks, so it was a constant challenge to avoid disappearing into the depths of the potholes, blowing up a tyre on a sharp rock, or losing your balance as you manoeuvred your bike along small strips of flat road while dodging kids, dogs, chickens, cows, pigs etc..... And what’s with the insane tourist bus drivers.....do they seriously think they’re doing you a favour by blasting their air-horns as they reach your back tyre??? I got such a fright each time they did it, that I thought I was going to fall off the bike and under their tyres....it was rather hairy!! Regardless of the above, I really enjoyed the ride and loved getting out into the country and seeing the surrounds. Some of the areas were so beautiful, particularly the large, watery field of lotus flowers.....I think they are such stunning flowers (sadly I didn’t manage to get any
really good photos of individual flowers though). The houses on stilts above the water need to be seen to be believed. People live in incredibly basic shelters that most of us wouldn’t consider good enough for camping in......yet this is their day to day life, and they cope and get on with things. I know from discussions I’ve had with many Cambodian’s that they don’t love this life, but they make the most of what they have, and where possible, try to improve things. Education for their children, if possible, is a priority........though sometimes it’s not an option, and the cycle of poverty is continued. Kids often start working here at very young ages....ie sub-10yo. I said it a long time ago, and will say it again - it would be great if all people could spend time in Cambodia as it gives you a really good reality check and makes you appreciate the life you have, and how lucky we are to be born in developed countries.
Sunday night, Madi and I went out for dinner and went to a cafe down by the Old Market. I had noodles with vegetables, egg and chicken and a
beer for the princely sum of $2.50. Madi had a noodle soup and freshly squeezed orange juice for the same price. There are cheap places like this to eat near the market, but across the road at places servicing the tourists, prices are much higher. I must admit though, that while the prices are generally higher here in SR than PP, you can still find great bargains, and compared to home, well, let’s face it, they’re ridiculously cheap.....I can’t even get a coffee at home for $2.50, let alone a full meal etc, so I never complain about the prices.
I ended up having Monday afternoon off school as they had some assessments to do, and didn’t need my assistance. That was cool, I just went to the market and bought some material for some work trousers etc.....now to find a good tailor. It was great to go back to school yesterday though, as I really enjoying working with the students. Chris (the lady that set up the school) has me working with the slower learners, and yesterday I spent the afternoon working one on one with the girl with the brain injury. The injury is not
totally debilitating, but it has slowed her down, and as a consequence, she often just drops off to sleep. I also think she plays it up a bit, and tries to milk it when she wants to goof off.....yesterday though, she fell asleep and I couldn’t wake her....even tried tickling her but she was totally out cold. She woke up about 10 mins later but wasn’t totally awake and kept staring off into space.....I had to control myself from laughing out loud at one stage, when she shoved a pencil up her nose, left it there, and just kept staring.....I tried to get her to take it out but couldn’t get her to focus – it was like she was awake with her eyes open....I just left her to it until such time as she was on the other side of whatever was drifting through her mind....
Lice - ok, I managed to avoid them in PP, as most of my students were lice-free, and I mostly wore my hair up. I’m rather paranoid here though, as it seems most kids have heads full of lice and eggs, and are probably due for a de-licing (they do
it regularly, but if the homes aren’t treated properly, they quickly come back). The little girl above, loves cuddling up to me and her head is full of crawlies, so I make sure my hair is up and I wash it as soon as I come home, in the hope that I can avoid picking anything up......I find I automatically scratch the whole time I’m at school – a healthy dose of paranoia I suspect....I hope....
I think I mentioned in my last blog that I put the bicycle on the tuk tuk with me at lunch time, then ride home after school.....I love this ride home. The guards at the checkpoints are getting to know me and wave, and I love that every day I see something new. I also love the first section of the ride home, and I ride towards Angkor Wat and it’s sensational to see....almost a bit surreal. Yesterday on the way home, one of the teachers (Sina) pulled up alongside me on his moto, and we rode back towards town, side by side, chatting away about all sorts of things......only in Cambodia !!
After a quick shower when
I got home yesterday, I headed to the terrace upstairs and watched the sun set. There was a lot of smoke in the air yesterday, so the photos are pretty spectacular....just needed some clouds !! From the terrace, on a clear day, you can also see Angkor Wat, which is pretty cool....will try to get some good photos and post them soon.
Ok, best go and get ready for school.........this time in 3 weeks I will be at the international airport, about to head to Europe.....wow, it’s gone way too fast....but what an adventure...I’m so lucky to be here.
Hugs from Siem Reap
Rob
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Tony Traeger
non-member comment
Catch up
Hi Robyn. This is Tony (Jim and Vons mate, from Brissie) we met in Phnom Pehn. Hope you had a wonderful trip. It sure looks like it. Would love to catch up for a drink some time to hear all about the rest of your trip. I have nearly finished a TEFL course, which I started as soon as we got home, and would be very interested hearing all about your experiences of teaching OS.