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Published: March 23rd 2009
So we headed back to Phnom Penh, thankfully on a bus but not completely without trouble as the driver managed to break 2 of his fingers whilst trying to put a chock under a trucks wheels in order for us to get past it (don't ask!). The result of this was him swapping with another driver who had no idea how to drive a bus and nearly ended up in a ditch a couple of times so the broken fingered driver resumed position, was clearly contending for the 2009 F1 Championship and proceeded to drive at full pelt for the remaining 6 hours of the journey, refusing to slow down for anything as mopeds and anything smaller than the bus were forced aside to the side of the road.
The only thing we had planned for our remaining 5 days in Phnom Penh was to contact the
Centre for Children's Happiness, a school & orphanage that Sophie's friend Nina had worked at last year and had encouraged us to visit to see the fantastic children who were lucky enough to be there. We learnt that there are 3 centres in total under the same umbrella with them housing & teaching around 160 children
aged from around 4 up to 18 which have been rescued from a life living on and off the city dump. These children really are so lucky, especially when we learnt that some of them have gained scholarships and are now schooled in International Schools in places like Canada, Japan and Singapore. The work that the people do in places like this should never be underestimated, especially when you see it so close at hand.
We weren't really sure of what to expect from our time there but got the shock of our lives when we found out that we wouldn't be assisting the kids in their learning.. we'd be teaching them! Our first morning was spent playing and reading with the kids and then after our lunchtime we were shown to our classroom with grade 6 children (about 13) and left to it! Eeekkkk was all we could think! Sophie's least favourite subject at school had been maths and to say she had done her best to forget all about what she had learnt over the years was an understatement... mobile phones have all the maths functions she will ever need for everyday life so who needs to
be able to count without fingers! Although Dale is a little better than Sophie even he reached a mental block as the teacher went over long division and multiplication with them both, passed them a pen and told them to teach away.
The problem is that yes we can work out the answers on our calculator but as you will all know from your joyous school years, pupils need to be able to show the workings of how they arrived at the answer, add to this the problem that we'd locked our phone away so had to do it in our heads and we were left in a difficult position as we wrote up numbers on the board with no way to work out the answers or to help the kids in how to do it! In the end we resorted to playing Bingo with them to pass away the time, sadly the children probably didn't learn too much in our lesson but we had fun all the same! The following few days were pretty much the same with us having high hopes on what to teach them first thing in the morning, then quickly resorting to 'fun maths
games' by the afternoon.
One day we were lucky (unlucky really) enough to be able to go to the city dump to accompany 2 Belgium tourists who had brought shoes & apples for the children who live there. This dump is where the majority of kids from CCH come from so it was important for us to see this and everyone who visits CCH is encouraged to do so to gain a full understanding of what it means for the children. As soon as we had turned the corner from the main road we were amazed at how big this place is. The rubbish literally dominates the landscape in huge piles as far as you can see. As you get closer the brown mounds start to get a bit clearer and you can see that nearly 100% of what is left there is plastic.. carrier bags, shoes, boxes etc and it really brings it home about recycling when you see this.
Recycling issues aside we were there to meet and lend a hand to those people for whom their every day life is living & working here in the most awful of circumstances. They basically sift through the
rubbish that arrives at regular intervals to get any valuable items that they can make some money from, we learnt that alumnium is the most sought after. Bear in mind that in order to find these things they have to go though the rubbish which contains amongst a million other things syringes from the hospitals (they are not put in proper bins like in the UK) and dirty toilet paper (you don't flush toilet paper down the toilet here). To make matters worse, as if they really could be any worse, it is about 30 degrees and obviously filthy dirty, we were concerned about what diseases we might get just standing there let alone being there day after day after terrible day.
The shoes and apples were really appreciated but we were told to be careful as gifts like these are so popular it can cause too many people to come and get what is on offer so we had to employ 2 guards to keep watch and make sure everything went smoothly. We did see lots of kids there which was heartbreaking, some did have parents with them but many were wandering alone with one boy only looking
about 2 years old with another girl of only about 4. When you see things like this is really does make you value what you do have at home however bad it may seem to you there really are people out there a lot worse off than you.
So apart from our teaching experiences we whiled away our time in the manic city of Phnom Penh wandering the endless markets to witness the assortment of groceries on offer... skinned frogs, prawns, crabs, fish & octopusses anyone? Don't worry you know they are all fresh from the the mass writhing in front of you underneath the ice & layer of water! Fresh chicken? No problem they'll pull one out the basket and wring it's neck for you there and then so you know it's fresh as a daisy! We also had a 'posh' night out enjoying drinks in the famous Foreign Correspondents Club for happy hour drinks. Good news was that we were expecting happy hour to be slightly unhappy but it was very happy as drinks were only $1 for a draught beer which meant we could enjoy more than one each! The night went downhill from there though
as we found a bar to watch the Liverpool v Man U game in.. sadly for Dale Man U lost so we headed for home after that!
Before we sign off from Cambodia to the dizzy new world of Vietnam we would like to share a couple of things with you to explain just why we have fallen in love with this most amazing of countries above all others....
Bananas in Pyjamas Women seem to have the day to nightwear thing down to a t! This is because they don't need to get changed into nightwear as they wear it all day! Pyjamas seem to be the fashionable thing to wear thoughout the day and we've even noticed a few nighties creeping in too. As well as this many people just seem to wear slippers all day too.. slippers on mopeds, slippers on petrol pump attendants... all very strange and probably not something we'll bring back to the UK with us!
Petrol Who needs Shell & BP when you have an barrel at the side of the road where you pump petrol straight out of? No drum available.. no problem... Pepsi seem to have sponsored Cambodia petrol
sellers to sell it in their 1l glass bottles all lined up in racks at the side of the road. If you are going on a long journey just get a couple of bottles and off you go!
Motos Probably the most loved of things we like to spot here and it makes a fun game whilst you are sat on long bus journeys too is what can you do with a moto?.. or how many people can you fit on one moto? Who'd have thought that motos were just for carrying 1 or 2 people from A to B when you can use them for all the following....
Furniture Removal - we've seen motos holding anything up to 3 huge double wooden wardrobes carefully balanced on the drivers back whilst hurtling along. Get a convoy together and you have a removal truck.. almost! Beds also seem to be a favourite with many double matresses hurtling past you are you go on your way.
Party Set Up - truck shmuck! Use your moto for carrying a load quadruple the width of you to transport food, drink, tables, chairs and any other party set up gear you need.
Window Cleaning
- need to window clean on the other side of town? Just carry your ladder over your shoulder and off you go.
Minibus or MPV - Family & friends going on a day trip? All jump on that moto and off you go.. 2 adults and 2 children no problem you'll squeeze on and if you crash there'll be more padding for you all. The reigning champion for this particular game was 5 adults on one moto.. amazing!
Live Animal Transportation - Need to get your pig/chickens to Farmer Giles down the road? Just strap them on the back and off you go. You'll have an extra horn on board every time you go over a bump and they sream so you even have an added bonus!
We could go on forever with all the crazy things we've noticed but we've added a few photos to illustrate some of what we have witnessed so hope you enjoy them and remember to play the game too if you ever come to visit!
Above all else though you cannot help but admire these people. For all the bloodshed, torture and famine they have gone through over the years, plus the
fact that the Khmer Rouge killed off nearly all the educated ones, they continue to inspire and invent new ways to survive their everyday lives. They are now also making a strong effort to clear the six million land mines still unaccounted for but the greatest thing they have gave us is their smile and if they can smile everyday after all shit they have been through well so can you!
This country really is amazing... we were a little dubious after reading some bad reports on getting mugged and ripped off but we can honestly say we haven't really encountered this as far as we can tell. Sure we've probably paid double for most things when compared to the locals but that goes for every white face here and you just have to put up with it. We have loved it so much here that we are currently trying to incorporate another months stay here before we head on down to the South of SE Asia so we can experience more of the countryside and build in more weeks with the amazing kids at CCH so watch this space...
Meanwile we are looking forward to visitng yet
another country on our list and the adventures that it might bring...
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James Kim
James and Kim
Superb!
Hey Guys, What a great blog, and some superb pictures. Kim and I are definalty wanting to looking into something like the CCH orphanage and are encouraged to check out the one you visited. The pictures of the 'dump' remind me of the movie Slumdog millionaire (have u seen it?). Really makes you think that Engalnd ain't that bad after all! We are back on the move in 6 weeks and cant wait. Going up the east coast of Oz for 2 weeks then up into Indo for a month. whoop whoop. Travel safe James and Kim