Cambodia - A country that has taught me so much

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Hello again!

Our trip continues in Cambodia, a country to the east of Thailand. We have been here for 3 weeks, working our way down South. We have only visited 3 towns; they are called Siem Reap, Battambang and Phnom Pehn. From what we have seen we love this country. The people are relaxed, happy, friendly and very welcoming and the country is less developed, Mcdonalds and Tesco has not yet reached here and we have found some dirt roads!! It definitely has less of a touristy feel which is what we prefer. With all this said, it is a country that has had a lot of recent pain through war and from which they are still suffering from. Following the war, Cambodia now has lots of poverty as all its wealth was lost in a time where the country was run by a mean group called the Khmer Rouge.

Cambodians are still suffering the effects of having 2 wars back to back. In one war they were being attacked by bombs that were meant to be for their neighbouring country of Vietnam. The other time of pain was in a time where a group of Cambodian people, called the Khmer Rouge decided to change the way Cambodia was run. They didn't want schools, shops, religion, police, cities even so they forced everyone to move to the country and become farmers. They thought if everyone lived in the country together and did the same jobs, everyone would be equal. Everyone had to wear black, money was no longer used (in fact money no longer existed and in one story I have heard it was used as toilet paper as it had no more value) and people had to work in big groups, planting rice and gathering food to share out with everyone. You were not allowed any of your own toys, games, books, clothes - you were split up from your friends and you worked so hard everyday that all you had time to do was work, eat and sleep. What a horrible life!!!

The worst thing about when the Khmer Rouge rule was that anybody they thought might stand up for themselves or not believe the new way to live was better was killed very very brutally. All around the country there are mass graves where hundreds of people were buried who were beaten and killed. We visited 2 killing fields and a Killing cave, these are areas where they have found bodies of people who were killed horribly but are now happier areas with 'Stupas' (temples) where you can remember people. We even visited an old school that was turned into a horrible prison used for hurting people. It is very difficult to explain what we saw and how we felt as it was so horrific. There was so much pain suffered and so many people died. We were incredibly upset visiting these places as the horror people went through was very clear, but we wanted to go to respect the 3 million people who died. Luckily, after 3 years, 8 months and 20 days, the Khmer rouge was stopped and the people were safe again.

Although there are no more mean leaders, unfortunately there is still evidence of war all around, including undiscovered land mines. They believe there are over 6 million land mines still active and in the ground that have been left from the war. Although there is a general idea where these land mines are, lots if people still get injured or die every year. Because of this, there are many people in the streets with lost limbs. However, the amounts of injuries are rapidly decreasing; 3 years ago over 2000 people were injured, last year it was only 253 and this year the figure is currently half that. It is great news and something to really celebrate. Children are being taught at school what to do if they find something unusual in the ground and on top of this, there are people who are clearing the landmines. These are all really important things for Cambodia. We visited a museum that teaches you all about the landmines and how were told the painstakingly slow process to make sure they clear the ground of land mines safely. The museum was very informative and what was great was that they also had school and accommodation facilities attached to the museum, so that children affected by land mines can be cared for. It has been very moving being here and seeing all this with our own eyes- not just the history of suffering but how it is continuing.

I'm sorry I have spoken about so many sad things but this really is a country that has moved me. There is a big divide between rich and poor - from large stone mansions that have security guards to wooden houses or tent cities. In Phnom Penh there is even a rubbish dump where people live. We visited an organisation in Phnom Penh called Cambodia Organisation for Learning and Training (COLT). This was a group that was set up to cater for children who were from the rubbish dump, however now they look after children from different backgrounds for different reasons. There are 30 children who live here. They have also set up a school for these children and in the evening any locals or university students can come for ICT or English lessons. It is a fantastic scheme that we were hoping to volunteer at but unfortunately we have not got the time as they needed a longer term commitment. It is fantastic to see that out of all the pain, good things are happening.

With everything we have seen though, we have been amazed by the spirit of the people here. You are constantly greeted by children waving, smiling and calling out hello as they cycle past. Everyone appears very happy and want to talk and help where they can. It's amazing that a country that has been through so much, can fight back with such determination.

One of the most exciting things we have done in Siem Reap is visit lots of temples around the area. These huge temples were built by different Kings of the past. Most are Hindu temples although the more recent ones are Buddhist. Some of these temples have fallen down and are being rebuilt; some have trees growing through them whilst others are well preserved. The most famous temple is Angkor Wat. This is huge square temple that was built 1000 years ago by King Suryavarman the Second. In the centre is a temple for praying and it is surrounded by smaller temples and big stone walls. These walls are very beautiful because they are carved with detailed pictures telling stories about the Hindu religion. Even today, Angkor Wat is still used and has since been used. I have found visiting these temples very interesting. It has helped me to learn more about different religions and their beliefs which I think is very important.

As well as visiting the temples, we visited waterfall that is said to contain holy water. The stream flows all the way to Angkor Wat. Due to the fact that the water is special, the river bed has been carved into different pictures, all showing the different Hindu gods. These carvings are special because they are over 1000 Years old and have had water running over them all those years, yet the carvings are still in good condition.

As well as visiting the temples, we visited a place called Artisan D'Angkor. This is a company that helps to give jobs to people who are struggling in some way; either through poverty or through a disability. It was brilliant to watch people carving stone and wood, making Elephants, Buddha’s and lots of other ornaments. After visiting the workshop we were taken to a silk farm to see how silk is made. We were shown some silk worms eating leaves and told that when the worms are ready to make a cocoon, they spit silk out their mouth to wrap around themselves for about two days. Once they have made the cocoon, the farm then take the cocoons and make fine silk threads by unwrapping the cocoons on a special machine. These threads are then coloured and woven together on a special wooden loom by very cleaver weavers. It takes the weavers 1 year to be trained to a standard that lets them use the looms!!!! The scarf’s they made were beautiful.

The final thing we have done is visit a circus. This is another charity that was set up for children and teenagers many years ago, just after the Khmer Rouge period. The circus started in a refugee camp to give children something to do, but it has got bigger and bigger. The children can now choose to go to 'circus school'. This means that they go to a 'normal' school until lunch time and them they go to circus school after lunch. When the children reach a certain level, they take part in shows in front of an audience. We ended up watching the 16 and 17 year olds. They were at the end of their school training so it was going to be that last show they did before they became professional. They were absolutely amazing!!! There was some fantastic acrobatics as well as incredible diablo work, juggling and dance. It really was very special.

Well that brings me up to date, I have truly loved Cambodia. It has taught me so much and feels much less explored but I have also found it a very emotional experience.

Take care for now,
Miss T

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