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Published: August 23rd 2006
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It wasn’t until last year when I saw a picture of the magnificant Angkor Wat online that I started to yearn for this surreal place. And at the same time as I learned more about its bloody history during the 1970s, I wondered how are the people of Cambodia recovered themselves from that wound inflicted by Khmer Rough 30 years ago.
So Cambodia is on my short list of this trip. Unfortunately we stayed there for only 5 days. Too short that it’s not worth my 20 USD visa. But long enough to make my family jump up from their sofa and order me to fly home immediately. It’s too short that I don’t have a chance to dig deeper into the Cambodians’ everyday lives, but long enough to leave a deep impression on my mind. Hats off to its inhabitants. Hats off to the childrens.
As soon as we crossed the Thai-Cambodian border, I could see that I had steped on the land of a third world country. Roads were rough and everytime a vehicle roared over, the dust thickened the air even more. Motorcycles dashed forward without paying attention to the sides. Men with missing legs pedaled
their three-wheeled bikes skillfully.
We took a Taxi to Siem Reap. Thanks to the bumpy roads so we got free butt massage. Our voices went up and down with the roads. Sometimes the Taxi driver got excited and screamed with us. Followed by laughters. A storm came suddenly and rain started to pour.
We got a three day pass to Angkor temples. As you’re stunned by its splendour, the temples reward you with historical and religious stories narrated by the endless bas-reliefs. According to a documentary film about Angkor that I saw back home, to most Cambodians, the stones of Angkor have a sacred soul. Communicating with the stones is like talking to their gods.
The whole Angkor is awe-inspiring. Like the Great Wall of China and the Pyrimids of Egypt, I still wonder how people built this massive structure with the lack of technology 800 years ago. Ta Prohm is my favorite temple. It’s half seized by nature. The tree roots are so artistic and mighty that you don’t even believe your own eyes when seeing them.
What impressed me the most is the people on this land. Majority of the Cambodians are hardworking and
honest. Kids here have their own way of living. Most of them sell postcards and books to visitors after school. They can name you almost every capital city of the countries in the world. That is a trick to draw the tourists’ attention I know. But the truth is that most families are so poor that the kids have to be a part of the labour to make a living. “Life has taken away their childhood and they jump directly into adulthood.” Tom says. Indeed. I have seen many of them about the age of seven or eight, having their basket of postcards aside and playing under the trees. As they see tourists walk by they rush up and try to sell you postcards. After half an hour of following you, and you show no sign of willing to pay for the postcards, then they suddenly collapsed on the street as if tonight’s dinner has sliped away. A 10 years old skinny boy approached me with his massive hasket of western books. I asked him if he had xxx, he dashed away and half a minute later came back with the book that I asked for. I looked at his
sweaty body and the unproportionally huge basket that he carried. I recalled the days when I was the age of ten, I didn’t have to worry about food. Just went to school, then ran around, played with my childhood buddies until mom yelled me home for dinner. I asked him if he had to go to school, he said he used to, but not anymore. He’s now got a business to mind about.
Not as what we planned, we went to a concert called “Beatocello”, performed by Dr. Beat Richner. In 1974, he was sent to Cambodia to work at Kantha Bopha Children’s Hospital as a medical doctor. He was forced to leave the country during the rule of Khmer Rough. Back to Cambodia again and now in charge of the three children’s hospitals in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. The performance is free admission, but the donation of money and blood go directly to the hospitals. The hospitals totally rely on donations because all medical services are free of charge since the people of Cambodia can’t affort any medical treatment. “42000 childrens are hospitalized every year, without Kantha Bopha, 3200 additional children die every month.” Everyone of us
Trees
Posing under the trees was moved not by his music but by his passion and devotion to the kids. More or less, we can all help out.
As our bus drived in the city of Phnom Penh, we passed by a place where I saw parents with their kids sat on the floor lined up at least 50 meters out of the building. I asked what was going on, Tom saw the words on the building that said “Kantha Bopha Children’s Hospital”.
We made a visit to the Phnom Penh genocide museum. Seems like the incident just happened yesterday. My legs are still shaky everytime I think about it. I’ve only traveled to the two popular cities, and the people are poor enough, not to mention the rest of Cambodians on the countryside. The scars of history is so obviously shown through the poverty. But the friendliness and strength of the Cambodians is something that I will never forget.
PS: A Cambodian told me their education system is 6 years of school. Then the good students get to go to a 4 years university. Uni students graduate at about 16 years old. I want to comfirm that with people who
More trees
More posing under the trees have been there longer. Let me know if anyone has any idea about that.
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Eric
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Cambodia
Hey! I haven't posted any comments so this is my first....everything seems so fun...makes me want to have my own trip around the globe......again summer is almost over...another school year...continue your fun...next destination?