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Published: March 24th 2013
School Shots
Not a bad photo considering it was taken by a young student who has rarely held a camera.It's Monday again....how quickly the weeks are passing by. School finishes for the year on Friday 29th March, less than a week to go. Khmer New Year is celebrated from 13-15th April, and the children have a month off, before commencing the new school year. There will be 35 to 40 new students starting at ABC's, selected from the 200+ applications we processed last week.
Siem Reap is getting hotter by the day, with the mercury hovering around 38 degrees. April and May are the hottest months, and they're fast approaching. The heat rivals that fiery blast you get when opening your oven. It can take your breath away when you step from an air conditioned room into the street. I've never sweated so much in my life! Pub Street is deserted in the midday hours. Everyone retires to their air conditioned hotel rooms for some respite from the heat, and we're no exception.
Monday was a fairly slow school day. The kids are losing interest in classes so I decided to search the internet looking for some short and funny kid's poems to build a class around. Even though my class has the second highest level of English
Candid Camera
Another student caught on camera unaware she was being photographed. comprehension in the school, none of the kids could tell me what a poem was or understood the use of rhyming words to create one. Trying to get them to read a poem with some expression in their voices, instead of the droll monotone they repeat everything in, was frustrating. But then again, ABC's isn't all about academic achievement. It gives the kids a safe place to be for three hours a day, where they can have some fun and hopefully learn something as well.
On Monday night we headed into Pub Street for a meal and a browse through some of the shops Petra hadn't seen yet. I succumbed to an impulse buy, handed over the plastic, and bought myself a bag made from recycled motorcycle seat fabric and silver zipper pulls. A very unique purchase which I love, for the huge 'half price' outlay of $17!
Globalteer is moving and Tuesday is our last day at Globalteer House. The move has been on the cards for a while so it comes as no surprise to the eight volunteers who are still living here. The lease has expired, and after looking at different options, we are all
Candid Camera
A student immersed in her book. being moved to Bou Savy Guesthouse and Globalteer staff have set up office down the road from there. Now they need only pay for the rooms that volunteers occupy instead of paying $3,000 a month to lease an entire guesthouse which may, or may not, have all rooms occupied at any one time. Bou Savy is much closer to school but a little further from Pub Street, but still an easy cycle ride to where ever we want to go.
The big move was made after 5.00pm. The truck from ABC's was utilised so everyone, and their belongings, could be moved in one trip. Petra and I ended up taking a tuk tuk with some of our stuff. It was a bit disconcerting to see how much we had accumulated in the ten weeks we have been here. We did have groceries on board but some serious culling will have be done before we leave Cambodia. I also have a few purchases I'm hoping family will take home for me..... 😊
Bou Savy Guesthouse is situated down a gravel laneway off Road 6. We are far enough away from the highway not to hear traffic noise. We now
The Second Mural Wall
This wall is harder to photograph due to a big tree growing near it. have wifi and fridges in our rooms, free breakfast, plenty of hot water, air con, tropical surroundings and a small outdoor dining area. We'll survive!
Ginny was the only 'good little bunny' who rocked up for school On Wednesday morning. Petra and I had a few things that needed to be done and had to give school a miss. This was also the perfect opportunity to use the complimentary massage voucher I had won at a quiz night. So, we phoned Origins Spa and booked ourselves in. We knew Sojourn Boutique Villas, where the spa was located, was outside Siem Reap so thought we'd better check with our tuk tuk driver to be sure he knew where we were going. Thank goodness we did, as he had to phone them to get accurate directions. The Villas weren't too far out of town but were off the main road. We passed through a small village and traversed dusty roads to get there. We arrived at a quiet, peaceful oasis, set amidst tropical gardens.
Needless to say, our one hour aromatherapy massages were divine, as were the 30 minute kaffir lime scalp and head massages which followed. The attendants were
Student Shot
This was taken against the 2nd mural wall. quiet and professional and soft music played in the background....we relaxed and enjoyed!
Later that afternoon I had arranged to meet a lovely lady from New York who had been reading my blogs and wanted to meet for a chat. She was interested in volunteering whilst in Siem Reap but was unsure which way to go. We arranged to meet at the Frangipani Hotel, where she was staying, and where we often swam. Petra and Ginny came along as well and enjoyed a couple of hours beside the pool.
On Thursday morning we all tuk tukked to school as we hadn't yet been around the the new Globalteer office to reclaim our bikes. Our class was cut short this morning as the children have an English comprehension exam to do. We were asked to stay and explain questions and help the kids as much as we could without giving away the answers.
I'm sorry to say, not a lot of attention has been paid in class if the results of this exam are an example of how well the kids are doing. But, I'm also not surprised. I can see from my own interaction, that most of
Stars For Everyone!
Tammy and three of her students show off their stars. them are not taking in a lot of what is taught in class. Read a simple story, ask questions about it, and the only response you get is a row of blank faces. Did they not understand the question? Are they bored with the lesson and can't be bothered participating, or not confident enough with their English to answer? Your guess is as good as mine.
The entire school day on Friday is being spent rehearsing for the concert which is being held on Sunday afternoon. There is very little I can do towards this so I have decided to spend the morning rambling around the temples of Angkor again. There are still many I haven't seen, and as Ginny and Pet are both busy doing other stuff, this time I'll be on my own. I'm perfectly fine with that. I tend to ramble further than they want and today I can do so at my own pace. Inside temples, outside temple walls, along the shores of the moat and behind the next pile of temple rubble......
Meas, our regular tuk tuk driver was prompt and we left at 6.00am. Today I wanted to see more of the
Reach For The Stars
Some of the kids from my class performing 'Reach For The Stars' fortified city of Angkor Thom where Bayon temple, which I covered in last week's blog, is located.
Angkor Thom, (built in the 12th century) is enclosed by an 8 metre high square wall which is more than 13klm in length, and surrounded by a 100 metre wide moat, said to have once been inhabited by crocodiles. The city has five immense gates, we entered by the South Gate. In front of this gate stand giant statues - 54 gods to the left, and 54 demons to the right. In the centre of this walled enclosure are the city's most important monuments, including Bayon, Baphuon, the Royal Enclosures, Phimeanakas, and the Terrace of Elephants.
Once inside the city gates, I asked Meas to drop me near Baphuon, which is a stone's throw from Bayon. From here I can explore on foot, covering the Royal Palace, the Terrace of Elephants and the Leper King Terrace.
Baphuon was constructed in the 10th century, and is approached via an elevated sandstone walkway, supported by hundreds of pillars. Unfortunately all entrances into Baphuon were closed off so I couldn't enter the temple and had to be satisfied with photos.
From here
Student Concert
Giving it his best. I walked to Phimeanakas, which means 'Celestial Palace'. Thankfully, I walked right around this building as I couldn't find any way to access it. Running up the back of the temple is a very steep, and rather dangerous, set of timber steps. They are only wide enough for one person to use at a time, and only have one handrail so are open on one side. I looked up them, tried not to think about what would happen if I lost my footing, grabbed the handrail and headed up. There are 46 steps. I know because I counted every one of them. I counted them again on the way down.
There's nothing left of the Royal Palace, as it was made of wood. Stone buildings were reserved for the gods. There are two sandstone pools nearby, which were once the site of royal ablutions, but contain only murky water choked with weed today.
Next stop was the Terrace of Elephants. This 350 metre long terrace was a giant viewing stand for public ceremonies and served as a base for the king's grand audience hall. After admiring the elephant carvings on the base of the terrace, I moved on
to the Terrace of the Leper King.
This monument is nothing more than a seven metre high platform with a nude, sexless statue on top, which is another of Angkor's mysteries. Legend has it that at least two of Angkor's kings had leprosy, and the statue may represent one of them. More likely it is Yama, the god of death, and the Terrace of the Leper King probably housed the royal crematorium.
But, there's more to this monument than meets the eye. You need to do your homework to know what to look for. It's easily missed if you don't know it's there... This monument has two terraces, set one behind the other. An unseen passage runs between the two walls. The original terrace was hidden when the outer structure was built, thus creating a terrace within a terrace. The carvings within these walls are in excellent condition due to being covered up for centuries, and are very impressive.
Preah Khan, meaning 'sacred sword', is my final destination for the morning. One of the largest complexes at Angkor, it's a maze of vaulted corridors, fine carvings and lichen clad stonework.
The temple is approached by four
School Concert
Two of the younger boys doin' their thing.. processional walkways, one from each side, all of which are bordered by huge statues depicting the Churning of the Ocean of Milk. Unfortunately most have their heads missing. The entrance to the west side is the only one in reasonable condition, and this is the gate I entered from.
I love these temples that you can clamber around, but you can get very disorientated and lose your way. Preah Khan has four long, vaulted galleries extending from a central sanctuary and is easy to get lost in. Having four entry gates makes it more confusing still....but, that's half the fun! Eventually you'll find your way out and I enjoy ducking through every doorway, and looking through every gap in the wall to find carvings and interesting niches to photograph.
Several of the galleries here have doorways which get lower as you progress through them. Stand at one end, look down the corridor and you see them gradually getting smaller. Rather hard to photograph, as there's always that random tourist standing in the wrong spot!
An interesting building here is the curious Grecian-style two-storey structure on the eastern side of the temple. It's original purpose is unknown and
The School Concert
'We All Live in a Yellow Submarine' being performed by the younger students. it looks a little out of place here. It's something you would expect to find in Athens, not Cambodia. Like Ta Prohm, which was covered in my previous blog, Preah Khan features huge trees growing over the walls. This temple is better preserved than Ta Prohm, and both look as though the jungle is ready to reclaim them anytime. Beautiful, facinating places!
Saturday promises to be a slow one, we're not exactly in overdrive this morning. But that's okay, we don't need to be doing something or going somewhere all the time.
There is a small 'tourist' cinema complex in town which advertises having private rooms with large screens. Definately worth checking out, we thought, so a movie it is! This is actually a good concept - small, private movie rooms where you can watch the movie of your choice at a time that suits you. Sort of like Gold Class at home? Well.....no!
We had a fairly large selection of movie titles to choose from, including some new releases, as all the movies are on DVD - pirated DVD's with badly spelt subtitles! We were shown to a tiny room, it's walls lined with black foam
School Concert
The entire school grouped about to shout -I know I can, Do what I want to do, If I work hard at it, I'll be what I want to be! for sound proofing. Seating was a navy blue vinyl lounge with wide ottomans, exactly the width of the room and able to seat three comfortably. The screen was painted on the front wall, with the sound system underneath. There was no air conditioning, but they did supply a fan. The movie started. Petra had picked 'Ted' which she had seen before and enjoyed, but was new to Ginny and I. The movie quality was similar to TV in the 70's - faded colours and fuzzy edges, and projecting the film onto a painted wall didn't help at all!
Ginny and Pet had both purchased popcorn. Pet's turned up straight away, but Ginny had to chase hers up several times before it finally arrived half way through the movie. Thankfully, they did switch off the rather large subtitles, I find them very distracting. There were six of these little 'theatres' side by side, and we could hear the sound effects from the action movie next door from time to time. We paid $4 each for the experience, rather a lot considering we can buy pirated movies here for $1.50.
Sunday morning we all met up in the dining area,
Room For One More
Our private cinema. as we wander downstairs for breakfast at different times. We have to be at school at midday, as today, the long awaited concert is being held. Each class has been practising a short song/dance routine for weeks, and parents have been invited to attend this afternoon's performance.
We are in charge of makeup, which involves painting a star on the face of every student. We had purchased small pots of craft paint and cut star shaped stencils earlier in the week, so we were prepared. Everyone ended up with stars on their faces, including student's siblings, teachers and me! The concert was fun to watch. Some of the kids knew their routine and some didn't, but they all tried their best and had some fun.
We left school around 4.00pm, hailed a tuk tuk and headed to the Frangipani Hotel for a swim and dinner. It has been a very hot day and we're all looking forward to getting into that pool! Next week is our last week at ABC's & Rice. Many volunteers will be finishing this Friday, as the school year draws to a close....
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