Blogs from Cambodia, Asia - page 10

We had the unique experience of going to a school opening. Trailblazer Foundation has fundraised and constructed 8 schools now. They work with the government to identify where new school are needed (population increases or lack of access) or school rebuilds because buildings are no longer safe. This week there were two school openings both due to dilapidation. It ended up being like a ribbon cutting ceremony. The school provided breakfast bread and water for all the students and the community families. The monks gave a blessing, governement and school officials and large donors gave speeches. The main donor came to the U.S. as an illegal immigrant and now owns a multi-million dollar company. His daughter threatened him to give away his money or she will just buy cats with all her inheritance. So he has ... read more

One of the highlights of this trip has been the street food. Whether it was vendor carts in London or goat on a stick in Uganda, every country seems to have some street food creation. Siem Reap has been a street food gold mine of street food opportunity. Here are some basics to help increase your chance of successful dining: It is a good sign if people are eating there, this not only means people enjoy the food, but more importantly it means the food hasn’t been sitting too long Covers, plastic wrap or containers holding the food means the flies probably haven’t had an opportunity to get to it ICE...either food sitting in it or a cooler (if you are eating meat) or no meat sitting out The picture is what Den (our Trailblazer supervisor) ... read more

Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice shame on me. This phrase kept running through my head as we went on yet another sunrise journey. Today we went to Phnom Bakheng which is known for its sunsets, but also ended up being my favorite sunrise spot. It is suppose to be a 30 minute hike up to the temple, but our driver Pairon would have none of that. He hiked us up in 15 minutes flat. There was a group of people gathered at the bottom of the temple and Pairon went right past and started climbing the stairs with Shelby and me chasing after. A woman goes, see them those girls know what they are doing follow them...I almost fell down the steps laughing because we had no clue. Pairon told us to ... read more

After a tough day of deliveries yesterday, I was hoping not to be doing a double delivery day. But what I want and what I need are not always the same. We headed out and I was determined to focus on the good. We stopped for bag coffee and I was chatting with Den in the back of the truck about how close (near), close (not open), and clothes all sound similar but mean different things. When I looked up, there were 2 Asian people standing 4 feet away from our truck snapping photos of Den, our filters and me. I gave them a good glare down only to have 3 other people join in the impromptu photo opt. Not a good start to the day. In case I needed a reminder of why you don’t ... read more

Who knew rats...giant rats would be so helpful? Today we visited APOPO, an NGO specializing in the removal of landmines and live bombs/amunitions through the use of Giant African rats. The exhibit and demonstration were brief, but very interesting. During the civil war and Vietnamese invasion, landmines were a weapon of choice. The problem is after a war when the tanks and guns are done firing, the landmines still exist. The exact location of most mines are forgotten. Another problem is safe removal cost. The cost of the landmine was less than $10 but finding and safely disarming it now costs over $300. Considering there is an estimated 4 to 6 million landmines and other unexploded ordiances in Cambodia and Cambodia has the highest rate of disability inflicted from landmines (4 every week since 1979), the ... read more