cambodia, part 1 (2011)

Right after the community project in Phnom Penh, i embark on my trip of the banana pancake trail - a well trodden and constantly growing routes around Southeast Asia. This term is highly associated with backpackers who use lonely planet as travel guides. Banana pancake trails materialise when an influx of backpackers to an area (mainly due to the lonely planet guidebooks) leads to a rise in the number of restaurants/hostels serving food adapted to western desires which includes banana pancakes. Of course, this trail has no clear geographical definition, and been expanding throughout the years. I still remember when i was planning this trip two years ago, the typical route was cambodia, vietnam, laos, thailand, and malaysia. But i believe this has been extended to Myanmar, India, Indonesia and even China by now.

Here's a quick summary of my route:

Counterclock-wise direction on the banana pancake trail

From Phnom Penh, the team travelled to Siem Reap together and we spent a few days touring around. We probably woke up at 4am to catch the sunrise at Angkor Wat. Yes, that sounds crazy but it really does make the experience that much better. Besides Angkor Wat, you should not miss Bayon Temple (towers with huge faces of buddha) and Ta Prohm (location for the tomb raider movie). We tried some of the local delicacy and exotic meat that was available - crocodile, snake, frog, ostrich and kangaroo (you name it, they have it). Not forgetting the different kind of bugs you can get at the Old Market. If you want to grab a drink, people-watch or have a scoop of Siem Reap's best ice cream at Blue Pumpkin, Pub Street is the place to be. It is probably the only place in the world where you can get 50 cent draft beers during happy hour, and did i mention happy hour lasts all day?

After Siem Reap, the team went on their separate ways, and i headed to Phnom Penh to catch the bus to Ho Chi Minh. But, the week before while we were still in the village we had the weekend off and had the chance to tour around Phnom Penh. First stop was, Tuol Sleng Museum, a place with shattering reminder of the indiscriminate horror committed upon and by the Cambodian people. Every victim was photographed by the regime’s record keepers, and many of these black-and-white photos are displayed throughout the rooms of the museum. We manage to meet one of the survivors of the Khmer Rouge, it felt so surreal that i have no idea whether to smile or not when taking a picture with him. A group of us rented bikes and make our way to The Killing Fields, another emotional site where you will see more than 8,000 skulls being displayed and many holes left open in the ground which were used as mass graves. Well, if you're not into these disheartening sites, you can head to Russian Market to do some shopping. It's a huge market where you can get souvenirs, t-shirts (this is where you can get the 'same same but different' shirts), and not forgetting disco watch (basically, a casio lookalike watch with colorful light function). You might want to end off the day at the Riverside for some food and drinks, as well as some of the best value massages in the region.

I took a 6-hour bus ride from Phnom Penh to Ho Chi Minh, which currently cost about US$13. It is considered a short ride as compared to the 24-hour bus ride that i took to crossover from Hanoi to Udon Thani. Stay tuned for part 2 of the series where i will write on my journey through Vietnam.

project kaleidoscope, cambodia (2011)

One of the most memorable project that i was involved with during my time in Eusoff Hall would be the Overseas Community Involvement Project - Project Kaleidoscope. Throughout the entire year, we organize activities and events to raise funds, create awareness, volunteering in our own community and ultimately to volunteer in the rural area of Cambodia for two weeks.

The entire team with some of the villagers in front of our humble abode for two weeks

Throughout our two weeks stay in Prey Ang Kunh village, we improved sanitary conditions through constructing wells and toilets, conducted english lessons, art & craft sessions, as well as a mini sports day for the children from the village.

        

The construction of wells and toilets, where most of the work that we did was very basic

Teaching the children some really basic english hoping to make a difference in their lives

With my adorable class of lions, i believe they had a good time like i did

        

We were all really happy that the children enjoyed the sports day

After our arrival, the children would come by our house everyday before and after school. They are contented and happy just by playing simple games with us, playing hide and seek, skipping ropes and simply just being around us.

That's Keith, the very talented photographer who took all the beautiful pictures, all credits to him

        

We often have very long queue for the basketball station, the simplicity of having a fun time

        

While we were busy building toilets, the children entertain themselves playing with the construction materials

Every morning, i will wake up to the sounds of the birds, chickens and cows. It's carefree living at its best. One of the things that i look forward to is the evening walk to the field with the kids. They love to impress us by catching live crabs from the paddy field, and the naughty ones would try to throw it into our clothes. It freaks me out! But some of the kids were protecting me the entire time, it was hilarious.

The short walk leads to a gorgeous field where we would enjoy beautiful view of the sunset

The children would start to catch crabs with their bare hands

Laying down on the field is probably one of the best thing to do

All set and ready for the gorgeous sunset!

Besides all the above, we had to take care of ourselves by cooking meals for the entire team, washing our clothes and took turns to shower with the well water (the boys are usually kind enough to pump the water for us). Each team is assigned different task everyday, ranging from construction, visitation, teaching, as well as cooking meals for the entire team.

Buying our ingredients at the local market, deciding what to cook for the team

         

Each team would try to outdo each cooking, and this beef steak with mashed potato, sauteed mushroom and garlic bread was probably our best, and not forgetting the caramel banana for dessert :)

This girl here is the ever bubbly and happy, Valencia - my laundry, gossip and foodie partner

Sometimes we would try to wake up early to catch the sunrise. We would walk to the field under the rose-pink light of dawn in our sleepy state. And did i mention the amazing moonrise that we saw? I still remember very clearly, the night we walk to the field in pitch black darkness, so dark that i can't even see my hand. We sat on the field, just talking about nothingness, then this amazing thing happened. We saw a gleam of light in the darkness wondering what it was at such an ungodly hour, then after much debate, we finally believed what Keith claimed as to be a moonrise. It was one of the few truly euphoric moments I've experienced.

The lovely rose-pink light of dawn wakes me up immediately!

Looking back at my pictures, i was wondering when did i go to hawaii

YAY! to awesome sunrise, waking up early was worth it after all

That amazing moonrise, look at the stars! It was actually really dark, the camera was just too good

On our final night, the villagers prepared a feast and gathered together to show their gratitude and appreciation for all our work. I believe they brought all the alcohol that they have, and party the night away with us.

All happy with the super yummy food!

            

Finishing up the drinks was kind of obligatory, which help us to enjoy the night even better

All who was involved have the same goal, to make the lives of the less fortunate kids in the village a better one, raise the maturity and skill level of the villagers in the long term and eventually empower them to escape their poverty status. We had the chance to bring service learning and spirit of volunteerism beyond the local boundaries and be exposed to realities of the harsh lives in poorer countries.

Our team successfully constructed 10 wells, 22 toilets, distributed 250 water filters, and donated USD1,350 for education and animal rearing.

It was heartbreaking to leave the children on our last day. I truly wish and pray that they are doing well, and will make a difference to the village.