Festivities in Samraong

Hi Everyone

Only 1 more week before a holiday in PP and Geoff's return. Hope it won't be too hard for Joan not having him around. She's doing well but is frustrated by how long its taking to becoming independnt again. Nic is in Newcastle too this weekend, so they are off to the match. Hope they win.
My best news is that VSO have agreed to provide me with a volunteer assistant for 2 1/2 days a week. This will make me much more independent as I will have interpreter support when I need it and help with cultural stuff.It is likely to be difficult to get someone with good enough English here, but there will be no lack of applicants as jobs with a regular salary even of $100 are hard to come by.


I've had a quiet weekend although works kept me busy and I've actually brought work home a couple of nights. I've been preparing a days staff training on malaria. I have to educate myself first, get it int a format which the staff can follow and understand how they can best protect their own families, and then I try to come up with some health messages which we can use in village meetings and when working with individual familes. The driver, guards and cleaner join in too - its hard to know at what level to pitch things and with all the talk of drug resistance to the malaria parasite, one of the highest in the world here in our area, there's loads of info. to look at. So many people still go to private clinics or the market to buy medicines which may be fake or not the correct regime. They feel better after a couple of days so don't complete the course and don't have a follow up blood test and remain a source of infection in their communities. Its made me a bit paranoid - tucking in our mossy net, spraying the shower room and closing the house doors in the evenings in spite of the heat!

My last field trip was the best yet. I go off with an open mind and sometimes find it really difficult to see any opportunities to bring about change which is sustainable. I met a great Cambodian midwife at at a health cetre who was keen for our respective staff to work together and Vatanar, the health promoter I spent 3 days with is tryng hard to reach the poorest of families. He introduced me to a young chap who had lost an eye and both arms to a land mine. With the help of neighbours he was able to grow a small amount of rice and had made a fish pond in the hope of feeding his family and having something to sell.With a little bit of financial support from our organisation, he'd built a food cabinet and a hen house. Such families are inspirational and will encourage me to work with the staff on ways in which we can identify and support disabled people in our target villages.I'll also look at some joint training with the HCenre staff.

We have a new volunteer with us, Anne, a young German midwife who is here for 10 wks. It's good to have new people around.Also had a visit from Lonely Planet last week though I don't think the write up about Samraong will be much better than last time! I have to say though, the place is looking better, at least around the lake. The provincial government have spent a lot of money building a park area with grass, shrubs, 2 huge black elephants, a shrine with sparkly lights and surprisingly, no litter. We have a fair here, similar to the fairs I remember as a child, and next week we will celebrate Water Festival, a celebration of Jayavarman v11 over the Chams who occupied Angkor in 1177! Its great to see these ancient traditions flourishing again, after being totally supressed by Pol Pot. Long canoes, brightly hand painted, race along one side of the lake with up to 40 paddlers in each. CHHRA has a boat and we've all been out to watch them practice this week. Our lot are not natural sailors but love it, even the soakings in mucky lake water. Some of the girls from work took me to the fair on Friday night. I think they feel they need to look after me whilst Geoff is away! Went on the big wheel, a bit rickety and of course no H and S rules, ate popcorn and won a bowl at a darts stall.
I've also been to my 1st wedding this week, another colourful occasion and reminiscent of Pakistani weddings in UK. There were about 400 guests and even though I wore one of my 'wedding ' dresses I felt very under dressed! Lots of food and beer, loud music but no dancing,and us each presenting an envelope containing $10 to the bride and groom as we left, seems the typical format. All work staff were invited .The bride was a staff member's sister in law whom I'd never met before! Everyone was smiley and gracious and there were lots of formal greetings and photos.
Must go now as Anne is coming round for tea - pomelo and fish salad with bean sprouts. I'm really getting in to the food, especially since I treated myself to a cook book written by a French chef resident here who gives the Khymer words for the herbs and spices which are readily available and incredibly cheap at our local market.
Please email us soon!
Lots of love to you all
Carol, and Geoff of course xx