Saturday 9 January 2010

A New Year - What Will it Bring?

Hi everyone and New Year greetings from our 1st posting of 2010

A quiet wkend here as Geoff left for UK yesterday to see his Mum. She has made an amazing recovery from her fall and is walking independently again, although housebound just now like so many because of the Arctic conditions gripping the UK. Hope you are all safe and warm, but guess the disruption caused is becoming a nuisance as the snow and freezing temps. seem to have been with you for ages! Hope it didn't spoil family gatherings and holiday plans.

It is supposedly our cool season when we don't need a fan at night and need to wear a cardy early in the morning. It has been very short lived. This morning I had a bike ride around our lake looking at birds and it felt very hot. Spotted lots of spot billed ducks and purple swamphens, with the help of a great tome on SE Asia's birds, a Christmas present from Geoff. I then had to manage the fruit and veg. market shop alone with my faltering Khymer but was rewarded with an iced coffee in a glass full of ice, sweet condensed milk at the bottom topped with rich, dark Cambodian coffee, which when we first arrived I couldn't stand but now love. That's Cambodia for you! I seem to be getting used to things.......slowly.

The coffee cafe on a very dusty corner by the litter strewn and grubby market in Samraong seemed a world away from Singapore with its Christmas 'snow' decorations, music and Waitrose/ Mand S mince pies and Christmas cake. Laura as usual had planned some lovely treats - a trip to the Esplanade to hear the Soweto Gospel choir, a traditional Italian meal at a new restaurant on Christmas Eve, presents, smoked salmon and croissants on Christmas morning, followed by turkey and even brussel sprouts with chestnuts for lunch ,prepared by Laura's friend Jen, at their new apartment looking out to sea, well actually the oil rigs, but they looked pretty with their glittering lights and the breeze was just great! We played games, not quite up to the standard of Nic's quizzes and Pictionary but the family will be pleased to know that I performed as hopelessly as ever! A visit to a wetland reserve where we saw a crocodile, and a kingfisher catch a fish, rounded off our trip.

We had New Year back in Cambodia. My organisation had a New Years Eve Party under the stars, again with a roasted ox and lots of beer and dancing. The day was spent preparing with all staff involved - I kept well away from the animal's slaughter in the office garden but couldn't escape the staff lunch, rice and various bits of the animal's entrails. Went off next day to Siem Reap and the Kool Hotel, which unfortunately wasn't as kool as we'd hoped in that the pool looked murky and hot water was in short supply! Still that's Cambodia. We had some great restaurant food and enjoyed the company of other VSO ers who were in town and, as usual stocked up on essentials like bread, cheese and Ricard.

At work, we've started the evaluation of the health promotion part of the project which will end April 2010. I am no longer looking for funds to pay the health promoter's salaries but will support the Project Manager to devise a new project based on the feedback we get from the evaluation. Understandably, no donor will give money just to pay wages. We need to find the gaps in our service, check that we are reaching the most needy of beneficiaries and come up with activities which continue to impact poor peoples health. So I'm learning new skills too and will be very much involved in the writing of the proposal. So, enough to keep me busy for a while.

Thanks to everyone for your Christmas cards and email greetngs. Keep in touch!
With lots of love from
Carol and Geoff, as he wings his way to Manchester. xx