Hi everyone.
What an eventful month this has been. Carol `s review over, we turned our attention to social matters. An unexpected invitation to a birthday party took Carol off into the countryside,while I took the opportunity to spend a couple of days in Siem Reap, my classes being on holiday.
VSO people can be very intense and discuss their experiences with each other non-stop. I can sympathize so much then I need to break free!Siem Reap is ideal. Two hours by taxi and you have a wide range of hotels, restaurants, bars and shops to suit all tastes. The town is small and most destinations are walkable, but I enjoy riding the tuk-tuks.
We seem to have decided on one hotel in Siem Reap and staying there is a pleasure. The staff have got to know us and are charming. There is a good pool and the rooms are almost Bali style.
Carol came straight to the hotel from her party and we had the last two days together. A Dutch VSO girl threw a surprise 40th birthday party for her partner in a village without electricity and with even fewer amenities than Samraong! Met a couple from Coverdale in the Yorkshire Dales.
Back to Geoff -
I trawled the bookshops as there are none in Samraong, nor is there a library. I tend to take home ten at a time. We both had pedicures while in SR and I had a massage too by Rothana who seems to have become my personal masseuse and pedicurist at the Spa we use. As well as relaxing by the pool we also tried some different restaurants including one owned jointly by a Frenchman and his Vietnamese wife. There was time too, to stock up on goods not found in Samraong, like milk, cereal, brown bread, orange juice and white wine. As you can see we are not typical volunteers as we have more disposable income - our pensions go a long way here.
A few days later we were off to Singapore to spend six days with Laura and Alberto. It was Laura`s birthday while we were there and a school holiday too. However the holiday was most noteworthy for Carol`s haircut. My hair has been such a frizzy mess since arriving in Cambodia, that drastic action needed to be taken, and I was duly marched off to Laura's hairdresser and colourist at Tony and Guys. 3 hrs later, I emerged with short curly hair which I can just scrunch up and leave to dry. Well, thats the theory. Will soon see what 90% humidity does to posh styling!
Laura and Alberto are in great form and entertained us royally. Started off at the Shangrila - remember Sue and Howard?- for a 'brunch' style dinner with lots of school friends.Visited a new country park with a canopy walk, the pictures to see 'Inglorious Basterds', an exhibition celebrating Prehanakan culture, (chinese/malay/indian) a couple more stunning restaurants and of course, shopping.It felt restorative if not other worldly, but it was great to spend time together. Such a different Asia! We're booked in for Christmas.
Back to work today which is quiet as most people are still on holiday. I was in the office on my own for 3 days last week, but I had a lovely experience on day 2 when Bona, 19, and the youngest of the health promoters ,turned up to take me on the back of her boyfriend's moto to O Smach, a Cambodian town on the Thai border. She travelled on the back of another friend's moto and even though we had a 3hr round trip on a muddy, slippery road and came home through the afternoon monsoon, it felt great to be out with 3 young Cambodians who were full of fun. We went to some water falls and had a meal in the local market. Unfortunately, I didn't think to take my pasport, so we couldn't walk into Thailand, so we'll have to do the trip again! I haven't heard yet as to whether VSO will fund a volunteer assistant for me. This would make me more independent as I would have my own interpreter/translator and it would be good for cultural stuff. James, the 3rd volunteer here has just finished his placement so his VA is available. We'll miss him - he worked on a sustainable forestry project and had a wry sense of humour.
Back to Geoff - On our flat roof, which is where we usually entertain guests, there are ten exit pipes so that the rain can run off during the monsoon. Our landlord places large containers at each one to collect the rainwater. This month he has garnered a rich harvest. It has rained, and how, most days and the water containers are full. But fortunately the rain has not spoiled the unmade roads as in past years, although enough has gathered by the roadsides for children to swim in.
Good news from Newcastle this week in that Geoff's Mum has had her long leg plaster reduced to a foot plaster. He will come home this side of Christmas, hopefully to help her adjust to life at home. Hope all is well with you all.
With much love from us both
Carol and Geoff xx
Thursday, 24 September 2009
Sunday, 6 September 2009
Working Hard!
Hi Everyone
A quiet Sunday here and as hot as ever, even though we've had some proper rain this week which hopefully will help the rice. Some of the new rice has died because of the lack of rain and people are worried that the drought will cause food shortages and higher food prices. One of our proposals - as a small organisation we have partnered with 2 international NGO's and applied to the EC's food security programme - is to support poor people to diversify their food supply to things like mushroom farms and peanut butter production so that as well as being better nourished themselves, they might have a surplus to sell and so generate some income.
Not that we have had a lack of food this week - we had a staff party to celebrate the beginning of Pchum Bhen, a time in the Budhist calendar when people return to their villages to remember their ancestors and visit the pagoda. A small ox was bought and killed in the office garden, thankfully before I arrived at work and the day was spent roasting it over a charcoal fire with staff taking it in turns to turn the pole. Eating, dancing Khmer style, karaoke and lots of beer seem the order of the day with everyone joining in. One of the health promoters has built a new, traditional wooden house, on stilts and invited us to the house warming party. Here we had what they called ' cow on the mountain' - beef barbecued on a small barbecue on each table with a mound of a grass like vegetable. Stir fry veg and rice with lemon grass, galangel and garlic was served too. All delicious.
Geoff now has classes every day except Friday and has offered to teach English to senior staff of local NGO's over lunchtime. There's a big demand for teaching, especially from a native speaker as in order to get promotion in the Aid world you have to be able to speak and write in English to a high level. Our landlord's son has just come back from a week in Holland, training with his organisation, International Child Support.
My VSO meeting went well. The Health Programme Team spent the morning with CHHRA and I gave my impressions of the organisation, its strengths and challenges, and then presented my work plan. I felt a bit daunted as people are very direct here but the programme manager said some complementary things and VSO were happy with my plans. We had a smile earlier, as Hing my manager, asked Geoff to correct his written report about me! My work, I think, will be largely staff training, and mentoring and support to the management team. We were all taken out for lunch, including Geoff, so it felt a very supportive and encouraging day. Unfortunately, we've had a slight damper on this over the wkend as Sophy, our newest appointment as a communith based health insurance manager, has emailed to say that he has resigned as his family has problems and need him in PP. He's young, talented and very personable and I think could have done great things for the organisation and himself, but this sort of thing seems to happen a lot.
I've spent quite a bit of this weekend taking in clothes as I think I've stopped loosing weight We both feel very well here.I've also got the sketch pad out and taken my 1st faltering steps at drawing a coconut palm! Geoff's Mum, after a rocky few days seems to be improving and is looking forward to her full length cast being reduced in 3 weeks. Hope you enjoyed the Bank Holiday weekend. Looking forward to catching up with your news.
Lots of love
Carol and Geoff xx
A quiet Sunday here and as hot as ever, even though we've had some proper rain this week which hopefully will help the rice. Some of the new rice has died because of the lack of rain and people are worried that the drought will cause food shortages and higher food prices. One of our proposals - as a small organisation we have partnered with 2 international NGO's and applied to the EC's food security programme - is to support poor people to diversify their food supply to things like mushroom farms and peanut butter production so that as well as being better nourished themselves, they might have a surplus to sell and so generate some income.
Not that we have had a lack of food this week - we had a staff party to celebrate the beginning of Pchum Bhen, a time in the Budhist calendar when people return to their villages to remember their ancestors and visit the pagoda. A small ox was bought and killed in the office garden, thankfully before I arrived at work and the day was spent roasting it over a charcoal fire with staff taking it in turns to turn the pole. Eating, dancing Khmer style, karaoke and lots of beer seem the order of the day with everyone joining in. One of the health promoters has built a new, traditional wooden house, on stilts and invited us to the house warming party. Here we had what they called ' cow on the mountain' - beef barbecued on a small barbecue on each table with a mound of a grass like vegetable. Stir fry veg and rice with lemon grass, galangel and garlic was served too. All delicious.
Geoff now has classes every day except Friday and has offered to teach English to senior staff of local NGO's over lunchtime. There's a big demand for teaching, especially from a native speaker as in order to get promotion in the Aid world you have to be able to speak and write in English to a high level. Our landlord's son has just come back from a week in Holland, training with his organisation, International Child Support.
My VSO meeting went well. The Health Programme Team spent the morning with CHHRA and I gave my impressions of the organisation, its strengths and challenges, and then presented my work plan. I felt a bit daunted as people are very direct here but the programme manager said some complementary things and VSO were happy with my plans. We had a smile earlier, as Hing my manager, asked Geoff to correct his written report about me! My work, I think, will be largely staff training, and mentoring and support to the management team. We were all taken out for lunch, including Geoff, so it felt a very supportive and encouraging day. Unfortunately, we've had a slight damper on this over the wkend as Sophy, our newest appointment as a communith based health insurance manager, has emailed to say that he has resigned as his family has problems and need him in PP. He's young, talented and very personable and I think could have done great things for the organisation and himself, but this sort of thing seems to happen a lot.
I've spent quite a bit of this weekend taking in clothes as I think I've stopped loosing weight We both feel very well here.I've also got the sketch pad out and taken my 1st faltering steps at drawing a coconut palm! Geoff's Mum, after a rocky few days seems to be improving and is looking forward to her full length cast being reduced in 3 weeks. Hope you enjoyed the Bank Holiday weekend. Looking forward to catching up with your news.
Lots of love
Carol and Geoff xx
Monday, 24 August 2009
News from Rural Cambodia
Hi Everyone
We've actually been busy this last couple of weeks and time seems to be passing more quickly.I have my 3 month review with VSO in 2 weeks and have had to get my brain in gear and write of my general impressions of my partner organisation, its strengths and challenges , and come up with a work plan. I meet with the managers of CHHRA tomorrow so hopefully we'll agree on what is feasible for me to try and achieve. It still feels a very humbling experience here - the staff work hard, out on their motos in scorching heat and often muddy, dirt roads, visiting remote villages, all for about $150 a month. I've been out with all the health promoters now. A big part of my work will be improving their basic understanding of the commonest diseases here - malaria, diarrhoea, dengue fever etc and supporting them to become confident in organising village health workshops.
Shortly after the last blog, I went to the remotest and poorest area yet, about 1hr off the main road. The truck struggled on the narrow sandy road with deep potholes and pools of water. 2 of the staff had gone ahead on their mbikes and were there to welcome us, having made breakfast of roasted corn cobs on a fire by the roadside! These villages were in the forest, such as is left in Cambodia. Illegal logging still happens and many poor people have had their land 'stolen' by rich and influential people. No such thing as land rights here.
Geoff's busy too with his English classes. We've found a young teacher to teach us Khymie. He didn't want payment, just wanted Geoff to take one of his English conversation classes, a group of 10 adolescents at the private school next door! We're giving it a month's trial - our 1st lesson on Sunday, me dreading it, and Geoff relishing the thought!
We've just had a lovely weekend, on a boat from Battambang to Sim Reap.It took 7 hrs in hot sun but we passed floating villages and saw egrets and storks. James, one of the VSOers in Samraong is coming to the end of his time here, so it was his leaving do. We'll miss him. He's just 25, very witty and has been working with a forestry NGO. His girlfriend, also with VSO, is here this week. She's from Horsforth! Its a small world - another volunteer was telling me about her holiday job before coming out here, a waitress at the 'Angel' at Hetton!
Sadly, Geoff's Mum fell in the bathroom last week and is in hospital with a fracture to her ankle. We feel pretty helpless here but Geoff will be home before Christmas and we just hope that she will make a good recovery.We're very much looking forward to our next break, a long weekend in Singapore for Laura's birthday.
Keep the emails coming - we miss you all!
With lots of love from us both
Carol xx
We've actually been busy this last couple of weeks and time seems to be passing more quickly.I have my 3 month review with VSO in 2 weeks and have had to get my brain in gear and write of my general impressions of my partner organisation, its strengths and challenges , and come up with a work plan. I meet with the managers of CHHRA tomorrow so hopefully we'll agree on what is feasible for me to try and achieve. It still feels a very humbling experience here - the staff work hard, out on their motos in scorching heat and often muddy, dirt roads, visiting remote villages, all for about $150 a month. I've been out with all the health promoters now. A big part of my work will be improving their basic understanding of the commonest diseases here - malaria, diarrhoea, dengue fever etc and supporting them to become confident in organising village health workshops.
Shortly after the last blog, I went to the remotest and poorest area yet, about 1hr off the main road. The truck struggled on the narrow sandy road with deep potholes and pools of water. 2 of the staff had gone ahead on their mbikes and were there to welcome us, having made breakfast of roasted corn cobs on a fire by the roadside! These villages were in the forest, such as is left in Cambodia. Illegal logging still happens and many poor people have had their land 'stolen' by rich and influential people. No such thing as land rights here.
Geoff's busy too with his English classes. We've found a young teacher to teach us Khymie. He didn't want payment, just wanted Geoff to take one of his English conversation classes, a group of 10 adolescents at the private school next door! We're giving it a month's trial - our 1st lesson on Sunday, me dreading it, and Geoff relishing the thought!
We've just had a lovely weekend, on a boat from Battambang to Sim Reap.It took 7 hrs in hot sun but we passed floating villages and saw egrets and storks. James, one of the VSOers in Samraong is coming to the end of his time here, so it was his leaving do. We'll miss him. He's just 25, very witty and has been working with a forestry NGO. His girlfriend, also with VSO, is here this week. She's from Horsforth! Its a small world - another volunteer was telling me about her holiday job before coming out here, a waitress at the 'Angel' at Hetton!
Sadly, Geoff's Mum fell in the bathroom last week and is in hospital with a fracture to her ankle. We feel pretty helpless here but Geoff will be home before Christmas and we just hope that she will make a good recovery.We're very much looking forward to our next break, a long weekend in Singapore for Laura's birthday.
Keep the emails coming - we miss you all!
With lots of love from us both
Carol xx
Sunday, 9 August 2009
Hello everyone.
I am writing the blog this time perhaps to give a different perspective on life in Samraong. Since I have no NGO or public service department as employer and no colleagues to get along with ,I am in charge of my own destiny. I have taken my time before deciding whom to teach, when I could have filled a timetable from day one. Carol`s staff wanted English teaching from her but she was pleased to accept my offer to replace her. Then I got together a small group that I teach at home, all of whom are far from beginners. Tomorrow I`m meeting a group from Malteser, one of the prominent NGOs, with a view to taking an advanced class for some of their staff.
As you know I have recently been back to England. This was not at all unsettling. The weather was wonderful, friends and family were well and I had a great time in Newcastle and Manchester. However I had no difficulty in coming home to Cambodia. For after five months I do feel at home here. Our house is really nice and I haven`t seen one I`d rather live in. To make things even better we now have the Internet installed in our lounge. I made enquiries on Tuesday and it was installed on Thusday morning for 35 dollars.
Another example of Cambodian service; our gas container ran out at 6.45 on Wednesday night and after a quick call to the company was replaced at 7.00. We are so used to a very efficient service industry here. Yet we still have unfinished business with npower after five months away.
Next week I`m staying in Samraong on my own while Carol goes off with her Health Promotion team to Anglong Venh, former Khmer Rouge stronghold. She will be away for three nights working in remote villages.
Now that we are back home we can enjoy the simple life for a while. We had a bbq with the other VSOs at the weekend and we are hosting a curry night next Saturday with food coming up from an Indian restaurant in SiemReap by taxi. I`m hoping to play badminton on Monday dodgy knee permitting.
I know this is a shorter post than usual, but Carol will more than make up for it next time with news from Anglong Venh.
Regards to all of you,
Geoff
I am writing the blog this time perhaps to give a different perspective on life in Samraong. Since I have no NGO or public service department as employer and no colleagues to get along with ,I am in charge of my own destiny. I have taken my time before deciding whom to teach, when I could have filled a timetable from day one. Carol`s staff wanted English teaching from her but she was pleased to accept my offer to replace her. Then I got together a small group that I teach at home, all of whom are far from beginners. Tomorrow I`m meeting a group from Malteser, one of the prominent NGOs, with a view to taking an advanced class for some of their staff.
As you know I have recently been back to England. This was not at all unsettling. The weather was wonderful, friends and family were well and I had a great time in Newcastle and Manchester. However I had no difficulty in coming home to Cambodia. For after five months I do feel at home here. Our house is really nice and I haven`t seen one I`d rather live in. To make things even better we now have the Internet installed in our lounge. I made enquiries on Tuesday and it was installed on Thusday morning for 35 dollars.
Another example of Cambodian service; our gas container ran out at 6.45 on Wednesday night and after a quick call to the company was replaced at 7.00. We are so used to a very efficient service industry here. Yet we still have unfinished business with npower after five months away.
Next week I`m staying in Samraong on my own while Carol goes off with her Health Promotion team to Anglong Venh, former Khmer Rouge stronghold. She will be away for three nights working in remote villages.
Now that we are back home we can enjoy the simple life for a while. We had a bbq with the other VSOs at the weekend and we are hosting a curry night next Saturday with food coming up from an Indian restaurant in SiemReap by taxi. I`m hoping to play badminton on Monday dodgy knee permitting.
I know this is a shorter post than usual, but Carol will more than make up for it next time with news from Anglong Venh.
Regards to all of you,
Geoff
Saturday, 1 August 2009
Fully Fledged Volunteers!
Hi Everyone
Our in service training is over and we're on our way back to Samraong, with our usual stop over in Siem Reap at the Golden Banana. It's a good feeling to have the language training behind us - I've learnt a bit, Geoff has learned loads, and now we need to put it all into practice! VSO give us a grant to carry on with lessons locally, so now we need to find a teacher to meet both our needs.
We had classes for half the day and were then free to explore Pnomh Penh, which has got better for knowing. We've walked a lot, in the several French quarters and the colonial area - its all somewhat second division compared to the grandeur of many European cities, but it has its charms, and we've found charming cafees and restaurants , many in beautiful gardens, with stunning food.There are faded French villas and wide boulevards choked with motos and 4 wheel drive Lexus' with no traffic rules, which we're now used to. You just have to step out into it all and hope that the traffic will avoid you, which it generally does!
We stayed in the Programme Office which was hot but convenient and free. Good to see all our group again too. On the last evening the Phillipino group organised a phillipino meal for us to say goodbye to Dara, our superb Cambodian teacher, who is one of the most inspirational characters I've ever met. He survived the Killing Fields, has the most infectious laugh, and is a great Man. U fan. He might come to stay in Uppermill, a promise to take him to a match and their museum being a big draw. How will Geoff cope with all of that! We all then went dancing to the Cambodiana, a grand hotel on the river front, and of course, the live band was Phillipino!
Geoff and I are generally the oldest at most social gatherings but it doesn't seem to matter. It's one of the best things here - we meet so many people from very different cultures and nationalities who all seem to have lots to say! So now its time for a quick swim, a supermarket shop, lunch and our taxi back to Samraong. Work starts in earnest tomorrow - I wonder what surprises await and how I'll get on trying to find a donor.
Laura and Alberto are in Europe at the moment visiting friends and family. Nic is looking forward to starting his new job in September after a short break for much needed rest and recuperation! Hope you've all had good summer breaks and as usual, looking forward to hearing all your news!
With much love
Carol and Geoff xx
Our in service training is over and we're on our way back to Samraong, with our usual stop over in Siem Reap at the Golden Banana. It's a good feeling to have the language training behind us - I've learnt a bit, Geoff has learned loads, and now we need to put it all into practice! VSO give us a grant to carry on with lessons locally, so now we need to find a teacher to meet both our needs.
We had classes for half the day and were then free to explore Pnomh Penh, which has got better for knowing. We've walked a lot, in the several French quarters and the colonial area - its all somewhat second division compared to the grandeur of many European cities, but it has its charms, and we've found charming cafees and restaurants , many in beautiful gardens, with stunning food.There are faded French villas and wide boulevards choked with motos and 4 wheel drive Lexus' with no traffic rules, which we're now used to. You just have to step out into it all and hope that the traffic will avoid you, which it generally does!
We stayed in the Programme Office which was hot but convenient and free. Good to see all our group again too. On the last evening the Phillipino group organised a phillipino meal for us to say goodbye to Dara, our superb Cambodian teacher, who is one of the most inspirational characters I've ever met. He survived the Killing Fields, has the most infectious laugh, and is a great Man. U fan. He might come to stay in Uppermill, a promise to take him to a match and their museum being a big draw. How will Geoff cope with all of that! We all then went dancing to the Cambodiana, a grand hotel on the river front, and of course, the live band was Phillipino!
Geoff and I are generally the oldest at most social gatherings but it doesn't seem to matter. It's one of the best things here - we meet so many people from very different cultures and nationalities who all seem to have lots to say! So now its time for a quick swim, a supermarket shop, lunch and our taxi back to Samraong. Work starts in earnest tomorrow - I wonder what surprises await and how I'll get on trying to find a donor.
Laura and Alberto are in Europe at the moment visiting friends and family. Nic is looking forward to starting his new job in September after a short break for much needed rest and recuperation! Hope you've all had good summer breaks and as usual, looking forward to hearing all your news!
With much love
Carol and Geoff xx
Sunday, 19 July 2009
A Quiet Time in Samraong
Hi Everyone
I'm speaking to you from a poolside of a lovely garden hotel in PP. It's cloudy and breezy so perhaps there is rain on the way. We're here to start our last bit of language training at the VSO Programme Office tomorrow. The blog is a welcome diversion from learning vocab!
Geoff arrived back safely from UK via Singapore last night and I travelled south on the bus from a Health Workshop in Siem Reap yesterday. It was great - lively, informative and friendly and largely presented by volunteers. I sat next to a hospital management adviser from Broadbottom, near Glossop who said that a volunteer coming out in the October batch to work in the province next to us, has parents who live in Saddleworth! He is called Oliver Shipp for those Saddleworthians reading this. The world is a small place.
Geoff has had a good time and says to say sorry to all those he was unable to speak to.He spent most of the time with Nick and his Mum and saw the Farne Islands and Bamburgh in the sunshine.Our house is still in one piece and I'm looking forward to getting onto our roof with my new paints. It's been very quiet without him but I've been busy at work teaching his 3 English classes, supporting the Project Manager in writing his quarterly report and interviewing for a new manager for the Project's community based health insurance scheme. The next big priority is to look for a new donor as the present funding ends in April 09. There seems to be no sense of urgency even though everyone could be out of a job in 9 mths, including me! Today we said goodbye to an Indian couple in our group who are returning home as their placement has not worked out - I think they have found it difficult to adapt to the very different work culture here.
We have a good social life to look forward to for 2 weeks, especially good as there are few treats in Samraong. I've survived though with the company of the other 2 volunteers - bike rides, coffee in the market, lunch in a lean too shed costing all of 70p, and lots of reading has helped to pass the time, but its good to have Geoff back.
Hope the Summer sunshine continues and that those of you going away have a lovely time. Keep us posted!
Much love from us both
Carol and Geoff xx
I'm speaking to you from a poolside of a lovely garden hotel in PP. It's cloudy and breezy so perhaps there is rain on the way. We're here to start our last bit of language training at the VSO Programme Office tomorrow. The blog is a welcome diversion from learning vocab!
Geoff arrived back safely from UK via Singapore last night and I travelled south on the bus from a Health Workshop in Siem Reap yesterday. It was great - lively, informative and friendly and largely presented by volunteers. I sat next to a hospital management adviser from Broadbottom, near Glossop who said that a volunteer coming out in the October batch to work in the province next to us, has parents who live in Saddleworth! He is called Oliver Shipp for those Saddleworthians reading this. The world is a small place.
Geoff has had a good time and says to say sorry to all those he was unable to speak to.He spent most of the time with Nick and his Mum and saw the Farne Islands and Bamburgh in the sunshine.Our house is still in one piece and I'm looking forward to getting onto our roof with my new paints. It's been very quiet without him but I've been busy at work teaching his 3 English classes, supporting the Project Manager in writing his quarterly report and interviewing for a new manager for the Project's community based health insurance scheme. The next big priority is to look for a new donor as the present funding ends in April 09. There seems to be no sense of urgency even though everyone could be out of a job in 9 mths, including me! Today we said goodbye to an Indian couple in our group who are returning home as their placement has not worked out - I think they have found it difficult to adapt to the very different work culture here.
We have a good social life to look forward to for 2 weeks, especially good as there are few treats in Samraong. I've survived though with the company of the other 2 volunteers - bike rides, coffee in the market, lunch in a lean too shed costing all of 70p, and lots of reading has helped to pass the time, but its good to have Geoff back.
Hope the Summer sunshine continues and that those of you going away have a lovely time. Keep us posted!
Much love from us both
Carol and Geoff xx
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