An average week!
on Mary In Cambodia (Cambodia), 25/Jan/2011 12:12, 34 days ago
 What’s an average week?Seven days ago, the weather here was a very comfortable 25ish degrees, cooler in the early morning and late evening, no fan necessary and light blanket made for a good nights sleep. All changed when the neighbours decided to add a third floor to their premises, and the work started right outside my window at dawn every morning, including Saturday and Sunday. Enough is enough, I moved to a room at the opposite end of the hotel. Two bottles of bleach (apologies to the environment, it was essential) and a couple of hours scrubbing and I’m sorted. Wonder of wonders I have hot water, I can’t believe my luck, the luxury of a hot shower.Monday was an uneventful working day. Early on Tuesday morning we were off to visit some schools. Our first session was in a familiar school, and then the plan was to go a‘little’ further on to a school we hadn’t visited before, but are to organize a technical meeting there later this week. It turned out to be a further 10 km along a dirt track.(35km in all). The road took its toll on the bike, a flat tyre miles from no place is not funny, especially when the temperature shoots up to mid 30s as I trudge along carrying the helmet and jacket.Joe thought he would do better alone and suggested I wait by a work premises for him to repair the bike and come back for me. A great idea. A roadside family even offered me a hammock while I waited, just ordinary Cambodian hospitality. I enjoyed chatting with the children, luckily I had a few sweets in my bag.I also learned about stone carving for which the area is renowned. In no time at all Joe was back. A new tyre cost $4.   The stone carving was interesting. They make statues of Buddha in many sizes and designs, as well as other objects mostly associated with Buddhism. It was amazing to watch the face gradually appear, as the men gently and skilfully chipped away at the rock with a chisel and hammer. The large Buddha takes two stone masons one month to complete, working all day, six days a week. It sells for $600. The masons told me they train for 4 years, this is a long apprenticeship, considering that a 15 year old can qualify as an electrician in just 3 months here.Back in my south facing room things are heating up, the temperature has soared this week, the blanket is gone and the fan is just about sufficient to keep me from melting.The warm shower is still a luxury, but I could do without the return of the ANTS, I’m back to straining the boiled ones out of my tea, and shaking the live ones off my biscuits!Ah sure we win some, we lose some!