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on Mary In Cambodia (Cambodia), 03/Nov/2009 10:17, 34 days ago
 ,Week 4It’s Sunday again and almost two weeks of language training done. I really need to master the Cambodian language (kmai), as otherwise I’ll be totally dependant on my interpreter who will be with me two and a half days a week only. Also unless I master this language I will be unable to communicate directly with the teachers and children. So far I’m keeping up, but it’s hard work. Our teacher is excellent, very patient and good humoured. Old style teaching,talk and chalk and lots of repetition. I’ve heard he learned English while in a Thai refugee camp after the Pol Pot regime. It’s speaking only, and writing words phonetically in roman letters. Luckily we don’t have to learn the Cambodian script. It’s an easy language in some ways. Once you learn the vocabulary, you just string the words together. There are no tenses or plurals. ie’ Mee-un’ means’have’ and it’s the same word for had, will have or having. ‘Man-uh’ means‘person’ and for more than one you just add a number or‘Ch-ran’ for many.I’m enjoying life here so far. I’m constantly amazed at how pleasant and gentle the people are. The children are beautiful. They play so happily with almost nothing. Shuttle cocks(Spelling?) are very popular. I watched kids standing in a circle and flicking one over and back to each other, with the side of the heel, with surprising skill. (All bare-foot)People here are very enterprising. Apart from little stalls selling bottles of petrol, foods, flowers,drinks etc. I saw a little old lady sitting on the ground with a bathroom scales, charging a few Riel( Cambodian money) to weigh yourself. Every evening two young men set up a ghetto blaster on the promenade by the river, stand on 2 tables and dance for about two hours. Hundreds of people, from small kids to grannies pay 1000 Riel( about 20 cent) to join in. Many more sit on their scooters and watch them. Whole families sit around and eat supper while they watch. It’s a real social gathering.It’s early to bed here. The town is deserted by 9pm. Work seems to start around 6am.In the street the smells are still hard on the nose. it’s a combination of cooking with many spices and rotting rubbish. I don’t think refuse collection has come here yet. Religion:-Cambodian people are mainly Buddhist. There are altars to Buddha on most street corners. There is a big one lit with flickering‘christmas’ lights in the hotel foyer. They put baskets of fresh fruit in front of it regularly. Sometimes they place lotus flower there also.Sometimes I hear chanting over loud-speakers ,but I’m not sure of the significance of it yet. It happens when a wedding is about to take place, but at other times also. We’re wondering if it’s when someone dies,or to announce a birth. Must investigate some more.There are some Muslims here, and the call to prayer is heard from the mosques.I found a Catholic Church here, on the outskirts of town, thanks to my rusty bike. The only Mass was at 7am. on Sunday morning. The Priest is French. The church is built on stilts. You leave your shoes at the top of the stairs and sit on rattan mats on the floor. It lasted one hour and twenty five minutes.After that I could do with a Radox bath. I’m thinking it might be enough for two weeks! Food;-Food is mainly sold in the markets. They’re in full swing by 7 o’clock every morning, including Sunday. The market consists of little wooden falling apart tables side by side along each side of a narrow lane(dusty or muddy depending on the weather) The stall owner sometimes sits cross-legged on the table with the produce all around him/her. You can buy meat, fish, fried spiders,all kinds of fruit vegetables and spices. There ia a lady who makes waffles and one who cooks noodles and fish soup there, and a few tailors.Fish is plentiful here because we are near the Mekong River. They serve fish soup, fish curry, fish with noodles, fish with rice,etc. I’m not comfortable with it yet, I’m not sure if it’s because of what I see in the market, or because they throw in the head, eyes, tail, and probably the inners. I’m still happy with a waffle and a pineapple for breakfast.When eating, most families that I have seen, sit on a mat on the ground and serve themselves from a pot in the centre, picnic style.Milk, cheese and butter are almost impossible to find here. Bread is available, but locals don’t seem to eat much of it. They call it balloon bread( because of the air-holes in it). Rice or noodles are the staple diet, and eaten three times a day Some of the delicious fruit on sale in the market:-From left:-Pear, Jam boo,Orange(mostly green here, but still ripe) Pomegranate and the big pink one at the back is a dragon fruit. Bottom picture:dragon fruit and pomegranate.