So who are you saving?
on Carol and Geoff in Cambodia (Cambodia), 17/Mar/2010 09:26, 34 days ago
Hi EveryoneSorry its been a while since we were last in touch but we've actually been busy! So, we'll start with the best of news, and then Geoff will tell you something about our holiday. Laura and Alberto are expecting their 1st baby in September, so we will be grand parents in Asia! We are thrilled, as are all the family in the UK. And only a 1 1/2hr flight away. We'll see them in Singapore in May and look forward to making plans then, as to how we can best support them once the baby arives. All well so far.Geoff - Howard and Sue arrived in Siem Reap on the 9th of February and with Carol taking annual leave we were able to have a holiday together. We moved from resident mode to tourist mode and really enjoyed the experience.Our friends had decided to make the most of the temples in Angkor so they had a 3-day pass which allows you to get a real feel for the place.We stayed at the Golden Banana which is a lovely boutique hotel to come back to after a day's templing. In the evening we took them to restaurants where they could try our Khmer cuisine and where the menus would test Sue's ingenuity. They later said that Angkor Wat had been the highlight of the trip. Perhaps it is best not to describe Angkor too much as some of you are, and some might be, visiting the temples. Come with no preconceived ideas and prepare to be amazed.If Siem Reap was the site of the ancient civilisation, then Phnom Penh representst more recent history. Howard and Sue went out to the Killing Fields and also to Toul Sleng, the school which the Khmer Rouge converted into an infamous prison and torture site. Living in Cambodia you are constantly aware of the Pol Pot legacy. Tourists rarely see the despair and trauma behind the constant smiles of the Khmer people. Few families were left unscathed and Carol and I have listened to many agonising stories about the destruction of family bonds and the disappearance of family members. Toul Sleng and the Killing Fields are a stark reminder of the tragedy that befell this country.On a much lighter note, we toured the capital on cyclos, the traditional method of transport here. The men who operate these cyclos are generally quite old, but they pedal along behind you while you sit back in a deckchair with overhead cover and enjoy the fun of Phnom Penh traffic. They are a dying breed, used less and less by Khmer people, but attracting a new tourist clientele.We spent the final part of the holiday on the coast at Sihanoukville. This was our first visit to the main tourist destination on the Cambodian coast. We stayed in a centrally located small hotel not far from the sea. Two of the beaches there are very attractive but quite different. The one in front of the Sokha Hotel is reserved for residents and outsiders who pay. For 4 dollars a day you get luxury, Khmer style, white sand, no litter or hawkers, access to the pool, the beach, loungers, towels and a sunshade.The other beach, open to all, is lined with simpleKhmer bars and restaurants built of wood, white sand and local fishing boats. Rumour has it that this too has been bought by a rich high up person and will soon be privatised. Sadly, this seems to happens all to often here.We stopped one evening at a cafe run by an elderly English ex-pat. We ordered 4 coffees much to the dismay of the owner who seemed less than happy to serve. Although we ordered simultaneously, the drinks were delivered sequentially as if we had asked him to perform the labours of Hercules. Four times, with a Mrs Overall shuffle, he made the journey from bar to table. Having delivered the final drink, a latte, which, to quote him, had been ordered by the awkward member of the group, he was too tired to make the return journey to the bar, so he stayed to chat. Hearing that Carol was a volunteer in Cambodia, he asked,"So who are you saving here then?" We couldn't help but like him, and laugh! People here have just the same variety of takes on aid to the developing world as at home.Carol - Work continues to delight, inspire, bore and frustrate me in more or less equal measures! I've just had a great week with a visit from Suzanna , a VSO volunteer working with behaviour change in village communities and with health staff in Kratie, an attractive town on the Mekong. We had a field trip with a health promoter who had gathered a group of 5 older women to talk about how they might reduce the incidence of abdominal pain in their families by building latrines. They sat for 1 1/2 hrs on a hard,concrete floor. Suzanna, a former GP from Nottingham and about my age, and me, sat on the usual plastic chairs, and as we laughed and shared water melon at the end of the session, one of them said that we weren't so different from them after all, apart from the colour of our skins. Such a simple but powefull statement. This was in a poor village which had seen heavy fighting, as the Khmer Rouge guerrillas retreated in the 90's towards the Thai border and has forested areas yet to be cleared of landmines. I can only imagine what they must have experienced, but like the majority of women the world over, they just wanted a peaceful life and good health for their families. We also visited households who were motivated to improve their families health by beginning to boil water and clean up their compounds and others who seemed to have almost given up - children recovering from malaria, elderly grand parents who looked malnourished and said they were always tired and a chaotic compound full of litter and animals. This all provided great material for our staff training on Motivation - how do we motivate ourselves, and others who are hard to help? Just like being back in the NHS! Suzanna also gave some First Aid Training to staff - choking, drowning, burns and snakebite!Today 2 new folks, Anne and her partner Stevie, arrived for their placement week. They are Glaswegians, her working with behaviour change and him a musician. I have the task of introducing her to the Public Health department, helping them to find a house, open a bank account etc in the hope that they will go away with a positive view of Samraong, ready to join our VSO team in late April.To end, I've succumbed to the encouragement of the girls at CHHRA and bought some Khmer silk which I have had made into a long skirt and top by the seamstress across the road. It had its first outing yesterday, when the 3 volunteers went off all glammed up, and Geoff ,on a 5hr round trip in an old beaten up taxi with minimal ac. on the dustiest road yet, to one of Geoffs' students' wedding. There were 1000 guests over 2 days, we barely recognised Leap with the makeup, hair do and eye lashes from an Bollywood movie and of course there was the loudest live band and food and beer aplenty. We were made very welcome. This is such a country of contrasts!Really good to hear that Spring has arrived at home - we're melting here in 35 -40c temperatures, as the hot season lives up to its name. Sorry that we've also fallen behind with personal replies to those of you who email. We will reply eventually, so please keep in touch!With lots of loveGeoff and Carol xx