Goodbye to Cambodia!
on Carol and Geoff in Cambodia (Cambodia), 25/Jan/2011 03:18, 34 days ago
Hi EveryoneOur final blog after 22mths in Cambodia! Geoff came back yesterday from his 3 wks at Spitler School, Siem Reap, whilst I've enjoyed time with Laura and Enrico.We fly off this evening for holidays in Sydney and New Zealand for 1 month, and then after 3 wks more in Singapore caring for Enrico when Laura goes back to work, we'll fly home to Manchester March 25th. I'm so looking forward to being back in Heathfields, Geoff not so keen!VSO has been a fantastic experience, one which I would recommend to anyone who wanted an adventure and to be taken out of their comfort zone.They are an impressive set up with great ideals and I felt proud to be a volunteer with the organisation.There is a lot of volu - tourism in Cambodia, which I think is of dubious benefit to either volunteer or community. Then there are the huge donors, who throw money at problems, but don't always manage to change hearts and minds. VSO is there for the long haul, working slowly alongside the locals, to share skills and model good practice so that work practices and attitudes change to benefit poor people.Its called capacity building! Really hard and frustrating at times, so much easier just to do it, rather than advise, encourage and support. I wonder how much of my work at CHHRA will be sustained - perhaps the health promotion sessions at the hospital , the health knowledge of the staff and a bit more hand washing in the villages? Still, the work with staff and villagers, when it has gone well, has been fantastic and pehaps the most satisfying of work experiences so far!I hope that we will hang on to some of the simple pleasures of life when we return.I shall miss smiling faces,the honesty and touching kindness of most Khmer people, the beautiful skies, stars and sunsets, particularly in the rainy season, tropical downpours which cool things down and get rid of dust, geckos (lizards) in the house, their noise and acrobatics, Khmer food, swimming in outdoor pools, cocktails in sumptuous surroundings, reading a good novel for a long stretch on our roof, riding our bikes, and of course the company and conversation with our many new friends, volunteers and Cambodians.I shan't miss the plastic rubbish all around, the heat and sense of always being a bit wet, dirty, smelly Samrong market, being stared at, long,boring days at the office, particularly at the beginning, and hard chairs at long, tedious meetings at the Public Health Department where there was a lot of talking by the 'high-ups' but little seemed to change.Geoff's experience and take on things has been a bit different, so I'll hand over to him!By not having a contract and therefore no employer, I avoided some of the tedium and frustration that Carol encountered. I was able to choose whom and what I taught and was in control of my time throughout the stay. The students I taught were adults and knew some English already. The lessons were fun and Carol often remarked on the amount of laughter she heard as she sat on the roof with her aperitif and her book. However, working in isolation is no help to any teacher and towards the end I started to lose momentum and was only too glad to accept an offer of work from an NGO. This involved a 6 week project writing "Success Stories" for the NGO to send to donors. With this work I ventured more into Carol`s Cambodia of needy villages,health and education problems and families living a hand to mouth existence. I interviewed a range of people from UN employees to villagers and their children and wrote their stories, some of which have now been translated into Khmer.Towards the end of our stay I realised I didn`t share Carol`s enthusiasm for returning home ,so I looked for something to bring me back to Cambodia. I hoped to be able to do short term projects rather than an extended stay. A Yorkshireman from Ingleton working for Concert NGO put me in touch with Spitler School near Siem Reap. It was arranged that I spend 3 weeks in school in January to see if I could be of use to them. Happily things worked out well. They want me back, I want to go back. The school was founded by an American family and a Cambodian who wanted to do something permanent for very poor people. In fact the village where the school is situated is one of the poorest I`ve seen. But for 6 years now they have had a good school whose input into the community is much more than just education. In the short time I was there the school gave out rice and mosquito nets to villagers.The Cambodian founder has a history of poverty and orphanages and is dedicated to improving the lives of the less fortunate. The students love their school and run to the classrooms when the bell goes. I worked with the 2 teachers of English to improve their skills and loved being in a classroom again.While in Siem Reap I stayed at our favourite hotel and travelled to work by motorbike. I hope to return to Spitler later in the year.So, unlike Carol I shall not be thinking of what I shall miss, but rather what I might return to. C The drop out rate from VSO was quite high, yet many seek to stay on when their contract expires. I fall into the latter category, only too happy to prolong the association with such wonderful people. And its the people who made it for me, Thouen, Sreiyong, Soroth, Kuntea, Hing, Towie,Sreirath and her family and of course, Mouen, who preferred to be called Theavy. There were many others of course,and hopefully, there will be many more.So farewell from Cambodia - thanks for your company over the months and all your emails, letters and skype conversations! Please keep in touch. We'll be in Saddleworth from March 25th at 3 Heathfields Rd. Uppermill. Oldham OL36EW Tel: 01457 875219The pictures are me in the office at a staff training session and us receiving our farewell gifts form Hing, my Programme Manager and Kimhong, the Executive Director of CHHRA. Pity about the hair!We look forward to seeing you.With lots of loveCarol and Geoff xx