I've had a fantastic week since our Christmas shindig last week. I've been up to Battambang and Siem Reap but I'm not going to talk too much about it. I think it comes across as very shallow and disrespectful considering what's happening in Cambodia at the moment. It's true I had an amazing week but it hardly matters that much that I've had the time of my life while the Cambodian people are struggling for a little piece of fairness. On Friday I saw the headlines splashed across the news; five people were shot dead by heavily armed paratroopers outside a garment factory while protesting for a wage increase. The police opened fire on the crowd because 'they had no choice'. I knew there were protests planned by the opposing party for the week and we were told to take care as we headed off for the school holidays over New Years. You know how much money a garment factory worker gets a month? Between 60 to 80 USD A MONTH. Yes, it's cheap to live here but it's not that cheap. I got talking to one man who said he is afraid of what will happen next. He thinks the country will go back to its horrible ways and people will (are) be killed for stupid reasons. He said the people hold the pain in their hearts. They can't speak their pain freely and hold it all in their hearts. At this point he became too emotional and walked away. He was crying. It's a bit cliche but we don't know how lucky we are. We totally take for granted our human rights of fair pay and free speech each and every minute. In the last day alone I saw three girls I know in Ireland post pictures of their new Michael Kors watch or Victoria Secret swimsuit. It's not their fault they can have nice things but it's just heartbreaking to know good people are dying here for a little piece of the kind of life we have in Europe. I don't know what's next for Cambodia. I read that the governing party has banned the opposition from protesting until they can guarantee public safety. Hard to swallow when you see pictures of peaceful monks and ordinary people being beaten by police and army. I don't know how human beings can be so cruel to each other. It's heartbreaking. But let's see how things progress over the coming weeks.
SIEM REAP HIGHLIGHTS
- a tourist resort town if nothing else, it even has a street called 'pub street' that wouldn't be amiss in Magaluf.
- bought three day pass for Angkor, went every day.
- Day two I cycled 30km round the Angkor sites. Was tough and I got saddle arse from it.
- last day I visited the 'big three', Angkor Wat (the big one) the Bayon (the faces) and Ta Phrom (the trees).
- got the chance to meet up with some long lost colleagues and friends and eat myself sick in a few amazing restaurants. So nice to see friendly faces from 'my other life'.
- caught bed bugs from the hostel, am currently boiling all my clothes.
BATTAMBANG HIGHLIGHTS
In short: hipster cafés, temple spotting, acrobatics watching, Bamboo train riding and moped driving. This is also where we rang in the new year, already 6 days ago. I really felt at home there. We also met a man who was returning to Cambodia for the first time since he was 4. His parents fled in 1979 under the Khmer Rouge. He was with his mother and they both had such optimism for the country, it warmed us. But I would also like to be able to ask them now how they feel after the unrest on Friday.
The below is of Wat Banan outside of Battambang. Old Angkor ruins.
The pic below is of non other than Mr. Battambang. Legend has it he had a magic stick that controlled all his enemies. I believe it.
Deep gorge down to Hindu statues outside Battambang.
PHARE CIRCUS
Born from a former physical education course for kids originally from the Khmer refugee camps in Thailand. We saw trained acrobats perform for an hour. The best 10$ I spent all week. Two former students have even been accepted into Cirque de Soleil.
BAMBOO TRAIN
Controversial. Some love it, some hate it. We loved it. A bit scary at times travelling on a bamboo mat with wheels at speeds upwards of 35km per hour. Also the tracks were anything but parallel. Only one track? No problem! Just pick the train up and let the other pass. Simple. We gave 2$ to the best businessman in town. At seven years old we were bamboozled. He took us on a tour of his village, showed us the little factory, the fish farm, his aunts house, his uncles house, his school and his sisters shop (in case we needed a cold drink/t-shirt/bracelet.) Then we climbed back aboard and we zoomed down the tracks again. Oh, but not before we were told to tip the poor driver. No idea what the 5$ ticket fee was for.
Right now I'm back at the school. I realize this post probably reads a bit all over the place but then I'm also all over the place, both elated after an amazing week and heartbroken for the people I'm getting to know. I'm really hoping for the best for the people of Cambodia, they deserve it.
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