The itchy and scratchy show.

I am wrecked after another week as a teacher. It's a good feeling. After my crazy week of sightseeing up north, I got back into the swing of things easily and geared up for some intense lesson planning and execution. We actually had another day off on Tuesday, Victory Day here in Cambodia, which slowed the momentum up a bit. I think Cambodia must have the most public holiday days in the world. The other volunteers said that a few months back there was hardly a week where they didn't have a day off. They should give some free days to Holland...

 

Life in the village this week was interesting. I said in my last post that I caught bed bugs while in Siem Reap. I've never been so itchy. Ok, I have a feint recollection of wanting to scratch my skin off at 6 years old with chicken pocks but the bed bugs thing was this week. The worst thing was that I didn't even realize I had them till I got back to the school with a bag full of freshly washed clothes (freshly washed by a launderette) and infected both the bag and my bed with them. So, not only did I have to hand-wash copious amounts of clean clothes, I had to wash my sheets, leave my mattress in the sun for a day and spray the bed frame with some toxic chemical I found in the back of the medical cupboard down in the kitchen. I even cut off my hippie bracelets just in case. I think it did the trick but I've felt paranoid all week. I went for a walk with Cecile the other evening and I had an absolute panic attack when an ant bit my foot. I was also terrified that they had crawled into my hair and were having the time of their lives in there so I bought some head lice shampoo. I was all geared up to wash the (probably non existent) feckers away when we were told there was no water left in the storage tank. No water = no shower = bed bugs building small bed bug towns in my hair. After a couple of hours I couldn't take it anymore and like the arrogant westerner I am I went and bought 12 bottles of drinking water and took a bath in the biggest laundry bowl I could find. The other volunteers called me wasteful and it is but I HAD to do it. I HAD TO. But tomorrow I take a shower with old rain water at a neighbors house so it works out.

My hand washing skills displayed in below pic. 

The below pictures are of my 2-3 ABC class. We've been learning about the body this week, employing the services of Brother Monkey, best known for appearing in 'The Monkey Family'  back in December. My favorite class this week was our creative Friday task where the class could only draw what I told them....e.g. draw two heads, one tummy,  ten legs. We ended up creating a monster and it was the most fun all week getting them to present their creations to the class at the end. 

Between my classes on Thursday I went for a walk around the village. Within 10 seconds of leaving I had a hand in each of my own and was given a walking tour of the village by two of my 8 year old students. I was introduced to every aunt, uncle, cousin and grandparent they could think of and I was made to hold at least three babies. It was amazing and something I'll never forget. 

And an update on the protests I mentioned the last time; 6 people now dead and many more were seriously injured. Factory workers all returned to work with a $5 dollar increase on their existing $60 a month. However, they won't be paid for the next two weeks for the 'damage' they have caused to the garment industry here in Cambodia. The labour unions have been identified as inciting public disorder and will not be taken seriously in worker negotiations again. I also read an article online from a teacher with 21 years experience being paid a paltry $75 dollars a month. And six workers were grabbed off the street in Phnom Penh while trying to deliver a petition, they were detained for 18 hours without charge. My heart bleeds for these people. I can't imagine the hopelessness they feel for their children's future. 

Then, as foreigners, we also have to deal with a certain backlash. My roommate Sophie was in Phnom Penh for a couple days volunteering as a surgical nurse on pro bono operations. She bargained with a moto driver to drive her back to her hostel. For the whole ten minutes of the journey he aggressively told her how selfish she is for bargaining, she is white with a lot of money and Cambodian people have nothing, good Cambodian people are dying for a better life, doesn't she know? She didn't feel it was a dangerous situation but knew the driver had no intention of hearing her story or the fact she assisted in free reconstructive surgery for Cambodians that day, such was his grief. It will be interesting to see how the next couple of weeks and months will pan out. 

Holiday week in Northwest Cambodia

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.