New Years Eve 2007

This New Year's Eve was my first in Cambodia and decided to join some friends who had arranged a boat to cruise the Tonle Sap River which it the main river that runs through Phnom Penh. The boat held about 20-30 people and was planned for a 3 hour tour ("the weather started getting rough, the tiny ship was tossed...."). The boat is no Queen Mary and was steered by a fella who looked suspiciously like a bloke who drives a motor-taxi around town. He steered the boat around in circles for the whole time with a steering/rudder type thing that was made out of Lego.



It was actually quite cool for Cambodia at this time of year and more so at night on the river. Most of the poor Khmers were freezing to death and wondering why they were bothering. New Year on the 1st of January is referred to here as International New Years as the country also celebrates Chinese New Year (3 day holiday) in February and Khmer New Year (4 day holiday) in April. The idea of only 1 day for a holiday is absurd to them. As you can tell by the photos below it was really going off on the boat.



Entertainment was provided by a friend of a friend who is an Australian guitar player and singer who did a lot of Johnny Cash. He was very good under the conditions and did a lot of other requested songs. No one really got up and danced, but it didn't stop one brave Khmer girl who took up the role of back-up dancer for the set's duration (I think it was his wife). Most of the revellers were more interested in drinking mainly to keep warm (20 Celsius is a blizzard in Cambodia). Most of the drinking was done around a small table that refused to remain level which confounded most of the locals as to why their drink kept tipping over ("Drink fall down. Pick drink up. Drink fall down again.")



Some noticeable celebrities that appeared at the party were (in order):

* Annie (girlfriend of house mate and fellow teacher Ryan) shown here indicating how many times her drink had fallen off the table.



* Me, Trea (terrified in the "Land of the Giants) and Ryan.



* Simon and Slek (fellow teacher and friend)



Highlight of the night was the firework display at midnight. Phnom Penh does put on a lot of firework displays for the generous amount of holidays the country has. They are always held on the river, so we had a good vantage point on the boat directly under the display. But quantity does not mean quality. The fireworks, in a word, are pissweak. By way of comparison, below is a picture of New Year's celebrations in Sydney on the water as shot by the photographer some kilometres away from the central display:



Below is a photo I took directly underneath the Phnom Penh display at the height of the explosions (the slightly less darker blur in the middle are the fireworks). Given the country's history involving ordinance and exploding things I expected somewhat better.



After the fireworks, one of the passengers aboard had a birthday (1 Jan) and a cake was brought out to celebrate (the lighting of the candles was more of a dazzling display then the previous fireworks). Cambodians love birthday cakes, but not so much for eating. The average Khmer think cakes tastes too sweet, but are perfect for use in hand to hand combat. After the candles and cutting comes the smearing of icing of anyone unfortunate enough to be in the vicinity. Below is a photo of the contestant considered the most successful in avoiding the cake standing next the person considered the least successful.

We offloaded back on the riverside at 1.00pm where further celebrations where neither recorded or remembered.

The end.

Christmas Party

PUC, the school I teach at, is a very socially responsible place. Puthy, a Khmer teacher I’ve met here, works in the Scholarship Department that provides a number of scholarships to financially disadvantaged kids in the country. She also plays a big part in the running of an orphanage in Phnom Penh that is sponsored by the university and some of the teaching staff volunteer their time towards. Puthy, thinking I have some sort of social conscience, asked me to come along and visit the orphanage to say hello to the kids. Maybe because it was the Christmas season or the guilt of being away from my family I agreed and went along.

The orphanage is over the river (meaning it is in a rougher part of town) away from the usual haunts of foreigners or visitors to Phnom Penh. There is nothing too flash about this place, a collection of roughly built buildings that pass for a school and home. The place is very dusty and doesn’t look too inviting but the kids seem to be very happy. They range from 3 to about 16 years of age. They learn the basic education stuff as well as English, but the older kids also study vocational courses such as photography and I.T. It was very odd when I arrived to what appeared to be a very disadvantaged place to be met by a group of kids each with their own digital camera. The idea is that hopefully these kids will go on and make a career or get a job in the growing tourism industry in Cambodia by using these practical skills.

The day I visited was like a graduation plus Christmas celebration (though it seems strange that a 95% Buddhist country would hold a Xmas Party). A number of the kids were presented with certificates for completion of their course. An American, Dean, who provides a lot of financial support for the orphanage through his NGO presented certificates and provided for a party for the kids afterwards (candy/lollies that were consumed within .0256 seconds of them being placed down). Below is a picture of Dean and Puthy at the presentation ceremony shortly before they disappeared in the rush for candy.



Shortly after the ceremony I was asked by some of the Khmer teachers if I knew the Christmas Story (the Jesus, Mary and Joseph one, not Santa). Having 12 years of a Catholic education I advised I did indeed. My admission meant that I had volunteered to retell the story for the benefit of the kids via a Khmer translator. Puthy told me that not many foreigners of any type get to the place and the kids are always interested in hearing about other places. I told the Jesus story but could see that the kids (despite the best efforts of the translator) were not really getting a kick out of my telling of The Greatest Story Ever Told. I therefore moved on to what most Cambodians know about Christmas and that is Santa Claus. I don’t blame them, the story about a bloke in a red suit (Khmer Rouge) traveling at night (guerilla night tactics) to climb down the chimney (home invasion) to leave a present (bribery) seems much more relevant to the Cambodians recent life experience. The kids were most interested though in what Australians typically had for dinner as talking about leg ham and fresh prawns seemed to get the biggest ohhhs and ahhhhs.

The kids then put on a display of traditional Khmer dancing for the small group of foreigners in attendance. Khmer dancing has a lot of meaning and is performed to strict rules. My own personal rule is that I fall asleep when it is performed. But these kids put a lot of effort into the performance and looked so happy doing it that I actually enjoyed it. Plus it went for only 20 minutes rather then a usual 5 hour-effort.

After the dancing, a number of gifts were presented to the kids by the visitors and staff from PUC. I wasn’t required to buy anything but I gave to the orphanage a new soccer ball and volleyball (Attention: Nephews and Nieces - Please note the reason I did not send you any presents this year was because in the above gifts were donated in your names. I am sure that you will agree with me that this gift is better then any Xbox 360 or $100 gift voucher).

Presents you will never see

I presented this to the kids in a very formal hand over much like I was handing over the Grand Final trophy, a bit over the top but the kids liked the chance to take photos.

Recreation of handover

I spoke to a number of the older kids who could speak English and they were all very bright, positive kids who really value the opportunity that the oprhange had given them and are hoping for big things in the future. I hope that it is possible for them to do so in what is a difficult country for people without family to support them.

The end.

Chantevy Birthday

Most people have been asking me what having I been doing with my social life, more to the point do I have a girl friend. No girlfirend but i cetainly havent been sitting at home twiddling my thumbs. Not a lot to do in Phnom Penh at night other then drink and drink. One notable night was a birthday party for Chantevy.

(The next paragraph is for the benefit of my sisters and girls I used to work with. Anyone else will find it boring.) When I first came to Cambodia and did my TESOL course, Chantrea was the office girl and general help-with-anything girl. Chantrea (or Trea) is engaged to Steve, An Irish teacher here. Trea's sister, Annie, also goes out with Ryan an American teacher who did the same TESOL course as me here (who also lives in the flat under me). Annie works at a resturant/bar called Howies (no it's not that sort of place). A number of her friends/cousins called Chanthea, Chantevy, Chanritha and Chankunty (and for some reason) Annette also work at Howies. None of whom are my girlfirend (Are we clear?)

Anyway......

Chantevy (or Tevy) had a birthday on the lakeside at a Khmer pontoon resturant. These are local places that are set on pontoons by the side of lake where you can eat and drink. Sounds nice but it is a insect haven and I dont know who ate more; the insects or me. To make up for it they also sell Khmer wine. It takes like cough medicene and is brewed for hours in empty bear stubbies. The following photos are the product of too many wines and mozzie bites.


Jake (another Yank teacher), Steve, Tevy and Trea


Tia and Annie (girlfriend of Ryan)

Jake and Tevy (Birthday Girl)

Howie girls (V for Victory)

Ryan (boyfriend of Annie) and yours truley

Trea and Steve (engaged)

Annette (drunk), Me, Tevy and Jake

Anetter (drunker), Steve and a girl they all call Black Girl (she is dark)

Tevy's parents (looking worried)

Steve (reason for worry)

Trea (further worried)

Birthday cake cutting


Birthday cake eating

Some dirty old man

Yanks conversing

Me, Dara (long time taxi driver) and Jake.

Day out shopping in Phnom Penh

Phnom Penh is like a lot of other South East Asian cities: full of hot, smelly markets full of cheap, crapy items. The most (in)famous of the these is the Central Market (or Phsar Thmey in Khmer which translated back into English means ‘New Market’?????). It is an art deco 30s/40s building (again quoting guide book) that is stinking hot inside and just plain stinks on the outside. You can buy almost anything here as long as it is:

1. t-shirt
2. jeans
3. sneakers/runners
4. a photocopy of a copyrighted book
5. gold jewelry

I’ve been told there are other things in the market but every time I visit I wander around for a good hour in the heat and I seem to pass the same stall selling all of the above items. I quizzed some students on what their favorite place to shop was and without doubt Central Market is number one. They claim that this is the cheapest place to buy things and is stocked with almost everything you will want or need. I asked what do they typically buy there. They replied, ‘T-shirts, jeans, sneakers…’



The alternative to Central Market is the Sorya Market. It is a modern mall-like market with 5 floors. It lays claim to be the tallest building in Cambodia. When it opened about 5 years ago, it also claimed the record of the 1st case of vertigo in the country. Cambodian buildings are not meant to be any higher then the spire on the Royal Pagoda (a Buddhist church) at the King’s Palace, so you get few buildings here that are classified as sky-scrapers. Sorya has a lot of market-like stalls but has a flash electronics store that sells computers and plasma screens, expensive fashion stores and fast-food like chains (no McDonalds….have I mentioned that before). But if you ask anyone in Phnom Penh what they like most about Sorya it is 2 things:

1. the air-conditioning and;
2. the escalator

A/C is not rare here but the average local likes nothing better then on a hot day to wander around the building taking in the cool artificial breeze content in the fact that they aren’t paying for it. Many Cambodian courtships take place entirely in the confines of this place. The escalator is a little more special as it is the only one in the entire country. Security guards are placed at the start of each escalator to discourage people from riding too often. A student told me he went up and down the 5 levels on the ‘moving stairs’ for 3 hours when it first opened. Sorya also has a Western style supermarket where you can buy most things but is sadly lacking in Vegemite and Savory Shapes.

Residence in Phnom Penh

It has been a while since I've updated the blog, but I have been keeping photos to document my compelling life. The school where I teach has a week and half off for Christmas (which is in a Buddhist country) so hopefully I can add a little more then I have over the last few months.

Below are a couple photos of my flat/apartment in Phnom Penh. It is on Sihanounk Boulevard which is quite an impressive address (for Cambodia). It is about 100m from the Independence Monument and on the way to the Royal Palace. In the middle of the street is a long narrow park which the locals use in the early morning and late afternoon for exercise and hanging out. It gets quite busy and is the place of choice for local teenagers to practice their favorite hobby: driving their motorbike around in circles for hours on end.

I'm on the third floor and the 1st photo looks down on the alleyway leading onto the street. The house is owned by a Khmer family (there seems to about 50 of them living in the same size flat I’m in on the ground floor). Many years ago during the Pol Pot days, the population of Phnom Penh were all made to leave the city and forced into labour camps in the countryside. When "Brother Number One" was defeated and the people returned their was a mad scramble by the locals to reclaim the abandoned houses. As a result, many revenge killings and blood feuds have occurred between neighbors over disputed property. Needless to say, I ALWAYS pay the landlord on time.

You can't quite see it in the 2nd picture, of the park, but over the road is the North Korean embassy. Cambodia is one of the few countries in the world that are on good relations with the nutters from the North. The Prime Minister of North Korea visited a couple of weeks ago and almost all of the city was closed off to allow him to travel via motorcade around the city. Thousands of North Korean flags flew around the city and kids were made to line the streets to wave and welcome the mad-nuclear-scientist-loving politician. You can rest assured that most nights I keep a close eye on the embassy in case they start anything.



My flat is a one bedroom, fairly open place. It has a big L-shaped balcony which is good on humid nights and high enough so that the mosquitoes don’t invade. The furniture is provided by the landlord, so while it is not luxurious, it is comfortable. I have A/C in the bedroom but am learning to sleep without it. In fact, late November was quite cool at night (students at school were complaining about the cold and would wear jumpers and coats to class). The bathroom is a bit rough, but I do have hot water and a toilet that guarantees to flush at least 75% of the time. My cooking at home is about on a par with what I used to cook in Australia (0). The TV has cable, but of the 80 or so channels, 70 of them are either Cambodian, Thai, Chinese or another South East Asian country. I do get Channel Australia which is a mix of the ABC and commercial channels back home, so as long as I can watch Home'n'Away and the football I don't feel like I'm living in a cultural waste land.



Below me live a couple of other teachers from the same school, an American guy and the other is an English girl. Both have spent about the same other of time here as me, so there is always someone to go eating or drinking with (not so much talking as they both have weird accents that I'm sure the students have no idea what they are talking about).

Update on Phnom Penh

Post update to let you all know that I am alive and kicking. Working at a language centre on a university campus in Phnom Penh (http://www.puc.edu.kh/). No one understands me, but i think that was the same back home as well. The university gig is not as flash as it sounds. As long as you have a white face and can stand up at the same time they will hire you. A lot of the students pay for their classes, they are nice and polite most of the time (some students are pricks but I think you will get that anywhere). Work is very interesting, teaching young adults and high school kids English at a level none of them understand. So despite my inability to get them to comprehend anything, i get along with them.

The courses they do are pretty detailed so all you have to do is follow the course guides they provide you, not a real amount of your own time preparing is required. Not sure if I am any good, each lesson involves me talking for most of the 90 minutes and at the end I always get some student who comes up and says that he/she didn't understand a word. I have about 4 different levels or classes of fluency but some are very poor speakers and others are very good.

Have been very busy and adjusting to the new lifestyle. I started working before I finished the course so my days are pretty hectic. But since finishing I am working over 40 hours a day plus Saturdays (so much for having a holiday...). Not great money ($10US an hour, normal average 6 hours a day, 5 days a week) but more then enough to live here (Average prices = .55c US for a beer, $2-3US for a meal, $100US a month rent). Aim for 12 months (signed a contract) but no problem if I break it (people come and go a lot here).

I have found a place near the university with 2 others I have met here. A young girl from England and a young bloke from the USA. We found this townhouse that is really 2 separate apartments. I am living on the top floor in the one bedroom place which is quite nice (for Cambodia) for about $175.00 a month (about standard here, but you can get cheaper). Plenty of room if anyone ever finds their way here. Currently I've hired a motorbike/scooter that I use to get between classes and around the city. Everyone drives them fairly slowly so it isn't too dangerous. They don't indicate or use rear mirrors at all, you just have to be careful of whats in front of you. Rode through a rainstorm the other day and was riding through flooded streets up to my knees. I dance with death on a daily basis.

Have lost a bit of weight here as it is so hot and humid. Eating rice and chicken all the time also helps. Most exciting news is that KFC plan to open a branch soon in Phnom Penh (I plan to be first in line when it does).

Hope all are well. Hope to update the blog a bit more frequently.

One of me neighbours (the Royal Palace)

Small roundabout at the end of the street (Independence Monument).

Travel on Hold

Haven't updated a new post in a while but have been meaning to. Reason being I've elected to do a ESL (not mind reading, teaching English) course in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. I'm into the first 2 weeks of the 4 week program and though it is intense I am enjoying it. I was under the impression that i spoke, read and wrote English, but the last couple of weeks have shown up that i know very little about my mother tongue (anyone who has read any of this blog can attest to that).

I think I was getting bored with the whole 'total tourist/no working' idea I originally started out with plus the finances, though ok, most likely couldn't have withstood the constant assault my drinking habit was inflicting. Initially wanted to do the course (as there a number around the world) in Bangkok thinking that this would be the easiest place (i.e has a KFC) for me to live in while completing it. But the Thai authorities decided i was an unfit person and would not provide me with the necessary visa. Unless I returned home and applied via the correct channels along with a police check I was unlikely to succeed (their loss). The next best choice was between Hanoi or Phnom Penh. Both very interesting places and a lot to offer, so without preference I submitted my application to both and allowed them to compete for my services in much the same manner which a city would compete to host the Olympics.

Hanoi took 2 weeks to reply and didn't have a place till September. Phnom Penh accepted me within a week (me thinks they are desperate). Visa and working restrictions are almost non-existent here so no hassles. Am staying in a guest house run by the Southeast Asia Regional Service Center of Languagecorps (the school running the course) which is bearable (but much cleaner then my flat back in Elwood).

The course is geared so you hopefully remain in the country (30 hours of Khmer/Cambodian language won't do me much good on the beaches of Spain) and teach, though the certificate is recognised worldwide. Unsure at this date if I will remain for any period or if I will push on and use it elsewhere (the European summer is almost over). Always work for English teachers here and more a matter of where you want to work (city, country, school, adult education etc).

http://www.languagecorps.com/

No clue as to if I will enjoy or be any good at this teaching gig, but if I can control a group of mad women like I did at Computershare (old job) i'm sure this will be a piece of cake.

Cheers