I just wrote a blog and posted it...but I'm not sure if it did because this computer is being weird...sorry if it didn't. I'll write later from Phnom Pehn!
Raina
Saturday, January 17, 2009
T-shirt capitol of the world!
Hi!
This is Raina.
It's been non-stop here in Siem Reap since we only have a short time here. We went to most of the temples yesterday and the day before. They are beautiful. Some of them have trees growing ON them! Any description I can give right now will not do justice, so I took a bunch of pictures.
I want to thank you guys so much for the donations and everything, it means so much to me and I know it will mean so much to those girls. I am definitely getting their address so I can hopefully keep in touch, although snail mail isn't always reliable here.
We have bought so many souvenirs here...it is all super cheap and the vendors here invite a haggler. We got 11 shirts for $16 at one of them!! We got some other really col stuff including scarves, a painting, a framed relief sculpture, t-shirts, more t-shirts, and....I think some more t-shirts! There is a night market here that is open 'til midnight! Most others close at 5PM.
The only thing we didn't get to do was ride an elephant. We were going to do it today but we didn't want to have to rush. We'll just have to come back then...!
Here is part of an e-mail I wrote to my mom because we have to go pack now:
All of the temples and ruins here are beautiful!
I used up all 3 cards (5GB worth) of pictures, so I bought a 4GB for $25. They had two GB for $20...um...ok? Who wouldn't get the four GB?
Oh well.good deal...but today my camera battery died. I had another one with me, but it died too...i guess it wasn't charged all the way? It's weird, I feel like it has been doing that a lot lately, but maybe I just mix them up.
We leave Siem Reap tom. I love it here though. I bought a lot of souvenirs for people and some things for myself. Jordan got a painting today that she loves.
Love you all!
Raina
This is Raina.
It's been non-stop here in Siem Reap since we only have a short time here. We went to most of the temples yesterday and the day before. They are beautiful. Some of them have trees growing ON them! Any description I can give right now will not do justice, so I took a bunch of pictures.
I want to thank you guys so much for the donations and everything, it means so much to me and I know it will mean so much to those girls. I am definitely getting their address so I can hopefully keep in touch, although snail mail isn't always reliable here.
We have bought so many souvenirs here...it is all super cheap and the vendors here invite a haggler. We got 11 shirts for $16 at one of them!! We got some other really col stuff including scarves, a painting, a framed relief sculpture, t-shirts, more t-shirts, and....I think some more t-shirts! There is a night market here that is open 'til midnight! Most others close at 5PM.
The only thing we didn't get to do was ride an elephant. We were going to do it today but we didn't want to have to rush. We'll just have to come back then...!
Here is part of an e-mail I wrote to my mom because we have to go pack now:
All of the temples and ruins here are beautiful!
I used up all 3 cards (5GB worth) of pictures, so I bought a 4GB for $25. They had two GB for $20...um...ok? Who wouldn't get the four GB?
Oh well.good deal...but today my camera battery died. I had another one with me, but it died too...i guess it wasn't charged all the way? It's weird, I feel like it has been doing that a lot lately, but maybe I just mix them up.
We leave Siem Reap tom. I love it here though. I bought a lot of souvenirs for people and some things for myself. Jordan got a painting today that she loves.
Love you all!
Raina
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Off to Siem Reap
Hi guys!
I'm sorry that we haven't been able to go into much detail lately, it's just been so busy...whatever we don't write about now we will write about when we get back from the trip.
Our NGOs are moving along. We have a few more sessions with most of the kids before we are done.
Jordan is going today to work on a mural which she likes. The mural is of the Cambodian landscape, ranging from buildings in the city to the countryside. Landscapes in Cambodia never includes cityscape so she is breaking the rules a bit. Everywhere there are landscapes of Angkor Wat, so she is finding other things that they can be proud of in Cambodia.
Raina is making nets with one of her NGOs, Lakeside. It is a school in a neighborhood where the houses are on stilts over the lake. Very poor slums. The lake is very dirty and people litter and don't try to take care of it, so we are making nets for the kids to use. We are using bamboo for the stick, mosquito netting that is doubled for the net, and a coat hanger to put the net on. Our student from PUC that is working with us is going to bring someone tomorrow to help reinforce them so that they can be used for a l0ng time. There is a rewards system for the kids cleaning up the trash. We also painted trashcans with them. They then glued on pictures that they had taken of outside and the lake and neighborhood onto it. Next time, we are going to plant a small tree in each. We made two.
At her other NGO, CCPCR, Cambodian Center for the Protection of Children's Rights, the final project, although the girls there don't know it yet, is a journal. We are taking the projects that they do each time and making the first pages of the journal. More detail as it goes on. And pictures will help. First class we made nametags that we personalized. Monday we made collages of things that they think are beautiful. Today we are going to draw/paint about past experiences and then share them.
My heart breaks for them:
Some of the girls are dropped off here by their families. They aren't all rescued from sex trafficking like I thought before. They are so poor, but they have just enough. There are 15 of them, but we only know 10 because the other ones go to high school. To go to high school you have to have a "family book" as I've had it described to me that says where they are from (probably like a birht certificate), and so the ones that don't have it have to learn at the center. They have computer class, but now they only have 1 hour of instruction. THey used to have 1 hr instuct. and 1 hr. to practice, but because of cut funds they have to let some things go. They learn skills they can use to get a job, such as cooking, and sewing. They want to have someone to train them to cut hair because a number of them want to do that, but they don't have the money. They also have a counseling room, but it is used as a laundry room because they don't have any money for therapy. They now eat half as much food as they used to. If they lose any more funding, they are going to have to let some of them go, which is heartbreaking because they are like family to each other. They look out for each other, and they don't fight. We told them that we would try to get them some money, so I'm looking for anyone that would like to donate. I asked them how much, and they said anything helps, even if it is just $10. They said they would rather eat even less food than have any of them leave. If you think you can contribute, please let me know. You can send it via paypal to milanorain@yahoo.com. As John Tucker at the other site we talked a lot about says, "Pray for us, and if you don't pray, just send money."
I promise I will give you more info about these girls as soon as I get a chance. From the bottom of my heart I thank you.
Tom. we leave for Siem Reap, and it's six hours away by bus, we'll see how that turns out!
We are excited, and it will be a nice break from NGOs.
Thanks guys,
Raina and Jordan
PS if anyone needs anything let us know bc its really cheap here. and clothes.
I'm sorry that we haven't been able to go into much detail lately, it's just been so busy...whatever we don't write about now we will write about when we get back from the trip.
Our NGOs are moving along. We have a few more sessions with most of the kids before we are done.
Jordan is going today to work on a mural which she likes. The mural is of the Cambodian landscape, ranging from buildings in the city to the countryside. Landscapes in Cambodia never includes cityscape so she is breaking the rules a bit. Everywhere there are landscapes of Angkor Wat, so she is finding other things that they can be proud of in Cambodia.
Raina is making nets with one of her NGOs, Lakeside. It is a school in a neighborhood where the houses are on stilts over the lake. Very poor slums. The lake is very dirty and people litter and don't try to take care of it, so we are making nets for the kids to use. We are using bamboo for the stick, mosquito netting that is doubled for the net, and a coat hanger to put the net on. Our student from PUC that is working with us is going to bring someone tomorrow to help reinforce them so that they can be used for a l0ng time. There is a rewards system for the kids cleaning up the trash. We also painted trashcans with them. They then glued on pictures that they had taken of outside and the lake and neighborhood onto it. Next time, we are going to plant a small tree in each. We made two.
At her other NGO, CCPCR, Cambodian Center for the Protection of Children's Rights, the final project, although the girls there don't know it yet, is a journal. We are taking the projects that they do each time and making the first pages of the journal. More detail as it goes on. And pictures will help. First class we made nametags that we personalized. Monday we made collages of things that they think are beautiful. Today we are going to draw/paint about past experiences and then share them.
My heart breaks for them:
Some of the girls are dropped off here by their families. They aren't all rescued from sex trafficking like I thought before. They are so poor, but they have just enough. There are 15 of them, but we only know 10 because the other ones go to high school. To go to high school you have to have a "family book" as I've had it described to me that says where they are from (probably like a birht certificate), and so the ones that don't have it have to learn at the center. They have computer class, but now they only have 1 hour of instruction. THey used to have 1 hr instuct. and 1 hr. to practice, but because of cut funds they have to let some things go. They learn skills they can use to get a job, such as cooking, and sewing. They want to have someone to train them to cut hair because a number of them want to do that, but they don't have the money. They also have a counseling room, but it is used as a laundry room because they don't have any money for therapy. They now eat half as much food as they used to. If they lose any more funding, they are going to have to let some of them go, which is heartbreaking because they are like family to each other. They look out for each other, and they don't fight. We told them that we would try to get them some money, so I'm looking for anyone that would like to donate. I asked them how much, and they said anything helps, even if it is just $10. They said they would rather eat even less food than have any of them leave. If you think you can contribute, please let me know. You can send it via paypal to milanorain@yahoo.com. As John Tucker at the other site we talked a lot about says, "Pray for us, and if you don't pray, just send money."
I promise I will give you more info about these girls as soon as I get a chance. From the bottom of my heart I thank you.
Tom. we leave for Siem Reap, and it's six hours away by bus, we'll see how that turns out!
We are excited, and it will be a nice break from NGOs.
Thanks guys,
Raina and Jordan
PS if anyone needs anything let us know bc its really cheap here. and clothes.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Rabbit Island
News flash: THERE ARE NO RABBITS ON RABBIT ISLAND. I REPEAT: THERE ARE NO RABBITS ON RABBIT ISLAND.
Instead, there are many other animals, including cats, dogs, chickens (!! from jordan), cows (!! from Raina), and some fatty goats.
The beach wasn't as pristine as we had imagined, it was kind of like a Californian beach with dirt instead of sand. It was surprisingly cold so we didn't even go in, although others did. We wanted to keep our towels dry so we could use them as blankets, because there was only one bed and one blanket for four of us!
We slept in small simple bungalows for $5 a night per bungalow. sweet.
There were three restaurants on the island, one of which had a wooden painted sign that said, Pancakes. They were yummy, but they were more like crepes than pancakes. Good with Nutella. They got a lot of our business because most of the other food being served was seafood which we aren't all that into.
Jordan spent most of her time laying around in the many hammocks and trying to make friends with the many chickens (there were babies too!!). Though the roosters in the middle of the night weren't any fun.
Raina spent most of her time laying around in the many hammocks and trying to make friends with the many cows (there were calves too!!). THough the cow grazing right behind the hut at night was kind of surprising.
Raina couldn't go to sleep right away because there was so much going on around her, so she went out to the end of the pier and laid there for a bit, until the water started to rise and she decided she should go back before the end near the sand was under water. When she went to the bathroom there were five cows grazing right there! Then she slept in a hammock for a bit until in got too cold. On the way to dinner at the pancake place she ran into a bunch of cows, one of which let her pet it!! She got pictures with the cow.
We broke open a coconut with an axe and drank the milk and ate the coconut. It was the best one yet. The whole island was covered in coconut trees, the coconuts were lying on the ground all over the island.
Raina met a French couple at one of the restaurants, but Spanish kept popping into her head. But it's okay because they spoke a bit of Spanish too. And they spoke English.
She also played bocci ball earlier today with a young girl from New Zealand and her mom.
No rabbits though. One friend, Kristen, said that maybe the island is shaped like a rabbit and that is why it is called that.
We are now back in Phnom Penh.
We will write you all later,
Raina and Jordan
Instead, there are many other animals, including cats, dogs, chickens (!! from jordan), cows (!! from Raina), and some fatty goats.
The beach wasn't as pristine as we had imagined, it was kind of like a Californian beach with dirt instead of sand. It was surprisingly cold so we didn't even go in, although others did. We wanted to keep our towels dry so we could use them as blankets, because there was only one bed and one blanket for four of us!
We slept in small simple bungalows for $5 a night per bungalow. sweet.
There were three restaurants on the island, one of which had a wooden painted sign that said, Pancakes. They were yummy, but they were more like crepes than pancakes. Good with Nutella. They got a lot of our business because most of the other food being served was seafood which we aren't all that into.
Jordan spent most of her time laying around in the many hammocks and trying to make friends with the many chickens (there were babies too!!). Though the roosters in the middle of the night weren't any fun.
Raina spent most of her time laying around in the many hammocks and trying to make friends with the many cows (there were calves too!!). THough the cow grazing right behind the hut at night was kind of surprising.
Raina couldn't go to sleep right away because there was so much going on around her, so she went out to the end of the pier and laid there for a bit, until the water started to rise and she decided she should go back before the end near the sand was under water. When she went to the bathroom there were five cows grazing right there! Then she slept in a hammock for a bit until in got too cold. On the way to dinner at the pancake place she ran into a bunch of cows, one of which let her pet it!! She got pictures with the cow.
We broke open a coconut with an axe and drank the milk and ate the coconut. It was the best one yet. The whole island was covered in coconut trees, the coconuts were lying on the ground all over the island.
Raina met a French couple at one of the restaurants, but Spanish kept popping into her head. But it's okay because they spoke a bit of Spanish too. And they spoke English.
She also played bocci ball earlier today with a young girl from New Zealand and her mom.
No rabbits though. One friend, Kristen, said that maybe the island is shaped like a rabbit and that is why it is called that.
We are now back in Phnom Penh.
We will write you all later,
Raina and Jordan
Thursday, January 8, 2009
The beach
HI world!
We are busy busy with our NGOs and such...today is our first day actually working with the kids on art. Raina's didn't go as planned at all so far...she hopes her second NGO is better.
We are going to the beach this weekend, so we may not update for a few days. We are taking a bus to the coast and then taking a boat off to an island called Rabbit Island!!
We will be there one night.
Alright, off to NGOs,
Love you guys,
Raina and Jordan
PS Raina has two big bruises on her left arm from the fall. They are swollen. Feel sorry for them. : (
We are busy busy with our NGOs and such...today is our first day actually working with the kids on art. Raina's didn't go as planned at all so far...she hopes her second NGO is better.
We are going to the beach this weekend, so we may not update for a few days. We are taking a bus to the coast and then taking a boat off to an island called Rabbit Island!!
We will be there one night.
Alright, off to NGOs,
Love you guys,
Raina and Jordan
PS Raina has two big bruises on her left arm from the fall. They are swollen. Feel sorry for them. : (
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
continued...
This is a continuation of Jordan's juornal entry where we left off. Please excuse spelling errors because we are at a new cafe bc it is faster but worse keyboard.
I knw this sort of sounds like science fiction, but we saw it all working. The children all looked amzingly healthy and happy, especially when you consider where they are coming from. THey all live in sort of "clusters"which consist of 3 houses which all ocnnect to a small communal outside kitchen. Each house had 8 kids, and each had a "parents"couple who lived there too. The men work on the farm tending the pigs etc. while the women cook and care for ech of the 8 kids she is assigned to. It's not an orphanage, its a home. the chldren all go to shool and have tutors in the afternoon. They are all sent to high school (which you have to pay for in Cambodia) and I'm sure would have no problem getting into almost any colleg ethey would like! Some go to vocational schools. Everything is paid for by donations.
One little girl we met ws being held by someone prestigious from Standford as a little kid when he accidentaly bumped her head on something. He fel tso bad he promised that when she finished high school she was guaranteed admission and full-ride to Stanford!Also, BIll Clinton is very revered there, the AIDS fund he set up buys the medication for every chld there. Not to mention countless others across the world. The couple that runs the place are some of the greatest people I've ever met. THey raised 7 kids in the states, and after the last one went to college they were quite wealthy and successful. They sold everything (They said the hardest thing to part with was their convertible) and moved to Cambodia to do this project. They are incredibly funny and witty, and a real joy to be around. After being with them for an afternoon I feel like they are my own family. THey live amidst some of the most heartwrenching exprinces one can imagine, watching the children they love suffer and sometimes die. But they stay strong by celebrating life. They have to be the richest most fulfilled people I've ever met. A few minutes with them is enough to see how deeply they love these kids, and hw much the kids love them back. Their center has big golden retrievers running around. Every kid has a bike. Ther are mango, banana, and papaya trees everywhere for the kids to eat. hese people hav eput a bit of paradise in a place with so much suffering, you cant understand how beautiful until you've been there.
End of journal entry.
Yesterday was our first day of school, and we met the students from Cambodi a that we would be working with on our projects. More about our projects as we get them underway.
Today's a national holiday comemorating the day that the Khmer Rouge was defeated, so we arent working.
We went to the olympic stadium to see th eparade, but they wouldn't let us in without a ticket, and they said there was no way we could get a ticket.
Just a few minutes ago I read an e-mail from my mom that said they had found 3 bombs at the Ministry of Natl Defense and had advised American citizens to avoid that area, so we are guessing that had something to do with it.
THen we were going to go to the killing fields, but Raina fell in our very malicious shower, even whle wearing the rubber sandals provided. She's okay, but has a very sore back. We think we might put one of the hotel bath towels down and sit on it in the shower (the shower head can be unattached). Any better suggestions of safe, sanitary shower procedures would be greatly appreciated.
We don't want to take any chances of a worse fall and one of us getting really hurt. I guess we could just go swim in the pool...
I knw this sort of sounds like science fiction, but we saw it all working. The children all looked amzingly healthy and happy, especially when you consider where they are coming from. THey all live in sort of "clusters"which consist of 3 houses which all ocnnect to a small communal outside kitchen. Each house had 8 kids, and each had a "parents"couple who lived there too. The men work on the farm tending the pigs etc. while the women cook and care for ech of the 8 kids she is assigned to. It's not an orphanage, its a home. the chldren all go to shool and have tutors in the afternoon. They are all sent to high school (which you have to pay for in Cambodia) and I'm sure would have no problem getting into almost any colleg ethey would like! Some go to vocational schools. Everything is paid for by donations.
One little girl we met ws being held by someone prestigious from Standford as a little kid when he accidentaly bumped her head on something. He fel tso bad he promised that when she finished high school she was guaranteed admission and full-ride to Stanford!Also, BIll Clinton is very revered there, the AIDS fund he set up buys the medication for every chld there. Not to mention countless others across the world. The couple that runs the place are some of the greatest people I've ever met. THey raised 7 kids in the states, and after the last one went to college they were quite wealthy and successful. They sold everything (They said the hardest thing to part with was their convertible) and moved to Cambodia to do this project. They are incredibly funny and witty, and a real joy to be around. After being with them for an afternoon I feel like they are my own family. THey live amidst some of the most heartwrenching exprinces one can imagine, watching the children they love suffer and sometimes die. But they stay strong by celebrating life. They have to be the richest most fulfilled people I've ever met. A few minutes with them is enough to see how deeply they love these kids, and hw much the kids love them back. Their center has big golden retrievers running around. Every kid has a bike. Ther are mango, banana, and papaya trees everywhere for the kids to eat. hese people hav eput a bit of paradise in a place with so much suffering, you cant understand how beautiful until you've been there.
End of journal entry.
Yesterday was our first day of school, and we met the students from Cambodi a that we would be working with on our projects. More about our projects as we get them underway.
Today's a national holiday comemorating the day that the Khmer Rouge was defeated, so we arent working.
We went to the olympic stadium to see th eparade, but they wouldn't let us in without a ticket, and they said there was no way we could get a ticket.
Just a few minutes ago I read an e-mail from my mom that said they had found 3 bombs at the Ministry of Natl Defense and had advised American citizens to avoid that area, so we are guessing that had something to do with it.
THen we were going to go to the killing fields, but Raina fell in our very malicious shower, even whle wearing the rubber sandals provided. She's okay, but has a very sore back. We think we might put one of the hotel bath towels down and sit on it in the shower (the shower head can be unattached). Any better suggestions of safe, sanitary shower procedures would be greatly appreciated.
We don't want to take any chances of a worse fall and one of us getting really hurt. I guess we could just go swim in the pool...
Monday, January 5, 2009
Coolest Place Ever
Hi guys!
We only have a few minutes, so we want to tell you about Jan 4th. The 3rd was cool, but 4th was cooler.
The 3rd we did Little Sprouts, like we said.
Here is part of Jordan's journal entry about the 4th:
Took a bus about an hour to outside Phnom Penh where there is an NGO one of the girls in our group is in contact with. I can't adiquitly describe this place to you except to say that it is one of the most amazing places you could ever go to. Its home to over 150 children, all HIV positiv. It was started by this amazing couple from Texas who, about 9 years ago, were the first to bring AIDS medications into Cambodia. They have many other centers around Cambodia, but this is the one where they live. Its sort of a little village, 20 acres of land where they grow their own ctrops, raise pigs, and even create their own fuel. It is self-sustaining and completely "green" with nothing being wasted and no damage is dome to the environment. For example, the pig dung is mixed with well water and put into this undergroud tank . The gas released from the tank goes directly to all of the kitchens and used to cook on. The "used" waste is used to fertilize the fields where these certain trees are planted that produc a sort of nut that you can extract a type of biodeisel fuel from. That fuel is used to power generators for a few hours a day of electricity. They are starting up a breeding program with the pigs, and have plans to build a chicken coup next to a fish pond. There they will raise fish who who eat the chicken poop.
Gotta run, more later.
love
Raina and Jordan
We only have a few minutes, so we want to tell you about Jan 4th. The 3rd was cool, but 4th was cooler.
The 3rd we did Little Sprouts, like we said.
Here is part of Jordan's journal entry about the 4th:
Took a bus about an hour to outside Phnom Penh where there is an NGO one of the girls in our group is in contact with. I can't adiquitly describe this place to you except to say that it is one of the most amazing places you could ever go to. Its home to over 150 children, all HIV positiv. It was started by this amazing couple from Texas who, about 9 years ago, were the first to bring AIDS medications into Cambodia. They have many other centers around Cambodia, but this is the one where they live. Its sort of a little village, 20 acres of land where they grow their own ctrops, raise pigs, and even create their own fuel. It is self-sustaining and completely "green" with nothing being wasted and no damage is dome to the environment. For example, the pig dung is mixed with well water and put into this undergroud tank . The gas released from the tank goes directly to all of the kitchens and used to cook on. The "used" waste is used to fertilize the fields where these certain trees are planted that produc a sort of nut that you can extract a type of biodeisel fuel from. That fuel is used to power generators for a few hours a day of electricity. They are starting up a breeding program with the pigs, and have plans to build a chicken coup next to a fish pond. There they will raise fish who who eat the chicken poop.
Gotta run, more later.
love
Raina and Jordan
A quick note...
Sou sdey!
Just wanted to let you know that we are doing fine, but we've just been to busy to hang out at the internte cafe lately. Jordan's been journaling about the past few days...we will type them up soon.
In brief, the last few days we have visited Little Sprouts, a home for HIV pos. orphans, visited a green, self-sufficient sort of village where 151 kids with HIV live. It was an amazing experience, lots of details on it later.
Today was the first day at our NGOs where we are going to do the art projects.
We both really like our groups. Jordan is working with two separate groups of kids rescued from the garbage dumps here. Raina is working with a school/home for orphans and a home for girls rescued from sex trafficking and the like.
Jordan got sick for the first time last night. It was very scary because she just started shaking for no apparent reason and had lots of stomach problems. She was feeling weak, but fine this morning. She feels good now. Nothing that a bunch of huggy kids can't fix!
Sorry guys for the lack of posting the past days...soon you will get a lot!
Raina and Jordan
*does binkies*
Just wanted to let you know that we are doing fine, but we've just been to busy to hang out at the internte cafe lately. Jordan's been journaling about the past few days...we will type them up soon.
In brief, the last few days we have visited Little Sprouts, a home for HIV pos. orphans, visited a green, self-sufficient sort of village where 151 kids with HIV live. It was an amazing experience, lots of details on it later.
Today was the first day at our NGOs where we are going to do the art projects.
We both really like our groups. Jordan is working with two separate groups of kids rescued from the garbage dumps here. Raina is working with a school/home for orphans and a home for girls rescued from sex trafficking and the like.
Jordan got sick for the first time last night. It was very scary because she just started shaking for no apparent reason and had lots of stomach problems. She was feeling weak, but fine this morning. She feels good now. Nothing that a bunch of huggy kids can't fix!
Sorry guys for the lack of posting the past days...soon you will get a lot!
Raina and Jordan
*does binkies*
Friday, January 2, 2009
Genocide
We went to Boat Noodle for lunch--we got four different things to share and it was only $5! That's including a beverage. YUM YUM!
We went to the prison museum yesterday. It used to be a high school, and then in 1975 the Khmer Rouge turnd it into a prison and torture place. Of the 20,000 people that went through it, only 7 survived. They had converted the classrooms into prison cells. The torture rooms had bed frames that people had been strapped to and tortured. Each room had a picture of how it was found with the dead person in it after it had been shut down. There were still blood stains on the floor. We walked in all the rooms. In another building the first floor has the classrooms slit up into cells about 2m X 8m large, separated by brick. The next floor was the same but made of wood. The top floor was closed to the public, but had been mass holding cells.
Outside there were 12 graves of the people that had been found dead there when the prison was abandoned (most people were taken to the killing fields to be executed). In one of the buildings (there were 4 in all), they had photos upon photos of the victims there. The Khmer Rouge had originally been photographing and labeling each person that went through. There are thousands upon thousands of people who did not have their picture taken later on.
It was almost too hard to look at all of their faces, especially little toddlers, and women with their infants on their laps. There were also brutal close-ups of the dead. It is hard to imagine that the city we are in today has this horrible past just 30 years ago, and that many of the people we pass on the streets lived to remember this. About 1/4 of the population was wiped out nation-wide.
After this sobering adventure, we went to Wat Phnom, a temple in the city. The temple, which was set on a small hill, wasn't very big, but it was quite beautiful and the land around it was amazing. There were monkeys roaming about, and some people fed them. Raina got really close to one much to Jordan's disliking and got a picture with it. We watched them most of the time that they were there.
At the top of the steps of the temple there was a blind man whose arms ended at his elbows. On one of them a bucket was held. We have been told not to give money or food because it only perpetuates this way of life and complicated reasons like that, but it was so hard to just walk past these people like this. Children will come up and beg, and we have to ignore them so that they will go away.
There were more people selling birds here, this time a group of boys. A group of boys like any in the US, but they had to sell birds at a $1 a piece to get money.
Today we are going to the NGO Little Sprouts, for toddlers and young kids, most of whom are HIV/AIDS positive, for a few hours.
Later!
Raina and Jordan
We went to the prison museum yesterday. It used to be a high school, and then in 1975 the Khmer Rouge turnd it into a prison and torture place. Of the 20,000 people that went through it, only 7 survived. They had converted the classrooms into prison cells. The torture rooms had bed frames that people had been strapped to and tortured. Each room had a picture of how it was found with the dead person in it after it had been shut down. There were still blood stains on the floor. We walked in all the rooms. In another building the first floor has the classrooms slit up into cells about 2m X 8m large, separated by brick. The next floor was the same but made of wood. The top floor was closed to the public, but had been mass holding cells.
Outside there were 12 graves of the people that had been found dead there when the prison was abandoned (most people were taken to the killing fields to be executed). In one of the buildings (there were 4 in all), they had photos upon photos of the victims there. The Khmer Rouge had originally been photographing and labeling each person that went through. There are thousands upon thousands of people who did not have their picture taken later on.
It was almost too hard to look at all of their faces, especially little toddlers, and women with their infants on their laps. There were also brutal close-ups of the dead. It is hard to imagine that the city we are in today has this horrible past just 30 years ago, and that many of the people we pass on the streets lived to remember this. About 1/4 of the population was wiped out nation-wide.
After this sobering adventure, we went to Wat Phnom, a temple in the city. The temple, which was set on a small hill, wasn't very big, but it was quite beautiful and the land around it was amazing. There were monkeys roaming about, and some people fed them. Raina got really close to one much to Jordan's disliking and got a picture with it. We watched them most of the time that they were there.
At the top of the steps of the temple there was a blind man whose arms ended at his elbows. On one of them a bucket was held. We have been told not to give money or food because it only perpetuates this way of life and complicated reasons like that, but it was so hard to just walk past these people like this. Children will come up and beg, and we have to ignore them so that they will go away.
There were more people selling birds here, this time a group of boys. A group of boys like any in the US, but they had to sell birds at a $1 a piece to get money.
Today we are going to the NGO Little Sprouts, for toddlers and young kids, most of whom are HIV/AIDS positive, for a few hours.
Later!
Raina and Jordan
Thursday, January 1, 2009
NGO Assignments
Hey guys!
Thanks for the comments, they really made us laugh!
Yesterday we got a Tuktuk to drop us off at the Royal Palace, which is right along the river (i don't know the name of it). Oh, it's Tonle Sap River, according to the map on the wall at the internet cafe.
We didn't go into the Palace because it was closed until two, and we got there around 11.
So we walked along the bank, which was really a broken sidewalk way above the river, separated by a downward cement slope. There people selling lots and lots of birds, and we wondered why. We thought it was a sacrifice, but later we found out that people buy them, hold them in their hand, say a prayer, and then let them go. We wanted to get one but then decided that touching a live animal (or dead for that matter) probably wasn't a good idea. There were also vendors along the way selling flowers that were sticking out of coconuts that had been peeled, so they were like a light green color. I'm not sure what the flowers were, but they were pretty. some where white and others were pinkish and purplish. There were women and children peeling the coconuts with their teeth. All of this was both touristy and local people, more so local along the bank and vendors.
Then we decided to go down to the Central Market, which we read in a guide book to be less touristy than the Russian Market, and has some different things. OUr tuktuk driver that took us there said parts were under construction so we'd only want to walk around for like 40 minutes, and he agreed to pick us up after that. Once inside, we realized we could have spent a lot more time there. They had more jewelry and fake Rolexes and Chanel watches and all of that, and more silver vases and plates and wall hangings. We didn't buy anything, and we started getting hungry. We could'nt find good things to eat in the Market (which doesn't mean there weren't any, as you can tell from the description of the Russian Market, it should be maze not market). So we walked down a road and found a trendy touristy cafe, but they had mostly sandwiches and American stuff and it was expensive, so Jordan just got an iced tea because we felt that we had to buy something after staring at the menu for so long. It was a dollar, a total rip-off.
Then we met up with our tuktuk driver, who we asked to take us to a local place. It was expensive.
There is more we did yesterday, but we'd rather spend the time writing about today so far.
Today at 8:30, after breakfast at the hotel, we went to the university to pair up for the NGOs and unload the art supplies.
It was quite a mess to work out who was working with who and where, and Jordan and I were not able to work together, which is disappointing. But we aren't going to dwell on it and I'm sure that we will have a good experience with the people we are with wherever we are.
Jordan is working with Jessica, a comm major, and working every day of the week at two different NGOs. We don't really know what they are yet, but we will let you know.
Raina is working with Carol with the girls rescued from sex trafficing and another place.
We are off to eat at the Boat Noodle again, our favorite restaurant so far.
Later!
Thanks for the comments, they really made us laugh!
Yesterday we got a Tuktuk to drop us off at the Royal Palace, which is right along the river (i don't know the name of it). Oh, it's Tonle Sap River, according to the map on the wall at the internet cafe.
We didn't go into the Palace because it was closed until two, and we got there around 11.
So we walked along the bank, which was really a broken sidewalk way above the river, separated by a downward cement slope. There people selling lots and lots of birds, and we wondered why. We thought it was a sacrifice, but later we found out that people buy them, hold them in their hand, say a prayer, and then let them go. We wanted to get one but then decided that touching a live animal (or dead for that matter) probably wasn't a good idea. There were also vendors along the way selling flowers that were sticking out of coconuts that had been peeled, so they were like a light green color. I'm not sure what the flowers were, but they were pretty. some where white and others were pinkish and purplish. There were women and children peeling the coconuts with their teeth. All of this was both touristy and local people, more so local along the bank and vendors.
Then we decided to go down to the Central Market, which we read in a guide book to be less touristy than the Russian Market, and has some different things. OUr tuktuk driver that took us there said parts were under construction so we'd only want to walk around for like 40 minutes, and he agreed to pick us up after that. Once inside, we realized we could have spent a lot more time there. They had more jewelry and fake Rolexes and Chanel watches and all of that, and more silver vases and plates and wall hangings. We didn't buy anything, and we started getting hungry. We could'nt find good things to eat in the Market (which doesn't mean there weren't any, as you can tell from the description of the Russian Market, it should be maze not market). So we walked down a road and found a trendy touristy cafe, but they had mostly sandwiches and American stuff and it was expensive, so Jordan just got an iced tea because we felt that we had to buy something after staring at the menu for so long. It was a dollar, a total rip-off.
Then we met up with our tuktuk driver, who we asked to take us to a local place. It was expensive.
There is more we did yesterday, but we'd rather spend the time writing about today so far.
Today at 8:30, after breakfast at the hotel, we went to the university to pair up for the NGOs and unload the art supplies.
It was quite a mess to work out who was working with who and where, and Jordan and I were not able to work together, which is disappointing. But we aren't going to dwell on it and I'm sure that we will have a good experience with the people we are with wherever we are.
Jordan is working with Jessica, a comm major, and working every day of the week at two different NGOs. We don't really know what they are yet, but we will let you know.
Raina is working with Carol with the girls rescued from sex trafficing and another place.
We are off to eat at the Boat Noodle again, our favorite restaurant so far.
Later!
Just a quick hello!
We are tired and will write more about today tomorrow, but a few quick things.
The cheaper the restaurant, the better the food.
so far.
At one of the restaurants we watched a kitten stalk a lizard.
Okay, we will talk to you soon!
Raina and Jordan
The cheaper the restaurant, the better the food.
so far.
At one of the restaurants we watched a kitten stalk a lizard.
Okay, we will talk to you soon!
Raina and Jordan
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