NEWSLETTER DECEMBER 2009 - JANUARY 2010
Hi Everyone,
Hope you all survived the festive season without too many hangovers and overeating! Happy New Year to you all and I hope 2010 brings you health and happiness.
First off, a very BIG, BIG THANK YOU to everyone in the front bar at the Warradale Hotel. You probably don’t realize what a fantastic thing you did but let me tell you, you changed Borith’s life. You have made one person in this world very happy and given him some hope for his future. Without you, he faced a life of debt to pay back the money for his bride and therefore a life of hardship with very little money to live on to support his wife and children that will come along. Now, they will never have spare money but will be happy with their children and content with their lot in life without a huge debt hanging over their heads. He was speechless and had tears in his eyes when Sothea told him what you had done. He worries that his thank you letter doesn’t express what he really feels about your kindness. As he says, he will remember you all until he dies.
So, good on you all, I’m sure your kindness and caring will be repaid in some way or other – what goes around, comes around.
Christmas Day was a funny kind of day for me. Sothea and I were in Kep at 7.00 am to check out the boat and the rowers that we were sponsoring. We spent most of the day just lazing around by the beach and talking to people, none of who mentioned Christmas at all. Just another day for them. The day before I told the kids about our Christmas traditions and we sang Jingle Bells and We Wish You a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I was talking about Father Christmas and the presents and one little boy said “I didn’t get one”. This little boy and his brother are quite wild and I found out the other day their parents actually pay them some money everyday to go to school at Kep Gardens (only a few cents). They are both very bright but would rather be running wild. It’s amazing what a little monetary encouragement will do.
The boys’ littlesister who comes with them
sometimes and then falls asleep
Kampong Tralach Community Boat
To the Water Festival on 26th and 27th December. We had a great time. Our boat sank in the first two races and came last in the next two. We had lots of laughs. Apart from this they are all enthusiastic to have another go this year. This is the 4th year of the Water Festival in Kep and this community had never had a boat before. I suspect that because we showed an interest in sponsoring a local boat that the authorities scrounged around and came up with one for them. They only received it a couple of days before the races and tried it out on a pond with still water. What a difference when they hit the sea with its waves!! The boats are similar to Aboriginal canoes. When they rowed, the front went down and the boat filled up with water so consequently they sank. Then, they went really slowly so they wouldn’t sink but at least finish. They want to build the boat up a bit in the front to stop the water from getting in and have sat around with other more experienced rowers overtwo days listening and gaining knowledge. They are eager for Andrew to arrive so they can discuss the boat with him and get it up to scratch for this year’s festival. They camp in the park along the beach for the 3 days. They were off to a good start and arrived 2 days before so they could practise a bit but then sat up until 2.00 in the morning drinking. It’s one big party for all the communities to get together and have fun. Even some boats from Vietnam come too. Then on both evenings, the Government puts on a big concert. All the famous pop singers and comedians come from Phnom Penh. It’s free for everyone and goes on for over 4 hours each night. All in all, a great weekend of fun and laughter. All the Kep Gardens family loaded into tuk tuks early each morning and arrived home late each night. We had a couple of our students home from Siem Reap for 10 days or so over Christmas so they joined in the Water Festival too. If any one is thinking of visiting around Christmas time, this would be a good time to come. They also hold a Trade Fair at the same time in Kep so there’s lots to do and see. Sothea and I also had a wedding to go to on the Sunday night so we had 3 action packed days.
 
The other funny thing about the boat races was the uniforms. As you can see we used the Australian colours and bought 2 sets for everyone. The Government lady sponsored a boat in the races as well but obviously didn’t have time to get any uniforms or else she forgot, so she took one set of ours and gave to her boat so it looked like there were two boats from Kep Gardens. Didn’t bother me but I guess it is an indication of how life works here, everyone shares everything.
New Years Eve I was asleep well before 12.00. The people here consider New Year to be in April. When we learn the months of the year in English they always say April is the first month of the year and are amazed that everybody else doesn’t think that way. I went to a birthday party in the afternoon on New Years Day. The German lady I have talked about, it was her daughter’s 10th birthday. Then in the evening we had a party here for about 50 students.
Our Siem Reap student 2nd from left
Actually, we didn’t organize it, it was one of the older student’s birthday and she asked if she could use Kep Gardens to have the party. They cooked up curry during the day (wild goat meat) and brought the cool drinks with them. Lots of dancing and fun and then left about 10.00. All we had to do was clean up the next day. They were going to but we decided to have a thorough spring clean while we were at it so told them to leave it and we all got stuck into it the next day.
It never ceases to amaze me the horror that most of these people over 25 to 30 have been through. One of our students, a 31 year old farmer, is learning English so he can drive tourists around on his moto during the tourist season to earn some money. He tries really hard and has greatly improved over the last year. He is a really nice chap. I was sitting talking to him, asking about his family etc. and he told me that when he was 7 the Khmer Rouge came to his house, tied his father’s wrists behind his back, beat him and then shot him, all in front of him and his siblings. This was about 24 years ago. His father was in the army. The Khmer Rouge was still around causing trouble right up until the late 90’s even though their regime supposedly came to an end in 1979. He lives very close to Kep Gardens and I look around at the peaceful mountain setting and it’s hard to image such horror happening in your own backyard. If I could talk to the older people in the village I am sure I would hear many similar stories
Sok, the student I am talking about above
My respect and admiration for these people grows each time I hear such stories. They are not told in a self pitying way, just a fact of life that they live with day in and day out but keep smiling despite it all.
We had a Kep Gardens day out awhile ago to the Secret Lake . We went to an irrigation dam that was hand made during the Khmer Rouge time with hard labour. It is beautiful and has paddle boats, tubes for swimming and bamboo shelters that you can laze around on and take in the view.
I kept singing “Lazy Sunday Afternoon” in my head. Perfect for relaxing. It’s off the beaten track surrounded by mountains and rice paddies. Borith’s fiancee was allowed to come because Choun (a distant female relation) was coming so there was supervision. Sothea was telling me a story today actually of a friend of his that was at a wedding, had too much to drink and kissed a girl on the cheek in public. He was arrested by the police and fined 1 million riel. Whenever I mention kissing in class, everyone giggles and gets embarrassed. Of course, the young ones in Phnom Penh are much more liberated, but in the rural areas any form of touching is forbidden and frowned upon.
Such a happy crew!! They get embarrassed if
in a posed picture and won’t smile. Have to try
and catch them unawares.
The tiny girl in between me and Sothea is Pheara, the girl from the fishing village who is living with us at Kep Gardens. She is 16 and in Grade 7. The girl first on the left at the back is Borith’s fiancee and then comes the famous Choun, our so called Housekeeper. What a character! Her son is the first from the right at the bottom. The first on the left is Rathi, our boarder and Borith is in the middle.
Thought I would throw in a photo of the kittens
During the dry season it is a time for many ceremonies. Most mornings we wake up to music coming from somewhere in the village. Sometimes a funeral, sometimes a wedding but today the music was different. It was a Grateful Ceremony. Apparently, anyone can have a party to show gratitude to their parents. Sometimes it can be for family members that were separated through war and have found each other again. This one is for a man who was separated from his family during Pol Pot’s time and ended up in America as a refugee. He hasn’t seen his family for over 30 years and has come back from America on holiday so is having a Grateful Ceremony.
For the last few weeks everyone has been busy harvesting rice. Lots of absences from school during this time. I went one afternoon and sat and watched them harvest. They wouldn’t let me help as it doesn’t look good if you have your visitors working. I sat there in the blazing sun and felt useless while they were all working hard. Have to change this next year or else I won’t go. Also went to a neighbour’s and watched them threshing the rice by hand. A group of friends get together and help each other and it turns into a social occasion with food and drink and lots of laughing. On Thursday, we have been invited to a Pile the Rice Mountain Ceremony where this year’s harvest is piled up and prayers are given for a good harvest for next year.
As I said once before, Cambodians love parties and any excuse is a good excuse to have a Ceremony of some sort. The sound of music never stops during the dry season and starts from very early in the morning until late at night. Most days I wake up to music and go to sleep with music. The volume depends on how far away the ceremony is!!! Doesn’t bother me though.
Threshing the rice by hand
We were planting lots of plants along the driveway and some of the monks that come to class wanted to help. They rolled up one afternoon and worked for several hours. Considering they get up at 4.00 am everyday and could have used their free time sleeping, I was a bit embarrassed but it was their choice.
Monks hard at work
On Saturday some friends from Australia arrive for a few days. We will take them to a wedding on Saturday night and then spend Sunday out on the boat. Looking forward to their company. An American guy is calling in too who has an organization that connects schools all over the world by internet. He is interested in connecting our kids to his network. Considering power difficulties, time differences and restrictions on time when the students can get to Kep Gardens, good luck to him, but if it can be set up it would be a great experience for our group. May be able to connect to some schools in Australia too with any luck. See what happens.
A HAPPY AND HEALTHY 2010 TO YOU ALL
Janine
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December 2009 January 2010
