WEEK 4: Money can buy happiness, and shoes, and prayers...
Week 4 was upon us, and although some of the days we spent teaching felt like the longest of our lives, we couldn't believe we were almost done. Our time at the centre was brief by most standards, but we felt an overwhelming connection to the children and the staff there. We had learned all of their stories, and became a part of their daily lives, as they had become part of ours. This was evident when one of the security guards we hung out with the most, Rey, invited us to join him on a visit to his home village. This seemed like a good idea at the time, as did the bottles of wine we snuck into our apartment the night before. We turned up at the gates, a bit hungover, to find that we would be traveling to Rey's house on the smallest moto bike we had ever seen... and the trip would take 2 hours!! After our legs fell asleep and we stopped at the side of the road to drink "Bottled water"(which turned out to be tap water once we had a big long sip! Mars stopped drinking it right away but I stupidly kept going and felt really sick about an hour later!) we weren't in the best form when we arrived at his house. After a brief tour of the area, we had lunch with his mom and his sister in their simple but lovely concrete 2 room house. After lunch, Rey announced: "And now, I would like to rest." We watched as Rey laid out on the hammock in the room, his mom laid out pillows for us on the wooden bed then laid in her bed right next to ours, then his sister went to her bed. Even the cat went to sleep. As we saw many times with the kids and staff, it is Cambodian custom to have a nap after lunch. Initially, we just looked at each other thinking "Are we seriously going to do this?". But, when in Rome... we were asleep alongside the rest of the family within a matter of minutes :) A truly original cultural experience! haha.
On another random cultural note, on one of our last trips into Phnom Penh, we took Yuth, the driver, out for dinner while we waited for the photos we were printing to be developed. We were totally shocked to discover that the restaurant we were in served "Traditional French-Canadian Poutine"!!!!!!!! We ordered it immediately and it was fantastic. How bizarre is that??? Anyway..
During our time at the centre, in between playing and teaching and all of our other adventures, we gave a lot of thought to what to do with the money we had been given. Friends of my mom and Aunt Gale had given generously when they heard what were were doing in Cambodia. We had just under $600 US to spend on whatever we thought the children needed. Our Western leanings initially made us think of a whole whack of things that children should have, based on our own childhood experiences: toys, sporting equipment, art materials, etc. As I said earlier, the children don't have much at the centre, but they are in a safe environment, with food, school, school uniforms, and a "family" atmosphere. In time, after considering all of the options, we found that each child had to share pretty much everything that was in the centre, and they did so with amazing grace and ease. Therefore, we decided to put together an individual package for each child. Something that was theirs alone. This was an ambitious task, which required MANY trips to the local market to buy just the right stuff for each of the 61 children that at the centre. Money goes a long way in Cambodia. We were able to get each child: a set of new clothes, new shoes, an English instruction book, candy, a towel (most of them just drip dry after showering) and a new "toy". (older girls got a necklace, older boys got a watch, younger girls got a doll, and younger boys got trucks.) We wrapped 61 bundles with each child's name on them and had them all gather in the dining hall. we explained to them that these gift were from our friends and family at home who were thinking of them and wanted to give them something special. The children were beside themselves with excitement. After the gifts were given out, the teachers had a few of the kids stand up and tell us individually to thank everyone who gave money, and to wish them all health and happiness in life. We would also like to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who gave money... we put it to good use for a group of kids who really needed it.
L to R: All of the packages wrapped and ready to go; The kids getting their gifts; holding up a "thank you" message for everyone back home; Srey Nieth in her new clothes and shoes!
But wait, there's more! We still had money left over, so we used the last of it to take the kids and staff on a field trip. Our last week coincided with a very important Buddhist holiday in Cambodia where everyone is required to pay respects to their ancestors. The staff arranged for the remainder of the money to be used to travel to a temple with a monastery. The day of the field trip was the day after we gave them their gifts. Many of the staff told us that the kids were so excited they didn't sleep. They all showed up in their new clothes, some even with the towels around their necks!, and looked so proud to be going out in their new gear. After a fun/arduous bus ride (more than a few incidents of motion sickness and pants peeing) where the kids sang songs on the bus microphone, we arrived at the temple. The children gave food and a small cash offerings to the monks, and the monks prayed specifically for the children's lost family and ancestors. The kids were beautiful to watch... they were all quiet and had hands together, heads bowed, to pay respect. After that, we had a group lunch outside and then got to wander around the temple. We had luck on our side, as this was the only day that it didn't pour rain!
On another random cultural note, on one of our last trips into Phnom Penh, we took Yuth, the driver, out for dinner while we waited for the photos we were printing to be developed. We were totally shocked to discover that the restaurant we were in served "Traditional French-Canadian Poutine"!!!!!!!! We ordered it immediately and it was fantastic. How bizarre is that??? Anyway..
During our time at the centre, in between playing and teaching and all of our other adventures, we gave a lot of thought to what to do with the money we had been given. Friends of my mom and Aunt Gale had given generously when they heard what were were doing in Cambodia. We had just under $600 US to spend on whatever we thought the children needed. Our Western leanings initially made us think of a whole whack of things that children should have, based on our own childhood experiences: toys, sporting equipment, art materials, etc. As I said earlier, the children don't have much at the centre, but they are in a safe environment, with food, school, school uniforms, and a "family" atmosphere. In time, after considering all of the options, we found that each child had to share pretty much everything that was in the centre, and they did so with amazing grace and ease. Therefore, we decided to put together an individual package for each child. Something that was theirs alone. This was an ambitious task, which required MANY trips to the local market to buy just the right stuff for each of the 61 children that at the centre. Money goes a long way in Cambodia. We were able to get each child: a set of new clothes, new shoes, an English instruction book, candy, a towel (most of them just drip dry after showering) and a new "toy". (older girls got a necklace, older boys got a watch, younger girls got a doll, and younger boys got trucks.) We wrapped 61 bundles with each child's name on them and had them all gather in the dining hall. we explained to them that these gift were from our friends and family at home who were thinking of them and wanted to give them something special. The children were beside themselves with excitement. After the gifts were given out, the teachers had a few of the kids stand up and tell us individually to thank everyone who gave money, and to wish them all health and happiness in life. We would also like to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who gave money... we put it to good use for a group of kids who really needed it.
L to R: All of the packages wrapped and ready to go; The kids getting their gifts; holding up a "thank you" message for everyone back home; Srey Nieth in her new clothes and shoes!
But wait, there's more! We still had money left over, so we used the last of it to take the kids and staff on a field trip. Our last week coincided with a very important Buddhist holiday in Cambodia where everyone is required to pay respects to their ancestors. The staff arranged for the remainder of the money to be used to travel to a temple with a monastery. The day of the field trip was the day after we gave them their gifts. Many of the staff told us that the kids were so excited they didn't sleep. They all showed up in their new clothes, some even with the towels around their necks!, and looked so proud to be going out in their new gear. After a fun/arduous bus ride (more than a few incidents of motion sickness and pants peeing) where the kids sang songs on the bus microphone, we arrived at the temple. The children gave food and a small cash offerings to the monks, and the monks prayed specifically for the children's lost family and ancestors. The kids were beautiful to watch... they were all quiet and had hands together, heads bowed, to pay respect. After that, we had a group lunch outside and then got to wander around the temple. We had luck on our side, as this was the only day that it didn't pour rain!
L to R: On the bus!; The group inside the ancient ruins; The children in the audience of the monks; The boys in a temple doorway.
After the trip was over and the costume show was performed the next night, it was almost time to say good bye. The night before we left, we got together with most of the staff to share a few beers and "snacks" (cold duck's feet!! seriously!). They boys brought their instruments, and we sang (we know the chorus to one song) and danced (the awkward elementary school type dancing that we learned at the birthday party) for the night. Saying goodbye to everyone the next day was so difficult. the staff and the kids were crying and they did a dance and a song for us and presented us with a certificate. They told us how much they appreciated our work there and wanted us to come back soon. We really didn't want to leave them. And, to answer the burning question on some minds: no, this didn't make us want our own kids, but we would have readily taken any one of those kids home with us. We took 6 kids selected by the staff into the city with us to have some ice cream and they had a great time, before we all cried and said a final goodbye. The night was made bearable only ny the fact that we were able to meet up with Kesar, our Cambodian tour leader, for dinner. Then it was off on a flight to China!!
L to R: The staff at our goodbye party; the guys playing traditional music; trying to dance with the Khmer boys. Awkwardly.
We will never forget our experience at the centre and really hope that we can come back to visit them soon....!
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