Hello!! I hope you are all having a happy New Year!
This week Joss and I arrived back in Chamcar Bei late on Tuesday afternoon. Coming back was an interesting experience as both Joss and I felt like our time in Cambodia was more like a vivid dream tha
n three months of our lives. Also, even although everything in Chamcar Bei is in exactly the same place as it was when we left, the whole village and the area surrounding it has now become a large dustbowl. All the vibrant shades of green that we wrote about in our first weeks here have faded into browns and yellows. I'd like to make it clear that this does not make the beautiful Chamcar Bei any less stunning and majestic, merely different. I think what makes this contrast even starker is the fact that we were not here to see the transformation occur. Oddly enough, although it's baking hot during the afternoons at the moment, the nights and mornings are far colder then they were last year. I think this is because the winds have gotten stronger and the sky is now cloudless. Another cosmetic change has occured at the CVTC as the wild grass around the Red House has been trimmed. This is apparently because Paa caught and killed a snake in the long grass there. This change is quite welcome though as it makes the Red House and the "banana plantation" we have cultivated seem even more homely.
When we arrived back in the village we went straight to school to drop off the costumes and toothbrushes donnated by various people affiliated with UWCSEA. As soon as we passed through the gates there was what literally sounded like the beginings of a riot from the main building. Before we were halfway down the drive we were being greeted with "HELLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO TEACHERRRRR!" by any kids who happened to
be outside. Just as I got to the door of the classroom I usually teach in the doors burst open and all of our kids poured out. The funny thing is that after the hugs and hellos all my kids started measuring themselves against me like they did when I first arrived in September. I think I'm the measuring stick for the class :) When we left CLC we had an entourage of 30 or so kids chasing our tuk-tuk down the road. Some of the more adventurous kids even climbed onto the skirtingboards of the tuk-tuk and got a ride to the market. Although this was fun, I was also quite scared one of them was going to get caught under the wheel. Thankfully, Bun Tien, our most reliable tuk-tuk driver, had the sense to drive very slowly until the kids stopped hanging on.
Over the next few days it was really nice to catch up with Biff, Erin and Paa at
the Red House and get two days of teaching in before coming back to Kep for internet access. Teaching has so far been pretty similar to where we left off last year, although I think the kids are so pleased to see us again that they are being even more well behaved than usual. We have also introduced a "letter of the week" system for the younger students which they seem to be enjoying. Joss will also be taking on a new class next week. The CVTC classes she will be teaching are women who are involved with Funky Junk, weaving, sewing and Econut, as opposed to the "coconut project" class which has been renamed the "village" class since hardly any of the students were actually involved with the CVTC projects.
When we were in Kep we caught up with some friends there like Marcel (from the Riel bar) and Stephan (from Botanica guest house). Stephan is going to Kampong Trach with his wife some time next week to finalize arrangements for the construction of the Chamcar Bie basketball court. At this point I would like to say a thanks to all of the people who donated money or equipment and a special thanks to our parents for putting together such a great fundraiser at UWC (especially Hilary and Gwen for putting in all those hours slaving over a hot oven!)
Until next week!
Tom
This week Joss and I arrived back in Chamcar Bei late on Tuesday afternoon. Coming back was an interesting experience as both Joss and I felt like our time in Cambodia was more like a vivid dream tha
n three months of our lives. Also, even although everything in Chamcar Bei is in exactly the same place as it was when we left, the whole village and the area surrounding it has now become a large dustbowl. All the vibrant shades of green that we wrote about in our first weeks here have faded into browns and yellows. I'd like to make it clear that this does not make the beautiful Chamcar Bei any less stunning and majestic, merely different. I think what makes this contrast even starker is the fact that we were not here to see the transformation occur. Oddly enough, although it's baking hot during the afternoons at the moment, the nights and mornings are far colder then they were last year. I think this is because the winds have gotten stronger and the sky is now cloudless. Another cosmetic change has occured at the CVTC as the wild grass around the Red House has been trimmed. This is apparently because Paa caught and killed a snake in the long grass there. This change is quite welcome though as it makes the Red House and the "banana plantation" we have cultivated seem even more homely.
When we arrived back in the village we went straight to school to drop off the costumes and toothbrushes donnated by various people affiliated with UWCSEA. As soon as we passed through the gates there was what literally sounded like the beginings of a riot from the main building. Before we were halfway down the drive we were being greeted with "HELLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO TEACHERRRRR!" by any kids who happened to
be outside. Just as I got to the door of the classroom I usually teach in the doors burst open and all of our kids poured out. The funny thing is that after the hugs and hellos all my kids started measuring themselves against me like they did when I first arrived in September. I think I'm the measuring stick for the class :) When we left CLC we had an entourage of 30 or so kids chasing our tuk-tuk down the road. Some of the more adventurous kids even climbed onto the skirtingboards of the tuk-tuk and got a ride to the market. Although this was fun, I was also quite scared one of them was going to get caught under the wheel. Thankfully, Bun Tien, our most reliable tuk-tuk driver, had the sense to drive very slowly until the kids stopped hanging on.Over the next few days it was really nice to catch up with Biff, Erin and Paa at
the Red House and get two days of teaching in before coming back to Kep for internet access. Teaching has so far been pretty similar to where we left off last year, although I think the kids are so pleased to see us again that they are being even more well behaved than usual. We have also introduced a "letter of the week" system for the younger students which they seem to be enjoying. Joss will also be taking on a new class next week. The CVTC classes she will be teaching are women who are involved with Funky Junk, weaving, sewing and Econut, as opposed to the "coconut project" class which has been renamed the "village" class since hardly any of the students were actually involved with the CVTC projects.When we were in Kep we caught up with some friends there like Marcel (from the Riel bar) and Stephan (from Botanica guest house). Stephan is going to Kampong Trach with his wife some time next week to finalize arrangements for the construction of the Chamcar Bie basketball court. At this point I would like to say a thanks to all of the people who donated money or equipment and a special thanks to our parents for putting together such a great fundraiser at UWC (especially Hilary and Gwen for putting in all those hours slaving over a hot oven!)
Until next week!
Tom
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