Saturday 4 August 2012

Phnom Penh and Donations

Donations Update

Thank you to Dave and Nadine Bromhill for there recent donation as well as Chantel for mailing items to us here in Cambodia for use by the local Khmer kids.  Also a thank you to Ann Smith, Trevor's Mum for her wonderful donation along with a mystery donor for her insistence in helping out Mong's family after his fathers recent medical issues.  Of course we can't forget our regular donors Richard and Bernadette. It may seem like we carry on about this but honestly, this whole thing only works with you guys helping out, the money goes a long way over here and is really appreciated.

Even if you think you can't help, $5 or $10 can make a huge difference, especially if there are many people making similar donation amounts.  

Moving Along

Sometimes the poverty slaps you in the face, most of the time you harden yourself and ignore it. Those of you having travelled to developing countries will have some understanding but living with it is a whole different paradigm.  This little fellow

approached, as is often the case, with ribs poking out while we were eating dinner at a cheap hole in the wall cafe begging to be fed.  Feeding them is bad as it encourages them to be away from their homes (mind you one has to wonder at the quality of the home life is this is a better option), so here I am a comparatively fat, sweaty pale westerner ('barang' is the local colloquial term for all foreigners), how could a human do anything else except give him my meal... which he proceeded to ravage.  I am not saying this is anything special, it's very common and Cambodia is still a country where people actually die from starvation. I just happened to have my camera with me that night.

Phnom Penh

During the recent closure of all schools in Cambodia due to an EV-71 virus outbreak and the subsequent deaths of some 60 small children, we managed a quick trip to Phnom Penh for a couple of days.  We caught up with a young artist from Sihnaoukville whom we have befriended, Chow Maily.

Mailey and two of his entries, to his right 

He was part of  an exhibit of young Cambodian artists being shown at one of the local small galleries and advised us he had just won a full scholarship to Phnom Penh to study architect.  He will have a bright future if he can stick to it and not be distracted. We can only wish him all the best for the future.



We also took a walk down to the Mekong Rv in the early morning.  Phnom Penh lies on the confluence of the Mekong and Tonle Sap Rivers (the river coming down from Angkor Wat)


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2 comments:

  1. In Cambodia, lot of NGO use luxury sport utility vehicles.. very amazing.
    Im glad to look that your action is real and use donation with good way.
    Thank you for your help to Cambodian people in poverty.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you for your comment. We agree that spending donations on luxury vehicles is a waste of funds, this practice is far too common. The money should benefit those in need.

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