The stories of Cambodians.

This is a written entry of an experience, which I believe I will never forget for the rest of my life. It is also at this point when I was granted entry to some of the Cambodians' livelihood, their ambitions and their attitude through their stories.

It significantly changed some of my views and my take in life.

Please note that the stories you will read are entirely non-fictional and non-fabricated, and that it is written from what my memory serves me.

1. Dreams are kept alive if you believe in them.

The person in striped shirt (Let's call him Phun.) is a tuk-tuk driver who drives tourists around Siem Reap. He also works in our guesthouse, Home Sweet Home.

Phun told me of his background, and the things about Cambodia. His parents are farmers who live in the countryside, and he says that the farmers are very poor people who cannot take a break to go elsewhere because they simply have no time to do so.

He wants to earn lots of money and doesn't want to be under control of anyone. With the gift of the gab, and a good command of English, I believe he can go far.

Sar, (the one in the foreground) is currently studying at Southeast Asia University in Siem Reap. A promising singer who got in second for the national singing competition, he had performed in national television before! He could have gotten further with his singing career, if not for some restrictions that he have to study in Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia.

Aside from the picture above, there was this Cambodian girl in the Boys Brigade Learning Centre (BBLC) asking my teacher-in-charge, Ms Beulah about some matters. Apparently, she has the ambition of being a doctor and consulted Ms Beulah, who has been in the healthcare sector for 27 years.

The guy above, (Let's call him Kun) comes from a small province near Phnom Penh. Unable to find a job in his province, he tried his luck to find a job in Siem Reap, which he landed one in Home Sweet Home.

At the age of 24, he has worked for Home Sweet Home for 2 years, the same amount of years which he hasn't returned home.

When I asked Kun whether he misses home, he says he does but he cannot go back because he needs to make a living.

2. In the midst of darkness, there's light.

This kind old lady who cooks for us lunch during weekdays have an untold history behind her. On the surface, she looks like any of the Cambodian people that we meet. But I never expected something coming from her family:

All of her 17 family members are killed in the Khmer Rouge, and she and her brother were the only ones alive.

Khmer Rouge happened in 1975, whereby it destroyed every single aspect of the Cambodians, and killed 1.5 million people.

Her brother, who found faith in Christianity wrote two books about the Khmer Rouge and forgiveness. He managed to track down one of his family members' killers recently, befriended him and gave him a garland and a bible. He forgave him.

Before his confrontation with the killer, he had went to find his sister (the one who cooks for us) to tell her about it. She was afraid that her brother could be killed during the confrontation. But thankfully nothing happened.

The old lady's daughter often goes to the Boys Brigade Learning Centre (BBLC) to learn more stuff everyday.

This guy, (let's call him Khan) is a bartender that I met in Island Bar which was located at the Night Market.

He's only 22 years old, and has a wife and a 2 year old daughter and comes from a province near Phnom Penh.

A very hardworking young man, he came to Island Bar to learn more about juggling and those fancy tricks that bartenders usually do. He also learns English and do some magic tricks, which I'm so impressed with.

Initially, his wife and daughter came to Siem Reap to look for him, but later returned back to their province because his pay wasn't enough.

His meagre pay is only a mere US$100 (SGD$140) per month.

This is despite working for a few years already. When he was a trainee, he earned like US$15, US$30 per month.

He needs to pay his room rental of US$50 per month, and he's only left with US$50 to survive. He could barely make it and there wasn't any savings at all. I don't know how he can survive with so little money, given that he still got his wife and his daughter to feed.

When I told Khan I was from Singapore and that I told him to save up to come to Singapore and make a living, he said something which I could never forget for the rest of my life. I never felt such a sentence so impactful:

"James, I think even if I work all the way until I die, I will never be able to come to Singapore."

And now, he could only hope that as he learn more stuff, his pay will increase as time goes by.

Even as I finish typing this, I'm feeling very emotional right now. The sight, the tone, the words the eyes and most importantly, the experience is still ringing fresh in my mind. It felt so surreal.

These stories, these livelihood, these people made me feel so ashamed of myself.

Some of these peoples' family members have been killed.

Some of these people struggle to make ends meet.

Some of these people have ridiculously low pay.

I used to be one of those people whom complained about Singapore's hot weather, how terrible Singapore is, how restricted Singapore can be, and most regrettably, complaining about where I came from.

And to think that I have a complete family, where struggling to make ends meet is nothing compared to them, and I can easily get more pay than them.

I feel so ashamed of myself. What was I even thinking? I made a promise to myself, which is to visit them and help them when I have the money.

I knew the spelling of the word f-o-r-t-u-n-a-t-e and t-r-e-a-s-u-r-e.

Now, I finally know the definition of these words in my dictionary.

Food in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

The food in Cambodia is influenced from time to time. One day, an Indian merchant brought along a packet of rice to Cambodia, and guess what? Rice cropping is the country's economic saviour and one major factor for its economy.

In Siem Reap, you can find baguettes easily and I was told that when Cambodia was being colonised by the French, the French introduced their food to Cambodia. It goes the same with pizzas and other food. The rest is history.

You can find different types of restaurants in Siem Reap, probably because it is a touristy place; Indian, Korean, Chinese and Malay cuisine etc.

In this post, I will show you some interesting food/restaurants in Cambodia, and a controversial one.

I've been to Siem Reap for 16 days, and I've only known this restaurant from Singapore.

Mcdonalds? Nope.

Kentucky Fried Chicken? Fat hope!

Don't tell me it's Jack's Place? Good attempt..

But it's......

No, you don't have to see an opthalmologist/optometrist. It is indeed Swensen's!

They sell mainly ice-cream, and I heard from my friends that it tasted good as well!

Here's a peek at their menu:

Chocolate Banana Split is only like US$3.90! I think it's a lot cheaper than Singapore. Plus the good thing about restaurants in Cambodia is that there isn't any government service tax (GST) or service charge. The price stated is the price you pay. Nothing less, nothing more.

Anyway, here's a peek of the street side food in Cambodia.

Rows of stalls.

Don't be fooled by the rows of stalls, thinking that they sell different variety of food. In fact, they sell the same food and same stuff. No, we're not spoilt for choice.

In Cambodia, the common meat are chicken, beef and pork.

The Cambodian lady who cooked for us.

FRIED RICE WITH PORK

Fried Rice with Pork.

Food is tasty, but the ingredients aren't sufficient. For only US$1 ($1.4o) for a plate of fried rice, it already justifies the taste.

Rating: 3.5

NOODLE WITH CHICKEN & DURIAN SHAKE

Noodle with Chicken.

Food isn't spicy, with a tinge of sourness from tomato ketchup. Chicken is succulent. However, the noodle was dry, and I didn't really liked it.

The only thing that surprised me is that the noodle is actually kway teow, and not like the yellow ones we commonly eat. US$1 too.

Rating: 3/5

DURIAN SHAKE

One word. ORGASMIC. I've never drank such durian shakes before in my life. It's the best. Hands down.

The sheer taste of durian is so powerful, and it excites your taste buds, screaming for more. You don't even have to eat the fruit. The shake itself is filled with the strong taste of durian, and the drink is so good, my eyes rolled back and let out a smirk, hinting that I was on the verge of possession by the taste of the durian shake.

Okay, maybe not that exaggerating but it is that damn good. For only 3000 riels (US$0.75), you get the freshest fruit shakes in town. My friends bought banana shakes and mango shakes, it tasted equally good.

Rating: Too good to be rated.

Digressing away from street stall food, I must say that one interesting thing in Siem Reap is that there are Cambodians who do business by selling food on their trolleys. They will move around the town, and will stop when customers flag them.

FRIED MEE

Fried Mee, which is being fried with vegetables and chicken and egg together with seasoning and other various sauces are sold at 3000 riels (US0.75) or US$1 depending on the vendor.

The noodles are used from instant noodles, and the interesting part is that unlike Singapore's instant noodles which are hard and firm when you open the packet, Cambodia's instant noodles are already soft.

Food is tasty, and the flavour is rather good. Fresh vegetables gives this Fried Mee bonus points.

Rating: 4/5

And here we go, is another stall which sells flavoured ice, otherwise known in Singapore as Ice Kachang.

FLAVOURED ICE

Turning the ice into small bits.

They don't use gloves, yet it felt so sincere and heartwarming.

(Wonders if you understand what I'm talking about.)

Filled with various coloured flavourings of syrup and condensed milk, with green beans at the bottom of the cup. I never felt any taste of over saccharine, as the sweetness is just fine.

For only 2000 riels (US$0.50), it's the perfect dessert.

Rating: 4/5

FRIED FINGER FOOD

This stall sells fried finger food, with tons of choices for you to choose from; Salted egg, pork balls, chicken balls, sausages etc.

Ahhhh.. spoilt for choice!

Once you choose your food, he will cook on a stove next to him, taking around 20 seconds to 1 minute.

And the food is finally ready!

4 sticks only costs 3000 riels (US$0.75) and they're piping hot! Together with vegetables and a special kind of sauce, they taste really really good! Just don't eat it cold.

Rating: 4.5/5

Next, here's a local delicacy which I simply love:

LOK LUK

Lok Luk is a steamboat delicacy whereby there are beef parts, and vegetables. The soup is brownish in colour, and I tell you, the soup is SO GOOD! The soup is very sweet, and the smell of the beef enchanced the soup base which was simply awesome!

With rice and noodles, you can simply eat on and on without stopping! And guess how much is it? Only $5 per steamboat, and it was shared by 4 people!

Speaking of which, this is also the first time whereby the steamboat exploded beside me. Apparently, the claypot was overheating and there wasn't enough soup, and suddenly a loud noise suddenly blasted our ears and I could see my friends all shocked, and some out of their chairs.

Thankfully nothing happened to anyone of us, except for me.

I WAS NEARLY MOLESTED BY THIS OLD UNCLE! This uncle was sitting beside me out of nowhere, and while I was eating, my friend told me to becareful of him. Guess what I saw, his hand is just beside my.. ahem crotch!

So I slapped his hand back, and he retreated...

But anyway..

Rating: 5/5

BARBEQUED FOOD

Their barbequed food is cooked from charcoal and it looked rather tasty. Chicken, various types of fish, frog, etc.

For a whole piece of chicken, it costs US$5. I tried some of the food, but it wasn't to my liking.

Rating: 2.5/5

And last but not least, the controversial food..

DOG MEAT

I never expected myself to eat dog meat, and in Cambodia, dog meat are unusual, and it is only sold at a certain time. Since my friends were eating, I asked them to buy for me.

Dog meat, intestines and other parts.

It comes with a packet of sauce and plenty of vegetables. And it costs only US$2! I didn't really finish it and I tried a few pieces of dog meat before passing it to my friends.

All I can say it taste like roasted duck and it goes the same with the texture..

Rating: 3/5

And that's about it for the food in Cambodia. It is a pity that I couldn't try some of the food due to some constraints but the food in general is simply awesome!

An insight of Cambodia.

Siem Reap, Cambodia is a province whereby tourists often go. The main reason for Siem Reap to be so touristy is because it is the closest province to the Angkor Wat, one of the seven ancient wonders of the world and the main tourist attraction of Cambodia.

I'm left with the impression that in general, Cambodians are very friendly, honest and sincere. When we have a conversation, I could always felt a strong sense of sincerity inside them.

90% of Cambodians belong to an ethnic group called the Khmer people, and they speak the Khmer language. The majority of them are believers of Buddhism, and this is evident from the temples, souvenirs and artefacts they have.

The currency for Cambodia is USD and Riels. 1000 Riels is equivalent to US$0.25. In Cambodia, they don't accept USD coins, and every transaction is handled in notes.

With this small introduction, I welcome you to Siem Reap, Cambodia.

One good thing about Siem Reap is that although it is a touristy place, it is never overpopulated, although traffic can sometimes be congested.

There are some really posh-looking hotels like this one in Siem Reap:

Apsara Holiday Hotel

These posh-looking hotels usually cost US$100 per night. In such a touristy place, opulent brands are never absent.

As much as I would like them to be authentic, I believe that 90% of them are counterfeit goods, and the price is rather exorbitant.

You can have a Tommy Hilfiger perfume looking exactly the same, except that the spelling is Toomy Hilfiger.

Even sports brands such as Adidas, Nike, Puma can be seen.

Anyway, I found this very interesting. It's a concoction of some liquid with a snake biting a scorpion. I don't think it can be seen in Singapore, but I thought it was somewhat unusual.

It costs US$3 for a small bottle.

In Siem Reap, there are 3 shopping malls, and I must say that only one can really be considered as a decent shopping mall; the Lucky Mall.

Lucky Mall

The Lucky Mall has a very amusing concept. Everything is called Lucky something; Lucky departmental store, Lucky Burger etc. They're the only departmental store and fast food restaurant that I've seen.

What amazes me is their supermarket.

I must say the standard of the supermarket is even better than most of the supermarkets in Singapore.

The Cambodians shopping there must be rich people, because the Lucky mall is filled with expensive stuff.

And their wet market is similar to Singapore's as well..

That's fine, except that when I saw that decapitated pig's head filled with more than 50 houseflies, I hated pork for once. And they were using some fan to wave the air in an attempt to move the houseflies away, but didn't quite make it.

And we move on to Puok, a district at Siem Reap, where the poor lives.

In Singapore, you'll never get to see this:

4 people in a motorbike/scooter!

Did I mention that during my stay in Cambodia, I've seen only 3 obese Cambodians? The rest are really small-sized and thin. The other obese and humongous people I've seen in Cambodia are mainly caucasian tourists.

Puok was an eye-opener for me, because I've never seen the ancient and traditonal method of preserving ice using sawdust.

The main traditional method of preserving ice.

They use glass shards to prevent intruders..

In Puok, buffaloes are common, and it goes the same with ducks, roosters and wild dogs.

Just in case you're wondering, dogs are been sold at US$15 each.

Here's something more surprising:

THEY KEEP CROCODILES AS PETS

A crocodile at one of our Cambodian friend's house.

In Cambodia, a baby crocodile costs around US$8, while an adult-sized costs US$1000. According to a Cambodian friend, these crocodiles doesn't bite.

I've mentioned before that 90% of the Cambodians live less than US$2.50 a day, and they are usually peasants.

So it is not surprising when you see rice crops, which is another important factor for Cambodia's economy.

Once again, it was kinda like an eye-opener for me. Why? Because I always think of Geography and my teacher Ms Tan. Those intensive learning of the steps of rice crops are still etched in my mind.

Some of our rice comes from Cambodia.

And here's a well. I've never seen one before, and I thought it was rather cool. This well is from the orphanage, and they use it to cook, bathe and wash their clothes.

There was this day when there was a heavy rain, and after that we saw a fish in the well.

In another place where we always have our lunch, we have to wash our own dishes, and we use water from this particular well. But guess what? The water we use is also drank by buffaloes and dogs and I even saw pond skaters inside it. I wonder which animal uses the well as well?

Up till today, I still miss these activities and experiences after looking at this post. These experiences made me more independent, and I look forward to reminisce these wonderful memories.

I simply love Cambodia!

Heartwarmers' purpose and work.

There are over 1000 pictures, and whenever I look at the pictures, memories came flooding back and I don't know where to start the ball rolling. I'll try my best to start without getting emotional, and I shall start with our purpose being there.


Our YEP (Youth Expedition Project) team is called the Heartwarmers. I personally thought it was a rather suitable name for the things that we do there.



Our team is split into 4 teams; the Health Sciences Team, the IT team, the Infrastructure Team and the Project Management team.


The Health Sciences Team - Teaches Malaria Prevention, AIDS Prevention, Toothbrushing etc.

The IT Team - Teaches Microsoft PowerPoint, Excel, Word etc.

The Infrastructure Team - Designs and paints signboard and wall.

The Project Management Team - Oversees the whole process and ensures everything goes smoothly.

Our voluntary work is done in the BBLC (Boys Brigade Learning Centre) and the Foursquare Children of Promise Orphanage.

It's nice to know that the learning centre and the orphanage is being driven by the faith of Christianity.

BBLC

Boys Brigade Learning Centre (BBLC)






Opened by Rev Canon Dr Louis Tay..




Foursquare Children of Promise Orphanage






The signboard..



The orphanage.


Here are some of the pictures that we've done:






Health Sciences Team






Learning how to bandage.



Listening attentively.




Imparting lifelong knowledge to them.





The IT team




Teaching the parts of the CPU.







Watching the demonstration.



Getting hands-on.


The Infrastructure Team



Drawing on the wall according to the design.


The completed wall painting.



The signboard..


Our sub-teams' objectives were met and I believe we did really well in general, although most of the stuff were pretty impromptu.


The YEP team's purpose and work mainly revolves around the BBLC and the orphanage. Most of our time were spent with the two venues and the children. It was a time whereby the YEP team bonded with the children, interacting and having fun together.

It was a relationship that didn't wither, but became stronger.

Introduction to Cambodia.

"Sok so bye teh? Kh niom Ji mua James. Ker-nyom ayuk dap-pran boon. Khom mo pi Singapore." (Khmer Language)

"How are you? My name is James and my age is 19. I am from Singapore."

This is how I started my trip in Cambodia. My introduction to them. (Taught by some of my Cambodian mates.)


I am from Singapore. A place where sky high buildings existed, a city filled with fortunate people. A city whereby hygiene and cleaniness are high, and everything looks fresh.


I went to Siem Reap, Cambodia. Cambodia, a country whereby 90% of the 16 million people live less than US$2.50 a day. Corruption is high, and the minds of the people are still fresh with the Khmer Rouge. A country where only mainly attap houses and kampung houses existed. The disparity between the rich and the poor is so wide, and Cambodia is still one of the poorest countries in the world, although improving.

I came to Cambodia with an open mind, and was presented with a reality from third-world country.

Traffic lights are rare, and most roads are made up of sand. Blackouts have been experienced.

Beggars can be seen frequently, children as young as 5 years old were touting, and 10 year-old kids are seen picking rubbish and pushing those rubbish trolleys.

Even images of the plight of Cambodians were never much of an impact to me before I went to Cambodia, but the sight and the experience left such a big impact on me.

Here I am typing, still trying to adjust myself to Singapore's standard of living. I'm too used to Cambodia's way of living although it's only 2 weeks. If I have the money and time, I'll go back there again, definitely.

For the many of the continued posts will be all about my trip to Cambodia, so do follow up if you're interested.

I embarked on a journey to Cambodia, and I've never looked back.

Just flown back from Cambodia..

I've finally reached home, and I'm experiencing a shock and disappointment.

After flying down to Changi Airport and looking at the scenery while in a taxi, I feel incredibly uneasy and felt like a fish out of water. I'm not used to the cleaniness, vibrant, opulence and the tall buildings in Singapore.

Cambodia's way of life is so different from here, that I'm rather used to Cambodia's standard of living.

I'm still shocked despite reaching home and feeling very uneasy.

Disappointment, well is because my Grade Point Average (GPA) of my semester is not very ideal for me. I improved only a little, and I'm very upset and disappointed right now.

Weeks of hard work didn't pay off much, and I'm sick and tired of sticking to this belief that hard work pays off.

My 'O' level Maths was a good reminder, and thanks for the second reminder.

I'm starting to hate design. I seriously do not know what is wrong with my work. My execution isn't as good as my research, that's why I always do more research to compensate. Yet I kept getting some shitty results.

I'm so sick and tired of doing my best and without reaping any sow.

Stop those foreign talk from the Olympics already.

Scheduled Post


I know it's a little late to talk about this, but I already wanted to talk about it a long time ago.

We all knew that before the Beijing Olympics 2008, Singapore underwent a 48 year drought without any Olympic medals.

The first Olympic medal was held by weightlifter Tan Howe Liang. He won the Silver Medal for weightlifting in Rome Olympics 1960.

Yes, it was the first Olympic medal, and Singapore is very proud. But guess what? He is also born in China.

So if that's the case, why are people still complaining about foreign talents helping us to clinch the medals or whatsoever?

When we went on a 48 year old drought without Olympic medals, everyone was hoping that the Singapore Team could won it in every Olympics. Now that they finally won it, why is the foreign talent topic keep coming up everytime?

Sure, it's nice to have citizen of Singapore to win the medal for us, but given the 4 million+ people, where the pool of talent is like minimal compared to powerhouse countries like China which have 1 billion+ people, why are you still complaining?


More importantly, if these foreign talent people have came and settled in Singapore, and fight whole-heartedly for Singapore's glory (not talking about monetary rewards here), why are we still questioning them?

If they looked up to Singapore as a home, why are you still talking about these?


The fact that they won a medal for Singapore shows that they are part of Singapore's citizens. They fight for Singapore's glory and have put Singapore on the spotlight in sports.


So think about it, if you are a foreign-land born person and settled in Singapore, and you represents Singapore, and then some citizens questions and doubt you, how would you feel?

Show some empathy, people.

Fallen in love?

Never would I expected to find myself to fall in love with someone in Cambodia..

Currently at Cambodia..

Life has been rather hectic for me, because I'm leading my Infrastructure group to paint the walls and it is a significant task for me.

Cambodia is so much hotter than Singapore and I've seen so much stuff at the orphanage.

Life is so simple, yet the hygiene and the place is very poor, but the rest of us managed to survive. The thought of having to wash our dishes with well water which the buffaloes drank sounds disgusting.

I wanted to post up pictures but I simply couldn't because the USB port is problematic and sends out electric shocks.

Speaking of which, I had a minor accident yesterday with some of the group, and we caused a traffic jam.. I'll elaborate more the next time..

Don't ask whether I've slimmed down in Cambodia. As irony as it seems, the food there are delicious and my body is pretty well adapted to the food already.

Hopefully I can lose quite a bit of weight when I comes back.

I miss home already, and I miss everyone of you all.


All the best to Koon Xian for his National Service again!


Till then,

James

Liang Zhi's birthday celebration..

Scheduled Post


I went to Liang Zhi's birthday celebration the other day and there were a lot of people who went, and we settled down and had the celebration..



Gathering for the celebration after the dinner..

And for Liang Zhi's 19th birthday cake.. Guess what is it?




Pinkish cake with Walt Disney Characters!


A bit of childish yet feminity cake. Hahaha, it must be probably one of the most interesting cakes he'll ever had.


You know what happens whenever you have a birthday cake? You need to blow.

Wait, are you thinking in the right frame of mind?


Blow the candles of course!!!



Happy Birthday Song sang by all of us..


You know, it's nearly inevitable to escape cake-smashing from our friends especially when it's your birthday.. But it's surprising that Liang Zhi managed to escape this time, because no one could force him right into the cake, because his neck and head muscle were too strong!


Anyway Liang Zhi, I would still like to wish you a very happy 19th birthday and hope you like the celebration ya..





Hope you like the presents we gave!

All the best..

Scheduled Post


Just wanna wish my brother all the best for his 'N' levels..

Please study hard and do your best! I really hope that he'll do well.


On another side note, Koon Xian is leaving for National Service at 15 September.. All the best to him too!

Life at its simplest.

Greetings from Cambodia! Here I am in a small cozy corner in my guesthouse called Home Sweet Home.



Once again, I would like to thank those who came and those messages again, and when I was in the plane, I felt really blessed and grateful. Thank you all once again.



Life here is very different from Singapore.



Traffic lights are very rare, and crossing the roads seems to be very difficult and dangerous. The vehicles doesn't stop for you; you cross at your own risk.

There are A LOT of bicycles and motorbikes on the road, whereas cars were unusual and buses are rare.



Also, the road there are mainly sand and not concrete, and the incredible amount of dust can be seen and felt almost everywhere.


Cambodians are very friendly and sincere, and rather honest, as far as the ones I know.

And my body and mind are struggling to adapt to the life here. It's only the first few days and it felt like it has been 3 weeks already.


Ahhh, that's about it for now, I'm going to post up pictures soon. REAL SOON!