An update from volunteers in Cambodia

Good morning from Siem Reap!

We have been here for a few days now and are having a blast! The flight was long but very easy and a driver from Journeys Within was there waiting for us when we arrived in Siem Reap. We were greeted at the B&B when we arrived by Pen and Makra. They offered us cold water and helped us get situated into our room. Traveling has never been so easy!

Our first day in Siem Reap, we woke up and had a delicious breakfast of eggs, granola and yogurt, and fresh fruit. After breakfast, we started work for Andrea and then went to a village about 16km outside of Siem Reap. We took a tuk tuk there and a boat on the way back. It was a very nice village. Our guide’s sister is getting married in a few days and the family was busy preparing for the wedding. Being the oldest child of the family, it was his responsibility to set up for the wedding and his mother’s job was to cook all of the noodles for the guests.

After the village, we came back for a short swim to cool off before heading to the night market. We went in a tuktuk to the night market and had some delicious dinner at the Khmer Kitchen Restaurant and then wandered through the market. We decided to get fish foot massages which were so FUNNY and so ticklish.

The next morning we got up at 4:45am and took a tuktuk to Happy Horse Ranch for a sunrise trail ride through the villages and some old temple ruins. It was SO fun cantering through the villages and being the only tourists out there! As it was early, it was very quiet and we were able to watch the Khmer start their day as the sun came up. The horses were so well taken care of and the place was beautiful. We had an interesting chat with the kind owner who escaped to California before the Khmer Rouge and became a lawyer. Now he is back in Siem Reap running his business.

Yesterday, we worked in the morning for Andrea and Brandon and then went over to JWOC to meet Nicola. She introduced us to the staff and gave us our list of tasks to complete over the next couple weeks. We are SO excited to start working there today with our first project as teaching an art class. In a few days, the micro finance loans are given out and we are anxious to watch that process.

After JWOC, we went to the orphanage called ACODO and watched the children perform a tradition Khmer dance. This was a wonderful and eye opening experience.

Everything has been so great. We have a perfect balance between the amount of work we do with Journeys Within, the volunteering time at JWOC, and play time!