Sunday 7th December
After
the Khmer Mass I stayed at the church for a while and met some of the community
and then went with Fr Panus to Chomm Kineis, one of the floating churches. I
met a young Australian at Mass who is in his third year at seminary in
Brisbane, he is doing a month placement here working with a volunteer group, he
is teaching English. I suggested he might like to come with us and so he joined
us, along with a couple of Fr Panus staff from Kompong Cliang who had never
been to the floating church before.
Readers at Mass, first reading in Vietnamese, second in Khmer
As we went round the village I spotted the floating kindergarten for the first time, all decorated appropriately for the children.
We went for Mass, when we arrived at the church we found that they had already decorated for Christmas with a lovely crib, as yet no baby, you can see that it is built high up and has a ladder in the front, as do all of their houses. After Mass and rice soup we went on a short tour round the village, for the benefit of the new people and then returned home. I had a sleep and then a quiet evening at home trying to get the blog done.
Monday 8th December
We
celebrated the feast of the Immaculate Conception at Mass and many people came,
even though it was at the usual time of 06.15. Most of the staff, including me,
went to the Baray for a picnic as part of Saki’s farewell party.Saki is a Japanese volunteer who has worked here for three years and has been a great community builder and is much loved, she leaves tomorrow to return to Japan.
The Baray, below.
We set off about 11.00 and joined others at the Baray where we had a lovely time. We sang songs, danced, played bingo, known here as lotto, Saki was given many gifts, several items of clothing which she put on one over the other. She and two other girls also did a fashion parade.
We had some food and many of the younger ones had great fun swimming in the lake, I found a hammock and had a sleep. We returned to the city around 5.00 pm and I taught English.
Sr Casino and one of the mums trying to encourage a very nervous little one into the water.
In the evening I had also been invited to join the group for fried rice, Saki’s last supper, this turned out to be a lovely evening with many of the young people that I teach coming along as well.
Tuesday 9th December
At
the end of Mass this morning I called Saki forward and said the Irish blessing
over her, she was very touched and I think most understood the sentiment of the
blessing. I said goodbye to her at breakfast and went home. I had decided to
have a quiet day today, so I taught in the morning and then in the afternoon,
but otherwise I had a quiet day and caught up with some of my writing and
housework.
Wednesday 10th December
Tony
will arrive late this evening, it will be good to see him. I taught the morning
class and then Ratana wanted to go and visit her friend Kao, whom we went to
see on the first Sunday I was here. Kao has now had her baby, but on the same
day the baby was born she heard that her husband had died in Thailand. So she
is in a bad place right now. The husband had been drinking heavily, but had
gone to Thailand for work, he was found in a ditch, so it is not clear what
happened to him.
We set off and bought some food for her, we stopped for lunch on the way and met with Ean and Sr Tomico who were also on the way to visit. We all arrived together, locals all amazed to see a European so far from the city. Sr Tomico is a Japanese sister, their work is with women in trouble and they have a facility for them to live for a while, she was trying to persuade Kao to go there for a while with her three children and receive some support, she was undecided for the time being.
I hope she will go, it would do her good for a few weeks. We stayed for a while and gave the food and took some photos and then left.
We set off and bought some food for her, we stopped for lunch on the way and met with Ean and Sr Tomico who were also on the way to visit. We all arrived together, locals all amazed to see a European so far from the city. Sr Tomico is a Japanese sister, their work is with women in trouble and they have a facility for them to live for a while, she was trying to persuade Kao to go there for a while with her three children and receive some support, she was undecided for the time being.
I hope she will go, it would do her good for a few weeks. We stayed for a while and gave the food and took some photos and then left.
On the way back we called in to see the tailor and make some final
adjustments to what she is making for us and got home in time to teach at 4.00
and at 5.00 pm. I had supper at home and then Daly and her husband, Sarom, came
to take me to the airport to meet Tony. We were there in good time and had to
wait a while, he finally came through at about 11.45, he had had a good journey and
it was very good to see him. He is staying in a room in the place as where
Daly lives, so they dropped me first and then went home.
Thursday 11th December
Tony
did not make it for Mass this morning after the late night and long flight, he
joined me at the end of the morning class at the Golden Orange and we went for
a swim with Ratana and then for lunch near the market. We went back to my room
and had a sleep and then Ratana and I paid a final visit to the tailor and
collected our goods, Tony stayed and slept. He came with me to teach English
and then we were going for dinner with Daly and Sarom, but sadly she was not
well, so we went for dinner, just the two of us to a local restaurant and then
Tony went home in a tuk-tuk.
Friday 12th December
I
had a lie in today, Mass is this evening, then I went to teach at the hotel as
usual, Tony came in but then went to see Fr Panus at the church and met many of
the staff. We went for a swim again and then went to try out a restaurant next
to the church which is run by an NGO training young people who have been
rescued from the street.
The food is Cambodian tapas, but it was lovely and beautifully presented and very tasty.
After lunch we had a short sleep and then went with Ratana to visit Cambolac. This is a small business near where I live that employs many young people with no skills and trains them. It produces lacquered boxes with beautiful pictures on the outside and sells them in two shops in the tourist area of the city.
We had a tour of the process and saw what the young people do from the very beginning through to the finished product. Many of those employed are hearing impaired and Jim, an American volunteer, who showed us round used to be a teacher of the deaf, so he also taught us some signs. It is a really good business, the young people earn a good wage and can progress through the work and earn more and achieve bonuses.
Lacquered boxes produced at Cambolac, mostly by people who are hearing impaired.
So we had a look in the shop and bought a couple of things; they are also recruiting at present, so Ratana got some details about a possible job in one of the shops.
The food is Cambodian tapas, but it was lovely and beautifully presented and very tasty.
After lunch we had a short sleep and then went with Ratana to visit Cambolac. This is a small business near where I live that employs many young people with no skills and trains them. It produces lacquered boxes with beautiful pictures on the outside and sells them in two shops in the tourist area of the city.
We had a tour of the process and saw what the young people do from the very beginning through to the finished product. Many of those employed are hearing impaired and Jim, an American volunteer, who showed us round used to be a teacher of the deaf, so he also taught us some signs. It is a really good business, the young people earn a good wage and can progress through the work and earn more and achieve bonuses.
Lacquered boxes produced at Cambolac, mostly by people who are hearing impaired.
So we had a look in the shop and bought a couple of things; they are also recruiting at present, so Ratana got some details about a possible job in one of the shops.
In the evening I went to teach and then we went to Mass and Ratana had invited us to her house for dinner, we had a lovely meal with her and Borong, her cousin, who shares her room.
After the meal we decided to go for a drive along the airport road to see the Christmas lights at many of the hotels out that way. It was .lovely and many of the hotels are decorated with lights on Christmas themes, although no sign of Jesus anywhere.
Saturday 13th December
I
had a short lie in today and then got up and wrote a homily for this evening
and then met with Tony and Ratana at the “House of Joy”, the home run by Mother
Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity where they had a Christmas programme.
There were about 400 people waiting for their gifts, but first there was a Christmas play by some of the young people and children, including a live baby for Mary to hold.
Here the angel Gabriel appears to Mary for the annunciation.
Some shepherds are minding sheep and doing a little singing and dancing to themselves keep warm.
Here are Mary and Joseph and the child, a live baby in this instance.
The whole thing was beautifully simple and charmingly innocent and the gathered 400 or so Buddhists loved the story and clapped enthusiastically.
Then a group of ladies, who come from Singapore especially for this event, led some very good singing and involved many of the local Cambodians, many of whom looked as if they were having fun for the first time in a long time. It was very good and all got 5 kilos of rice and some other goodies.
I went and had my haircut and then met Tony and Ratana again and we went to the Indian restaurant for lunch. We walked through the city to take Tony home, did a little shopping in Lucky Mall and then had a tuk-tuk home for a sleep.
After Mass in the evening we took Elizabeth and Hayley, volunteers from the Jesuit Service, along with Ean and Pharoth to 60th Street for barbecue. We started with deep fried crickets and silk worm and moved on to barbecued chicken, quail, pork and frog, all very tasty, firsts for many of the group. We then went along the street a little and threw a few darts and won some cans of Angkor beer before returning home after a very enjoyable evening.
There were about 400 people waiting for their gifts, but first there was a Christmas play by some of the young people and children, including a live baby for Mary to hold.
Here the angel Gabriel appears to Mary for the annunciation.
Some shepherds are minding sheep and doing a little singing and dancing to themselves keep warm.
Here are Mary and Joseph and the child, a live baby in this instance.
The whole thing was beautifully simple and charmingly innocent and the gathered 400 or so Buddhists loved the story and clapped enthusiastically.
Then a group of ladies, who come from Singapore especially for this event, led some very good singing and involved many of the local Cambodians, many of whom looked as if they were having fun for the first time in a long time. It was very good and all got 5 kilos of rice and some other goodies.
I went and had my haircut and then met Tony and Ratana again and we went to the Indian restaurant for lunch. We walked through the city to take Tony home, did a little shopping in Lucky Mall and then had a tuk-tuk home for a sleep.
After Mass in the evening we took Elizabeth and Hayley, volunteers from the Jesuit Service, along with Ean and Pharoth to 60th Street for barbecue. We started with deep fried crickets and silk worm and moved on to barbecued chicken, quail, pork and frog, all very tasty, firsts for many of the group. We then went along the street a little and threw a few darts and won some cans of Angkor beer before returning home after a very enjoyable evening.
Sunday 14th December
It
is my birthday today, very good to have Tony here to join in the celebrations. We
both concelebrated at Mass with Fr Ros, the priest ordained last week who is
going round the Diocese to thank people and get to know them before taking up
his appointment in Battambang. At the end of Mass people greeted him with
flowers and a jasmine bracelet and he thanked them for their support. Then they
sang to me and also presented me with flowers and a jasmine bracelet, it was
very kind of them and a lovely gesture.
After Mass and meeting with some of the people Tony and I went back to my place and opened cards and presents which he had brought with him for me, I received 13 cards which was lovely, I put them up on the side of the wardrobe.
We went for lunch together, we walked along the river bank towards the city and went to Viva Mexicana where they do very good steak and chips, we had a bottle of red wine and followed with banana fritters and ice cream and a cup of coffee, a lovely Sunday/birthday lunch.
We wandered in the nearby craft market for a while and then had a tuk-tuk home for a sleep. I was not able to get on the internet so could not even start the blog or contact anyone at home.
Two gentlemen, replete after Sunday lunch.
In the evening I had a party for 22 people in a restaurant, “Pho de Paris”, we had a private room upstairs and a set menu, it was all very well done. Ratana decorated the room with flowers and balloons. Tony had brought me some mince pies so they were served as the desert. Ratana’s mum came and she bought a cake which was decorated with two hearts, Ratana asked us to guess what they meant, Fr Panus was eventually right, one heart for UK and one for Cambodia. They sang to me in English and in Khmer and some gave me small gifts, and then we had photos, it was a very special evening, my one and only hot birthday, but staying long in the memory.
After Mass and meeting with some of the people Tony and I went back to my place and opened cards and presents which he had brought with him for me, I received 13 cards which was lovely, I put them up on the side of the wardrobe.
We went for lunch together, we walked along the river bank towards the city and went to Viva Mexicana where they do very good steak and chips, we had a bottle of red wine and followed with banana fritters and ice cream and a cup of coffee, a lovely Sunday/birthday lunch.
We wandered in the nearby craft market for a while and then had a tuk-tuk home for a sleep. I was not able to get on the internet so could not even start the blog or contact anyone at home.
Two gentlemen, replete after Sunday lunch.
In the evening I had a party for 22 people in a restaurant, “Pho de Paris”, we had a private room upstairs and a set menu, it was all very well done. Ratana decorated the room with flowers and balloons. Tony had brought me some mince pies so they were served as the desert. Ratana’s mum came and she bought a cake which was decorated with two hearts, Ratana asked us to guess what they meant, Fr Panus was eventually right, one heart for UK and one for Cambodia. They sang to me in English and in Khmer and some gave me small gifts, and then we had photos, it was a very special evening, my one and only hot birthday, but staying long in the memory.
Ratana and her mum with tony and myself
Monday 15th December
After
Mass Ratana and her mum took us for breakfast for the “best roast duck in Siem
Reap”, it certainly is good. It is not something I would usually have for
breakfast, but it is very popular and once it is sold out the restaurant
closes, so you have to go for breakfast to be sure of getting it. Tony went to
Metta Caruna, the Jesuit Reflection Centre, for a tour, I went to teach and we
met again at 10.30. We went to an Asian Craft Centre and I gave in and bought a
lovely silk carpet with some of the gifts that people had given me for my
birthday, it is beautiful, Tony will bring it home for me.
We met Ratana and went for lunch at Blue Pumpkin, she took Tony home on the moto and said goodbye to him then she picked me up and dropped me home. I had to teach at 4.00 and 5.00 pm after that Daly and Sarom, Tony and I went for dinner and then to the airport for Tony to check in about 9.15 pm.
Non-travellers are not permitted inside the terminal building, so we said goodbye and he went to check in. Ratana’s brother was on duty and later she told me that her brother met my brother and helped him through, she was quite tickled by her brother meeting my brother. Tony had a rotten cold when leaving and could hardly speak, I gave him some Lemsips and hopefully he will be able to sleep on the flights home. He had a very brief visit, but enjoyed it, saw some of his friends and did a few new things and it was great to welcome him here.
We met Ratana and went for lunch at Blue Pumpkin, she took Tony home on the moto and said goodbye to him then she picked me up and dropped me home. I had to teach at 4.00 and 5.00 pm after that Daly and Sarom, Tony and I went for dinner and then to the airport for Tony to check in about 9.15 pm.
Non-travellers are not permitted inside the terminal building, so we said goodbye and he went to check in. Ratana’s brother was on duty and later she told me that her brother met my brother and helped him through, she was quite tickled by her brother meeting my brother. Tony had a rotten cold when leaving and could hardly speak, I gave him some Lemsips and hopefully he will be able to sleep on the flights home. He had a very brief visit, but enjoyed it, saw some of his friends and did a few new things and it was great to welcome him here.
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