I have several random pictures capturing our time on the island, so this is a miscellaneous post.
We finally got into a rhythm of homeschooling, which was nice for a change. We were up by 7:00 and doing school by 8:15ish most mornings. Eating at the restaurant always took a long time, and it was the best time for everyone to communicate with friends and family across the globe or read a few chapters in our latest good read, so we didn't mind the wait. We would finish up around 12:30.
In the beginning we only had internet connection in the restaurant, which was distracting and inconvenient.
Or we worked at a table on the beach.
After awhile Geoff got a local Sim card that allowed us a hot spot and we did schooling on our front porch for the rest of our stay.
We are doing a religious study for an hour every morning for Adele's seminary credit. It has been fun to study the Book of Mormon together!
In the early afternoon we would try to take a quick swim before heading off to the library, but in reality, we spent far less time in the water than we would have liked. Our days were full. We also realized that we spend a lot of time talking to people. There are so many interesting people to meet! But we've considered turning off our natural friendly instinct to gain a few more hours a day. This seems an unrealistic goal for Geoff (anyone who waits for him after church will understand the struggle).
We took the employee boat over to Song Saa two mornings to meet with the owner Mel who was in town. I felt like a surviver from a shipwreck on this small boat of life vests!
We saw a lovely couple from Belgium we befriended during our stay on the private island and got a quick picture while there. We've exchanged contact information and hope to visit them this summer! Truly, we have met some wonderful people along the way.
Most bugs around our bungalow were typical gnats, mosquitos, ants and bazillions of baby spiders, all of which took a liking to our stuff and were part of our daily life. We had lizards in the bathroom on occasion, and we saw a few beautiful beetles outside. If it weren't for our magical art teacher, Dana Ross, in Auburn, I don't think I ever would have called a beetle beautiful, but these truly were. The pictures are a bit blurry, but this big, horned one had a polished wood-looking shell. Its details really were exquisite. It is easier to see on a similar beetle below.
Thankfully it was rainy and cloudy for most of our stay. For me that meant slightly cooler temps. When the sun came out (as it seemed to every time we walked to the village), I thought I might melt and evaporate from my current existence. And it isn't even the hot season! Humid heat is so oppressive.
Ceci took advantage of a downpour one morning.
One open afternoon (maybe a Sunday) Adele and Ceci crafted boats to set sail in the waves. They created an elaborate village on the beach. It reminded me of their childhood. I realized how long it has been since they've created fairy houses and sand villages such as this.
Geoff and I got some reading in.
There were some local kids around the bungalows and we tried to engage them in games. They were always pretty good!
There was a very old and darling old woman who swept the sandy grounds of the bungalows, by hand, every day with her homemade broom of twigs or leaves. She squatted low for the hard work. One day we saw her on the dock and got a quick picture. I wonder what they pay her. A dollar a day?
One day a man and son from the dock took advantage of fish near the shore and threw in a large, round net. The fish were trapped underneath and the man got them out with his hands and put them in the bucket. The cute, young boy was so proud to be helping!
A typical fishing boat. Boy are they loud in the wee hours of the night!
We went to the library most days, setting out art supplies and books and attempting to read English books aloud, sing songs and teach counting from 1-20 and ABCs with jumprope and games.
We were partly successful, and it was fun to see their eagerness to learn.
Cambodian children are absolutely beautiful, and this little girl tempted me to hide her away and bring her home. When she smiled it was pure sunshine. She loved Ceci. I loved her.
The walk there, as I mentioned, was long and hot. Often we were carrying bins.
We passed the temple-in-progress and presiding monks every day.
On the way home the tide would be low and we would walk through the water and wet sand. The water is quite warm, especially at low tide, but it still felt good!
On our last night, some local kids asked if Geoff and Ceci wanted to play soccer (they had played with these kids before), and we paused in the beauty of the setting sun, when everyone comes out to enjoy slightly cooler temperatures, and they played. Even the dogs were running around. It was magical. I savored the moment trying to etch it in my memory.
Ceci and Geoff often ended their day with a fresh coconut.
We seriously considered staying for three months and starting a garbage business. There is no trash structure on the island, and trash is built up on the shoreline and in the villages. It floats in the water and distracts from the beauty of the place. Hotels have to ship all of their trash to the mainland. What if we helped the foundation start a business to fund itself? What if we bought smokeless incinerators, created local collection teams in the villages, and hired workers to pick up from the hotels. What if we started a successful recycling program as well as a composting business? It was a totally feasible business idea. Geoff was so excited about the possibilities, the challenge of making it work and the thought of doing it as a family.
Where would we stay? Our time in the bungalow was up. Geoff and I borrowed a moto and took off to the other side of the island to check out a few hotel options. There is a new "road" to Preaek Svay. We went after a downpour and it was muddy and full of large puddles most of the way. The moto was a P.O.J. (Piece of Junk)! What an adventure!
We learned how motos get gas! Roadside vendors!
One option was totally affordable and nicer than the bungalows. It had AC and hot water. But this is when I realized that maybe I'm not up for this much adventure. Maybe field work isn't my thing. Even with a step up in accommodation, there was still heat and humidity outside. There were still only a couple meal options every day (and that gets very tiresome, especially when it is risky to eat fresh foods). The work and villages are still very dirty. The dengue and malaria mosquitos still bite. We still smell of citronella every moment of every day. The water is still unusable, and bottled water always room temperature (warm!) to drink. The toilets still don't always flush with toilet paper in them, and those are the good toilets.
I must admit I had a little bit of an identity crisis. My whole married life I have looked forward to the time I could join Geoff in his work to raise others out of poverty. I thought it would bring me amazing joy and fulfillment. But in reality, I'm not up for it, at least in that setting. There will be other ways, I'm sure, but I felt like I wasn't up for the challenge of three months on the island, even when that is what we originally signed up for. I tried to muster some toughness and grit but felt like my tank was empty. This was discouraging, especially when Geoff, Adele and Ceci really, REALLY wanted to stay. I felt like the family party pooper. I think they were holding out hoping that I would have a change of heart and realize it wasn't so bad, but the longer I was there, the more I couldn't wait to move on in our travels. In the end, they yielded to my discomfort.
And yet, it was amazing to be right on the beach, the water a stones throw away. And we loved the village kids. Some things would be hard to leave.
We packed up and planned to spend a few days in Phnom Penh while we figured out what to do next. Most hotels were booked. Our living by the seat of our pants was burning us a bit!
We took the 2-hour ferry back to the mainland where we got off on a bustling dock full of motos pulling wagons full of food and boards; a man carrying live chickens upside down and dozens of other sites and sounds and smells.
There were fishing boats and barges. There were children picking through the trash at the waters edge.
It was incredibly dirty and overwhelmingly alive. I had to use a bathroom after the two hours on the boat and before the 4-hour drive to Phnom Penh. Someone pointed to a restaurant and I went in, hopeful. This is what I found.
Oh my. I think I'll hold it thank you.
We rode the boat over with Laurel, the woman who has been running the foundation and who was so helpful to us during our stay. We said our goodbyes.
So long Koh Rong!
(I'll say here, it feels like we've been gone for months!)
We finally got into a rhythm of homeschooling, which was nice for a change. We were up by 7:00 and doing school by 8:15ish most mornings. Eating at the restaurant always took a long time, and it was the best time for everyone to communicate with friends and family across the globe or read a few chapters in our latest good read, so we didn't mind the wait. We would finish up around 12:30.
In the beginning we only had internet connection in the restaurant, which was distracting and inconvenient.
Or we worked at a table on the beach.
After awhile Geoff got a local Sim card that allowed us a hot spot and we did schooling on our front porch for the rest of our stay.
We're keeping it pretty basic: math, reading and writing. For now there is plenty of other stimulating input and conversation about our surroundings and activities.
We are doing a religious study for an hour every morning for Adele's seminary credit. It has been fun to study the Book of Mormon together!
In the early afternoon we would try to take a quick swim before heading off to the library, but in reality, we spent far less time in the water than we would have liked. Our days were full. We also realized that we spend a lot of time talking to people. There are so many interesting people to meet! But we've considered turning off our natural friendly instinct to gain a few more hours a day. This seems an unrealistic goal for Geoff (anyone who waits for him after church will understand the struggle).
We took the employee boat over to Song Saa two mornings to meet with the owner Mel who was in town. I felt like a surviver from a shipwreck on this small boat of life vests!
We saw a lovely couple from Belgium we befriended during our stay on the private island and got a quick picture while there. We've exchanged contact information and hope to visit them this summer! Truly, we have met some wonderful people along the way.
Thankfully it was rainy and cloudy for most of our stay. For me that meant slightly cooler temps. When the sun came out (as it seemed to every time we walked to the village), I thought I might melt and evaporate from my current existence. And it isn't even the hot season! Humid heat is so oppressive.
Ceci took advantage of a downpour one morning.
One open afternoon (maybe a Sunday) Adele and Ceci crafted boats to set sail in the waves. They created an elaborate village on the beach. It reminded me of their childhood. I realized how long it has been since they've created fairy houses and sand villages such as this.
Geoff and I got some reading in.
There were some local kids around the bungalows and we tried to engage them in games. They were always pretty good!
There was a very old and darling old woman who swept the sandy grounds of the bungalows, by hand, every day with her homemade broom of twigs or leaves. She squatted low for the hard work. One day we saw her on the dock and got a quick picture. I wonder what they pay her. A dollar a day?
One day a man and son from the dock took advantage of fish near the shore and threw in a large, round net. The fish were trapped underneath and the man got them out with his hands and put them in the bucket. The cute, young boy was so proud to be helping!
A typical fishing boat. Boy are they loud in the wee hours of the night!
We went to the library most days, setting out art supplies and books and attempting to read English books aloud, sing songs and teach counting from 1-20 and ABCs with jumprope and games.
We were partly successful, and it was fun to see their eagerness to learn.
Cambodian children are absolutely beautiful, and this little girl tempted me to hide her away and bring her home. When she smiled it was pure sunshine. She loved Ceci. I loved her.
We passed the temple-in-progress and presiding monks every day.
On the way home the tide would be low and we would walk through the water and wet sand. The water is quite warm, especially at low tide, but it still felt good!
On our last night, some local kids asked if Geoff and Ceci wanted to play soccer (they had played with these kids before), and we paused in the beauty of the setting sun, when everyone comes out to enjoy slightly cooler temperatures, and they played. Even the dogs were running around. It was magical. I savored the moment trying to etch it in my memory.
Ceci and Geoff often ended their day with a fresh coconut.
We seriously considered staying for three months and starting a garbage business. There is no trash structure on the island, and trash is built up on the shoreline and in the villages. It floats in the water and distracts from the beauty of the place. Hotels have to ship all of their trash to the mainland. What if we helped the foundation start a business to fund itself? What if we bought smokeless incinerators, created local collection teams in the villages, and hired workers to pick up from the hotels. What if we started a successful recycling program as well as a composting business? It was a totally feasible business idea. Geoff was so excited about the possibilities, the challenge of making it work and the thought of doing it as a family.
Where would we stay? Our time in the bungalow was up. Geoff and I borrowed a moto and took off to the other side of the island to check out a few hotel options. There is a new "road" to Preaek Svay. We went after a downpour and it was muddy and full of large puddles most of the way. The moto was a P.O.J. (Piece of Junk)! What an adventure!
We learned how motos get gas! Roadside vendors!
One option was totally affordable and nicer than the bungalows. It had AC and hot water. But this is when I realized that maybe I'm not up for this much adventure. Maybe field work isn't my thing. Even with a step up in accommodation, there was still heat and humidity outside. There were still only a couple meal options every day (and that gets very tiresome, especially when it is risky to eat fresh foods). The work and villages are still very dirty. The dengue and malaria mosquitos still bite. We still smell of citronella every moment of every day. The water is still unusable, and bottled water always room temperature (warm!) to drink. The toilets still don't always flush with toilet paper in them, and those are the good toilets.
I must admit I had a little bit of an identity crisis. My whole married life I have looked forward to the time I could join Geoff in his work to raise others out of poverty. I thought it would bring me amazing joy and fulfillment. But in reality, I'm not up for it, at least in that setting. There will be other ways, I'm sure, but I felt like I wasn't up for the challenge of three months on the island, even when that is what we originally signed up for. I tried to muster some toughness and grit but felt like my tank was empty. This was discouraging, especially when Geoff, Adele and Ceci really, REALLY wanted to stay. I felt like the family party pooper. I think they were holding out hoping that I would have a change of heart and realize it wasn't so bad, but the longer I was there, the more I couldn't wait to move on in our travels. In the end, they yielded to my discomfort.
And yet, it was amazing to be right on the beach, the water a stones throw away. And we loved the village kids. Some things would be hard to leave.
We packed up and planned to spend a few days in Phnom Penh while we figured out what to do next. Most hotels were booked. Our living by the seat of our pants was burning us a bit!
We took the 2-hour ferry back to the mainland where we got off on a bustling dock full of motos pulling wagons full of food and boards; a man carrying live chickens upside down and dozens of other sites and sounds and smells.
There were fishing boats and barges. There were children picking through the trash at the waters edge.
It was incredibly dirty and overwhelmingly alive. I had to use a bathroom after the two hours on the boat and before the 4-hour drive to Phnom Penh. Someone pointed to a restaurant and I went in, hopeful. This is what I found.
Oh my. I think I'll hold it thank you.
We rode the boat over with Laurel, the woman who has been running the foundation and who was so helpful to us during our stay. We said our goodbyes.
(I'll say here, it feels like we've been gone for months!)
No comments:
Post a Comment