*warning--this entry has many photos--be patient ~很多照片~請有耐心*

炎熱的星期天下午 我們租了兩台重型越野車到柬普塞的鄉下村落瀏覽

因為我開車技術退步 一開始還撞到樹 後來就很快上手

車子很大聲 每次經過一個村莊  很多小孩都會衝出來像我們揮手 可愛極了!!!

on a hot and humid sunday, we went on a full day quad-biking tour through the cambodian countryside

setting off on our quad bikes

nothing could have prepared me for what i saw that day

i am first to admit my driving skills have heavily deteriorated since moving to hong kong (remi coins me chinese woman driver )

so i was having trouble at first with steering my bike (takes alot of upper arm strength) and within 5 minutes crashed into a bush (stop laughing christine liu!!!)

but after i got the hang of it; it was just fine----i just made the tour guide really nervous b/c each bike costs $12,000USD to import when they retail for $2-3K in say, alberta and minnesota.

as our bikes were fairly loud, every time we went through a rural village

the kids would come rushing out of their huts and waved maniacally like we were royalty!

they came sprinting across the way...

 

i don't know how many naked kids i saw that day..running fully freeeeeeee

the roads were super bumpy, ful of cow-dung...and puddles leftover from the typhoon a few weeks prior

we ended up being quite muddy @ times

or better yet, stuck in a massive puddle...buddy, me too... 

有時候會卡在爛泥裡...

just another typical sunday wading in the mud pond

typical country-side hut made of wood/straw---very dangerous during typhoons

if it's rainy season, basically all these families need to uproot and move elsewhere...and then come back and repair their homes multiple times/year

key agriculture in cambodia: rice, rice, and more rice

kids were swimming and bathing in the local erm... ponds....or more like...big puddles at the side of the road

better yet, shampooing & bathing with muddy water

our tour-guides packed a mean lunch...

we packed our leftovers and handed them out to some of the kids along the way

brings new meaning to recycling...5th, 6th-hand donated bikes getting a makeover

 

i think these kids were scared of me...

athens living out her biker-chick fantasies

finally, a non-bumpy road!

please appreciate the HK MTR, the TTC, and even the 401 traffic... this is the commuter transport system in cambodia

pile on as many people as possible and collect 1000 riel 24cents USD (4200 riel = $1USD) to drive them 1 hour across town to go to work

sometimes, we ran into traffic...cattle have right of way.

we visited another orphanage--chres village school--the kids were very enthusiastically preparing lunch

they made thai instant noodles (audrey chan, just like the type you used to love!)

except they didn't want to waste a single morsel..

and after dumping the flavoring packets..they'd throw the whole packet in to cook too...

the boys were in charge of construction their new kitchen 

this orphanage is much-better supported than the school we taught at

they have funding from europe NGOs and their own t-shirts

 

我的詞彙裡並沒有可以形容我這一次在柬埔塞的感覺

again as i told my friends---there is no english or chinese words in my vocab to describe

how i felt throughout this trip...

震撼 感動 無助 焦慮 心慰 百感交集

shock, compassion, helpless, anxiety, relief---very mixed emotions

我只能說 每一個我們遇到的人 不管大人或小孩 都很努力很認真的過日子

因為他們相信透過這些努力與改遍 他們可以幫助自己的國家脫離貧窮 讓大家都過得更好

every man, woman, or child we encountered along the trip worked very hard and took their tasks very seriously

they sincerely believe that with their diligence and hard-work

they could change their situation as an individual and better their nation

i write this blog as a miniscule effort to encourage others

我花時間寫這個部落格是為了遊說大家

to perhaps, consider Cambodia over a sunny beach resort or a big-city-shopping spree

下次要渡假時 請考慮去吳哥窟 柬埔塞 來代替海灘與逛街吃美食

cambodia needs tourism like no other place--- with a 20% decline in 2009's tourism--- many industries have suffered enormously.

因為經濟下滑 柬埔塞的觀光業嚴重受影響 他們已經很窮了 很需要全世界的支持

given they are already so poor, the impact is significant.

i return to hong kong with a refreshed outlook:

回到香港 我真的有改觀

i need to work every bit as hard and harder

我認為我要跟他們一樣認真甚至更努力

so i may continually stay in a position where i can help places & people like cambodia...

才能繼續幫助&了解這世界上跟柬埔塞一樣需要關懷的地方

update:

to answer elaine's question...Can you share more information on how to sign up for trips like this? Did you do it with a non-profit organization? What's the budget?

as you know in my boredom of unemployment i have had some time on my hands. i planned the entire trip myself.

the quad biking component is an organized tour and can be found here: http://www.quad-adventure-cambodia.com/

they are rated #1 thing to do on trip advisor so no worries there.
in terms of teaching here are many schools/orphanages all over cambodia and i picked one run by a local and a australian guy so i could find out more about the school.http://www.savong.com/  i would highly recommend going there!

as for the sight-seeing part...photos i haven't put up yet...some on FB

we waited from 4:00am to 5:30am @ Angkor Wat
despite knowing what to expect from other people's photos...
it was still breath-taking...



it sounds cliche---but only at moments as such---
am i revived in knowing that the beauty out there makes life worth living

i forget my insecurities and pettiness...i forget my unhappiness and worries
and as dusk breaks over 14 century-old temples

i am reminded of how for centuries--
these very people who built and honoured Angkor Wat
faced their lives with persistence, resilience, and unrelenting strength...

i love the first sun beams of each day
giving us all a brand.new.start!

最近意外聽進的一句話~~~

老天爺把"好命" 的位子給你
你卻把它活成這個樣子...
什麼時候會覺悟?