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1.6.- 7.6.09

a travel blog by katja-horsch


Unfortunately, still depending on Internet-cafe at market. Won't have any internet- acess at home at all.
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1.6.- 7.6. 09

Phnom Penh, Cambodia


Monday, 01 June 2009

Yesterday I’ve seen a real scorpio infront of Helens house. It was as big as my hand and black. We were just returning from the weekly “Banchow” place, which is next to Helens house. Banchow is a dish, it is a giant thin omlette filled with soja beans and some minced meat. You eat it rolled into different leaves with your hands after dipping it into a tasty sauce.
Scott had the honor to kill the scorpio because Helen was worried it might do harm to children running around her house. So he stood on it with his foot and then it was dead.

Talking about animals. Last night a noise kept me awake. Something scratchy next to me. When I had the guts to look what it was with my torch, I saw a giant cocroch at my window. Eventually, I overcame my disgust and pushed it out. I then went into the kitchen, that was all around midnight, and there it was. A giant rat sitting on the sink, jumping off when I came. I couldn’t see where it went.
In the morning, on the way to the bathroom, I had another heart attack. Suddently something jumped at me out of nowhere, and tried to escape through the gaps at the front door. It was a cat! No idear where it came from, but I hope, it ate the rat over night (Sorry Carmen).
I also have a lot of gekkos in the house on the wall and they make funny noises.

And every evening, a dog makes itself cosy on the front steps of the house. The doggy seems calm and harmless.

Otherwise my day at work was good. Had a meeting with the 2 English teachers who teach the students twice a week basic English. VSO supports them and I can sit and observe one of them tomorrow morning and give them feedback.
Then I discussed with them my idear, starting a choire. I wrote the word choire down, because they didn’t know what it was. So I explained it and they were really positiv about it. At the end of the meeting( which took 2 and a half hours), one of them pointed at the word choire like they never heard about it and asked me, what it means. At the end we decided it is like a band. Well, lets hope it will work out.

In the evening Delia and Scott came around and they put on my new hamock and it’s so cool. Lying in there and letting the time pass. It’s very comfi.

Tuesday

My day started by spending 2 hours in a class of more or less 30 student nurses, year 2. They were very shy and they were encouraged to ask me some questions.
It was strange to stand infront such a big class and shouting at them, that everybody can understand me. But it also felt natural and more and more I have the feeling, that I am getting used to it. So I told them something about me and then they asked me about nursing in Europe and so on. Some of them really try to speak well, some can’t speak anything, unfortunately. Then I sat at the back and joined the lesson of Mr. Voeun. He speaks funny broken English but it is ok. I feel like being the English expert here, having reports to correct and also they expect me to teach some English language to the clinical Instructors from the RTC. But I explained to everyone that it is only my second language and I’m not perfect in it. But so far to be honest, I feel confident with it.
In the English class we had some group discussion about what pets they used to have when they were younger. They were just in the process of learning when to use “use to”. So it was funny to hear, their pets were pigs and waterbuffalos.
All together it was great, apparently it is very rare that a foreigner speaks to them.

I will give Mr.Voeun some feedback on Friday. He had to go, doing more teaching somewhere else. I think he was good, tried to involve all of them and he also used different participatory approaches. It was just so noisy from outside and not all students pay attention at all times for 2 hours. So some disappear for a while in the middle of the discussion, some don’t have books and can’t follow, some do something else, like homework I thought.

In the afternoon, I prepared a little teaching session about ‘how do we learn and different learning styles’. I was asked to do teaching sessions for the clinical instructors and I think to start from the beginning it is important to understand about the learning process. Then they want me to show them some practical skills with equipment at some point.

On my way back from work I stopped at Helens because she wanted to give me something, Evic had left for me. It was a big Teddy bear. She had it in her house and thought, it can give my company in my house. The thought is very sweet.

In the evening it was raining heavily. After my portion of instant noodles, I went to bed early and closed the door to my bedroom. That night it was much better. I slept through and couldn’t hear any rat noise. There are defenitely still some buggers around, who nibble on my soap frequently.

Wednesday

In the morning we met at a Vietnamiese noodle place for breakfast. Delia was sad because she had to say goodbye to her sweetheart. It made me sad too. But she will see him again in a few months, so it is not too bad. Those noodles soups are so tasty.
Afterwards to work.
In the afternoon I’m going to the Wat because Helen will do a speech there. It is a HIV/ AIDS awareness, “candlelight” meeting , and they wear caps and t-shirts with the logo:
‘O.K. Condoms’ on it. Hilarious.

It was a great afternoon.

The Pagoda was full of students ( some also from the RTC) and we were sitting opposite them, being honoured to have attended. Also Helens VA Sambath was there and Luisas VA Wuddi. Helens speech was great. Afterward 3 other important people did speeches but it was more or less the same. We sat for nearly 3 hours on the floor, next to the monks who received some presents.

During the chanting of the monks, we did light our candles and prayed for the effected people.
The astonishing thing then was, that there actually were some people with HIV in the pagoda and they then had to come forward and then they received presents.
It had something really welcoming and open minded. In all their speeches they pointed out how important it is to include people with HIV and so on, but I was surprised about how open they handled it in reality.

Afterwards, Helen, Delia and me had “Banchow” and then a big thunderstorm

came so I went to Delia’s and looked through her DVD library. And I got a few good films. That will keep me occupied and my mind off feeling homesick.

Thursday

The Kadoorie project has been extended. That is good news. Daniel from the Programme office wanted to come to ST to talk about new activities and achievments, but the director can’t make that date. So, we will go to PP next week on Wednesday. I’m looking forward to that. Also it feels amazing to be actively there in decision making about a big project with lots of money involved. It is different from working on a ward directly or being somewhere in the field. This is more about developing the actual action plan. And it feels important and exciting to be part of it.
All day at work we did brainstroming about that meeting and we have now a good list of ideas to discuss in that meeting.
When I think about it, travelling for 9 hours to PP on Wednesday for a meeting on Thursday morning and then going back for 9 hours on Friday. But PP, the world of supermarkets and Internet- acess and post-offices!
In the evening, I killed 3 big coqurotches. I sprayed them with anti ants spray to death. I didn’t want to, but I am also afraid of them. It took me a time to push them onto a piece of paper and then throw them out of the window.

Friday

Well, I agreed on having a cleaner once during the week. Malynn is her name and she came for the first time this morning. I asked Channa to translate some instructions for me, because we can’t communicate yet. So when she arrived I gave her some pieces of paper where Channna wrote down in Khmei what I wanted to do with her. First of all I wanted to go to the bank with her to get some money. Then I wanted her to choose what she needs for cleaning at the market and I would pay for it.
Because I live around 1 km away from the market, I took her on my bike, she sitting on the end, as Cambodian people do it. It is so funny to try to speak to somebody who doesn’t understand a word and the other way around. But smiling helps and nodding. So somehow we got a good mousetrap, one where the mouse or rat goes in but stayes alive so that I can put it outside.

I also found candles.

When I arrived at home for my lunchbreak ( I had hot sweetcorn and a rice muffin), I returned to a nice clean and de-dusted house. It felt good, also it felt more lively. She even made my bed.

It slowly feels normal to be here and actually I’m beginning to like it. I am independent with my little bike and I even start recognising people on the street or in the market.

Work feels busy now because I’m writing lots of reports and Hor and me help each other out. Also I gave feedback this morning to Voeun, one of the English teachers and I have the feeling, there is more to come from him.
Generally I slowly but surely get into the project and can see more clearly about it now.

Also the trip to PP had to be rescheduled because the director had problems with the appointed date. So now we now go to PP on Thursday next week, have the meeting on Friday morning and then we decided to stay until Sunday. Hor can visit his family and I can do shopping, shopping, shopping. Also my mobile phone is slowly dying, I think I need a new one.
On the following Monday, we will then travel together with Setill, the Regional Chief Nurse, to Ratanakiri province for a supervision visit of a Preceptor. I am so exited about that one, because Ratanakiri is supposed to be beautiful. Ethnic minorities, elephants, waterfalls and jungle combine to make this one of the most popular provinces in the northeast, my guidebook sais. It also served as a base for the Khmer Rouge leadership during much of the 1960’s. Pol Pot fled there in 1963 and established headquarters in the north of the province.
Gem mining and tourism form the lifeblood of the province. I really want to go for a swim in Boeng Ueak Lom, the vulcanic lake. Delia was there already and somehow I said something like- and then I can try out my new swimming costume- and then she looked at me and said, that nobody goes for a swim in that. They wear normal clothes, like T-shirt and trouswers. Well, I’ll find out. Also there is the Virachay National Park, which is popular.
I will stay in Ratanakiri until the end of the weekend, so alltogether for a week. And I had to take only one Annual leave for that.

Tomorrow evening I told everyone to come because I’m having my housewarming party. Don’t know how to manage yet, with only 2 forks, 2 spoons, 4 plates, 1 wok
and 4 glasses. I hope Helen can bring her rice cooker and then I make the only thing I can cook well and have the ingridenens for, my Thai curry. Will go to the market in the morning. Maybe I will be able to buy some meat. So far, I just couldn’t. The smell and the look of dead animals is nearly unbearable. The same with fish.

Saturday

This morning, there was a mouse in the mousetrap!

Hurray. Much smaller then I expected it to be. I think, I have no rats actually. The noise in the night comes from the gekkos I figured out. So I let the mouse out at the river. Hope, it doesn’t find the way back.
Then I went shopping for the party. I bought cutlery and plastic cups, salad bolwes, lots of fresh veg and fruit at the open market behind the hospital ( I like it there more then the inside central market). I was also looking for deko for the house but couldn’t find anything, exept deko used for Wat’s and Pagodas. So after I picked up Helen’s ricecooker, I stole some flowers from Delia’s garden. She has such a pretty flower garden.

Then I started to prepare. This might be boring for guys now, talking about food preparation… First the fruit salad. I bought lovely apples from New Zealand and a fresh pineapple and lytchie fruit. That all together and a little bit of palmsugar and lemon juice and then into the fridge.
Next the curry. You might all know how it tastes, having eaten it before in our house. But the challenge with this one is, that there is no coconut milk to find. Only fresh coconut stuff shredded off the coconut itself. So I bought some of that and then soaked it in water for a while. Then I put it through a fine siv and there was my coconut milk. Also I used first time baby- aubergines with it and it really works. Instead of lime leaves I had lemon grass and lots of fresh basil. Because I didn’t have much money left at the end of my shopping trip, I could only afford to buy a very small piece of beef meat and put that in. The left over dry coconut stuff I used to sprinkle onto the fruitsalad. Isn’t that very interesting to put into the travel blog? : )
Then I made a green salad out of cucumbers and salad leaves, an onion and lemonjuice. I couldn’t find red tomatoes yet. They sell them green.

At 5 pm Kahn came and we chatted a bit. He visited Helen at lunchtime and then he had school. Helen suggested to him that instead of becoming a doctor, he could start his career by becoming a nurse first. So he asked me if I could find out for him about that. He said that Helen is his mother and I have become his bigger sister. Isn’t that nice? I feel still a little suspicious but I think, he means good.

At 7 people startet to arrive and we ate and chatted on the veranda. Helen made also some pizza bread! How, I don’t know, because neither of us has an oven. It was amazing and with real cheese! I need to get some in PP.


They liked the food. Unfortunately the majority of Cambodians don’t drink much, so they brought coke and different soft drinks. The other volunteers luckily brought beer, because also for that I didn’t have mony left at the end of my shopping trip.

At 10 pm it was all over. I could’t believe it. But apparently that is the usual time to leave. Chantra had to go home because his mother was alone at home, waiting for him. And he is about 40 years old. But he once told us his story. He, his sister and his mother survived the Khmer Rouge. They had to work very hard and starved, and lived with constant fear. He also saw lots of people getting killed, also his father was a victim. So he is now looking after his mum, who is still traumatised very badly and lives in fear.
Cambodians are so family orientated. They usually live all together. The younger care about the older by working and giving the money to them. Kahn eg, he gives all his money to his parents who can’t work anymore. He lives with some relatives who support him here in ST. When he looked at my house he went through the rooms and said, so this is all for you alone? I said yes and felt bad.
He was also ment to get married 2 years ago, a girl he didn’t know. He can think so clearly, that if he would have married her, he would have ended up as a farmer. But he wanted to study medicine. So he refused.
Channa is the 11th child in his family. The youngest. He is 21. He studies every day. Monday until Friday he teaches English and works with me. In his lunchbreaks he studies Korean language. On the weekend he goes to university all day and studies more English. He appears a bit weak to me and tired recently, even fragile. He also has a cough. I think it is just too much for him, but he said he hasn’t got a choice. I really hope, that one day he can relax a bit more. I keep an eye on him.

After I cleaned up I had another mouse in the trap and reliesed it at the river. Then I killed another 2 coquratches in the bathroom. They actually really disgust me. I flushed them down the toilet because last time I threw them out of the window and they had still this poisening spray on them. And there are lots of animals here I don’t want to poison too.


Anyway, hope everything is well could somebody update me with important events that happen at the moment, like elections in Germany and all that.
By the way, thank you so much for all your lovely e-mails! It is so great to hear from you. That makes me so unbelievably happy.
Lots of love and until next week from PP!





permalink written by  katja-horsch on June 7, 2009 from Phnom Penh, Cambodia
from the travel blog: 1.6.- 7.6.09
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