Another positive step forward!

12/23/2007-

The great news of the day is that Olivia has landed safely and is getting eased into the hustle and charged pace of Siem Reap. Every part of her travels went flawless, for that I was very thankful. Sao was so very excited to see Olivia as he paced back and forth at the airport, checking the arrival board every few seconds, I decided to chill with a plate of fresh spring rolls and large bottle of Angkor beer!


On the way home we had bite to eat at an old favorite restaurant, Green House. The food is great and the staff is genuinely caring. After a restful nights sleep, it didn’t take long to get to work. It was breakfast & meeting with Sao first thing in the morning. Computer classes have been going really well for Sao. It seems he is learning with ease. A trip out to meet with Togh and his friends at a neighboring Wat was on the docket for the day. We couldn’t be happier with Togh and the Volunteer Development Poverty Children’s School’s (VDPCS) success! They have already broke ground on the new building site for the school and the children are so excited about it that even they have gone to help build it!

We had a meeting with a friend of Togh’s, Daro. Daro is a monk at Kok Chork Wat, not very far from the VDPCS site. He has lofty dreams to build a better structure for the English & Buddhism School he runs. They currently are teaching in a very simple structure built of simple wood poles & thatch walls and roof. Their template for a new school is based on that which is currently being built for VDPCS. They wrote up a project proposal for their new school, it will be presented in it’s final form to Project Enlighten’s Board of Directors for vote.

After meeting with Daro, we made our way to VDPCS new school site. It was absolutely amazing, what we saw! The children from Togh’s school had all come to help move the rocks for the foundation onto the property for the school! How cool is that? Graham who volunteers and one of the teachers at the school, Victoria, were already helping move the rocks so we hopped right in to help. Asad organized the crowd of smiling faces into a couple lines, to teach them the “chaining” technique we often use at home. The children had a wonderful time, laughing & giggling all the way. The pictures are worth more than a thousand words; see here with your own eyes.

Nothing could be more satisfying than an ice cold drink after an evening of good hard work. We settled in for dinner at the Taj India Restaurant. It is a newer Indian style establishment that serves exquisite food that is to die for. When you make your way to Siem Reap and hunger for fine Indian Cuisine/ Halal Food, please check them out! Another successful day in Cambodia, Olivia is feeling at home.