Broken bottles, Drunks and Thieves

Three odd things happened today that haven’t happened before to me in Cambodia:

 The first was when I walked across to my favourite coffee shop next to the hospital. Having got a take-away coffee with condensed milk and crushed ice (delicious) I was just about to recross the road when something hit me in the back –thump. I looked to see that a broken glass bottle had been thrown at me. Four men getting into a car looked the likeliest suspects so I glowered at them but they pointed to the pile of sacks by their car. Now I know the sacks are the regular abode of a woman who collects sacks of rubbish which she carries about with her. See photo taken some time ago by fellow volunteer Wendy.’

She lives surrounded by the sacks made into a kind of tent. She had apparently taken objection to me being close to the sacks as I avoided the parked car. I’m told she usually just throws stones not bottles , I was just unlucky!

Next back in my office a small man came in bowing repeatedly with hands clasped in prayer mode around an envelope. Channa my VA patiently explained that the pay office next door was where he needed but  it was shut until tomorrow. The man continued to bow then squatted on the floor with hands outstretched to give us the envelope.  A quick look at it told us he needed to be at an NGO by the market who would then pay his wife’s hospital bills. This Channa explained but the man moaned and rolled around. At this point we realised he was drunk as a skunk and unable to get up off the floor never mind find another NGO by the market. He also smelt very strong of BO –the first Cambodian I have met who smelt badly. He mumbled that he had come from a village 2hours away with his wife who needed eye surgery. Then having nothing to do he had obviously found the Mekong whiskey man who sells rice whiskey out of a bamboo trunk on the back of his bike. Channa kindly took him to the other NGO on the back of his moto although how he managed to stay on I’m not sure.

Finally at 5.30 I came out of work to go home to find my trusty old bike had been stolen from under the hospital offices. Yes I suppose it was my fault for leaving it unlocked (it hurts my thumb when I push the semi broken lock) but it is old and tatty even by Cambodia standards and it does have VSO painted on the back of it.

So I started to walk home carrying my laptop and books in the 34’ heat. Two minutes down the road a lovely young woman on a moto pulled up and offered me a lift to my house. ‘I see you everyday pass my house. You are teacher Mr Chris’ wife yes? Are you teacher midwife? Thank you for helping Cambodia people.’ she said. Faith restored!

International Women's Day

It was International Women's Day on 8th March and we read on the internet various ways this was going to be celebrated around the World.(To mark the economic, political and social achievements of Women.)
We both attend a NGO network meeting every month here in Stung Treng, I am one representative of the NGO I work for and Angela attends to represent VSO. No women usually attend, apart from Angela,so it was Angela's idea to invite a female member of all the NGO's to attend the next meeting which was on the day before ,the 7th March.
We were pleased that some women did attend and hope they will continue in the future.

Women who attended the NGO Network meeting

Linda and Sue our friends celebrated in big style and went on a major adventure to visit some waterfalls near Laos on the motorbike.It was a long eventful day for them involving falling off the motorbike on three seperate occassions as the roads are brown loose dirt and full of holes and dips etc.

This is a photo of them calling in for the house key on their return to Treng, battered, bruised but not shaken.
Currently at the Orphanage I work at Solar power is being installed. We have two new volunteers from Germany here for 3 months , Marie and Sebastian.

This is a pic of Marie digging a trench to bury the water pipe taking water from the well to the water tower, tough work in the sun and 36 deg heat.
It was a public holiday so relaxing and a beer by the river in the evening with my female mates.