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.

Dusty roads and Health Centres

I am currently in the middle of a programme of midwifery skill drills for the Health centre Midwives.

Last Thursday, my VA Channa, and I set off by ferry to cross the Sekong and Mekong Rivers to Thala district at 7 am. We then had a one and a half hour motorbike journey North along rough brown roads to the Preah Romkel Health Centre on the West banks of the Mekong.

Three midwives were waiting for us and we set up our teaching session in the labour roomwhich has a beautiful view across the river.

First I tested them on the post partum haemorrhage drill they learnt last time – they remembered it very well. Next we went through breech birth with each midwife practicing the drill using the models sent out by kind people from the UK- Thank you again.

The midwives seem to enjoy this practical style of teaching- they say they have never learnt techniques to cope with problem breech births.

After the session we sat down to biscuits and a can of juice and now that they know me better they ask questions:

Can the soft lumps on a baby’s head at birth cause brain damage?

 Can I teach them how to suture after childbirth?

- I find this is a very positive step.

At midday we drove 3 Km further up the Mekong to the dolphin observation area but the dolphins were all a long way out or sleeping- not leaping out of the water in front of us anyway.

Next I was back on the motorbike for a further one and a half hours of potholes, dust and dodgy bridges.

We crossed back to Stung Treng on the ferry along with various livestock -this chicken had its legs tied together but kept flapping its wings too close to me for my liking.

I arrived home mid afternoon desperate for a shower and late siesta.

Stung Treng Airport

Yes Stung Treng has an Airport though when a plane last landed, I do not know.

Angela outside Airport building

Today it is a fairly quiet place awaiting its next role in the story of Cambodia. I like to go there on my bicycle for a ride in the evening before it goes dark. From the house it is about 20 mins ride and the same back by a circular route.

Control tower

I’m told it used to be the first place VSO Volunteers saw when they arrived in Stung Treng by plane as the roads used to be nonexistent or too dangerous to travel from Phnom Penh to Stung Treng.

The Runway

Friends in the Military visiting recently said it would still be possible to land large military planes there, I thought there was too much loose gravel about but apparently it’s OK.

Angela cycling down the runway

Most facilities are still there although on a small scale i.e. a little Control tower, small waiting room? Departure area etc.

Windsock

The airport resides at an elevation of 203 feet (62 m) above mean sea level. It has one runway designated 02/20 with an asphalt surface measuring 1,295 by 21 metres (4,249 × 69 ft).^[1]

Follow this Link it looks nothing like that!:

http://www.flightstats.com/go/Airport/airportDetails.do?airportCode=TNX

AERODROME FACILITIES
Facility		Dimension,m	Surface	Strength
Runway		1300=(1170x29+130x20)	Bitumen	50 tones
RWY shoulder			Grass	N/A
RWY strips		1420x150	Grass	N/A
RWY End Safety Area	02	60x60	Grass	N/A
	20	150x60	Grass	N/A
Taxiway		135x18	Bitumen	50 tones
				50 tones
TWY shoulder			Grass	N/A
Apron		150x80 | 3 stands	Bitumen	50 tone

 Departure Lounge

Control tower

It's a nice place to go, a feeling of space and being quiet.

Will we ever see an airoplane there? Who knows possibly, a Helicopter.

Working In the Hospital

An Update of Angela’s work at the Hospital.

 All views expressed in the following article are our own and do not necessarily reflect the views of VSO or Stung Treng Hospital. Angela writes:

I was informed by the Doctor that babies born weighing less than 2 kg in Stung Treng will die within a week. I observed that there is no extra care or advice given to these babies or their mothers. They are just encouraged to breast feed on demand by the mother. Small babies of this weight are not strong enough to maintain their own body temperature or to demand enough food; they need a basic level of extra help.

A very poor women came into the Hospital maternity unit to deliver twins. Due to complications she had a caesarian section and then went to the mixed surgical ward for care which is where I found her two days later, not having been aware of her admittance or the birth of the twins. The ward was very crowded and the babies were asleep on the floor between two beds, a man with an infected foot was in the nearest bed. The woman and babies had received no care from a midwife although her wound had been redressed by the nurses. The baby boys were 1.9kg and 2kg at birth both looked dehydrated and were underfeeding. With the third year student midwives we discussed a plan of care including two hourly breast feeds (helped by the student midwives) and daily check and weighing of the babies. We also discussed Kangaroo care but that is difficult with twins after a caesarean section.

Mother Breastfeeding Twins in the surgical ward

Another VSO Volunteer and I gave the Grandmother some of our own money to buy food from the market so that they could all stay in a few more days. The hospital does not provide food or meals for the patients, food has to be prepared and brought in by the family if this is not possible due to no family present or ready money then it is a real problem for the patient to stay and pressures them to discharge from the Hospital early.

At five days old when the family went home the babies were gaining weight and appeared alert and healthy. They have a hard life ahead and I hope they will survive.

With the midwives and another VSO Volunteer we have developed a daily Baby check sheet for all babies along with a basic instruction sheet. This was accepted by the Chief midwife and Doctor so now in theory all babies get a daily basic check up; colour, feeding, bowels, urine, tone, breathing etc. The intention is that the situation regarding the twins not receiving attention should not happen again.

Breastfeeding Supported by Student Midwife

The students and some midwives do the check daily but I know that other midwives are maybe less diligent- but Rome wasn’t built in a Day!

Just like chicken

Four of our VSO Volunteer friends have left Stung Treng recently and we had a few leaving dos before they went. I think this coincided with the 'cricket eating season' as at two of the meals plates of crickets appeared to be savoured and eaten. These were ordered by our Cambodian friends and I wanted to try them as they were not offered as anything unusual just another part of the celebration.

It's a lovely meal ,various dishes and the next one is? Crickets!!!

Since coming to Cambodia and travelling around looking at food stalls I had been wondering could I eat the various fried insects I had seen for sale? spiders,crickets and then there was the period when fried  frogs were everywhere.

Positioning the fingers to eat in one

So when offered the plate of fried crickets I barely hesitated and put the full creature in my mouth , chewed and swallowed- not bad , not a strong taste but yes if anything it tasted of chicken.I decided that rather than bite small pieces off the full body eg head ,I would go for the whole thing in one.

Come on Chris - share the plate

It amused me when one of my Kamai friends said no Chris do not eat the back legs they are sharp and will cut the inside of your stomache.

Getting a taste for them - reducing distance between plate and mouth!

 So the next one I held the backlegs and bit off the rest. There did'nt seem any point to this the legs were no sharper or crunchier than the rest.

Loverly!!!

So I am now looking forward to trying a bag of fried spiders which you can buy at one of the bus rest areas going to PP.
Bush Tucker trial? easy!!!


PS Would I /could I have eaten them without the Angkor Beer?

Just a quick slurp to wash  the bits down



Outside of work, Chris and I have found plenty of interesting things to do. We recently went to a Khmai wedding and enjoyed observing over two days the Buddhist ceremony in all its parts. It was my lovely Volunteer Assistant Channa getting married so we did a long bus journey to his beautiful bride’s house in another Province. There were maybe a hundred guest invited who were given food and drink over the two days of the ceremony. We took part in the hair cutting ceremony and observed many things and noted, as far as we could tell, there was no point at which they were pronounced man and wife!

We were told when at the celebration meal and dance in the evening they are accepted as being married.

VSO Volunteers enjoying Channa’s Wedding

 The cost of the wedding is met by the guests each putting money in their official wedding invitation envelope and then handing it in at the wedding at the appropriate time in the ceremony. We believe a minimum of $10 per person is expected and quite a bit more if you are well acquainted with the bride or groom.

Both Channa and Sovanns family made us feel really welcome and the experience was excellent.

One of many set piece ceremonies to make up the Wedding.

Next day, on the Sunday we travelled further North to the border with Thailand to visit the sacred site of the Temple of Preah Vihear which is an outstanding masterpiece of Khmer architecture and a UNESCO World Heritage site. This temple is the site of recent fighting between Thailand and Cambodia over ownership of the Temple and the conflict made World news and was followed by our family and friends back in the UK. The situation is still sensitive and the Cambodian soldiers seem to have a permanent presence amongst the Temple ruins along with their wives and children. It seemed strange to watch young children playing on the ancient tumbled down stones whilst the father/soldier laid his machine gun bullets out in a long line to clean and oil them in the sun, and the tourists gazed at the ruins.

Chris at the entrance to the first of four temples

Chris is busy teaching English at the local university and also working at a local NGO helping them with their work running an Orphanage amongst other things.