The Sreisaat Adventures in Cambodia

Litratong Pinoy #3: Nag-aapoy

2008-05-15T13:19:00.004+07:00

Sunset over the Gulf of Thailand
Kep, Kingdom of Cambodia

Ang nag-aapoy na Haring Araw, ito ang napili kong litrato na sa tingin ko ay angkop sa tema natin ngayong linggo. Kuha ito sa bayan ng Kep kung saan ako ay naka-base sa loob ng apat na buwan noong taong 2007. Ang Kep ay napapaligiran ng Gulf of Thailand, at sa aking opinyon, ito ay may pinakamagandang sunset sa buong Cambodia. Kung inyong pagmamasdang mabuti, naglalagablab pa rin ang araw sa kabila ng unti-unting pagdilim ng kalangitan, na para bang pinaglalabanan ang pagsaklob ng dilim sa sanlibutan.

Wordless Wednesday #38 Drunken stupor?

2008-05-14T10:51:00.003+07:00

No, he's not really drunk.
He borrowed the whiskey bottle from another table and gamely posed for this shot :)
He is Long Dimanche, our Coordinator in the Prey Veng Pilot Project site. Being the head of the team on this part of Cambodia, he does all the preparations making sure everything is ready when I arrive to conduct workshops and meetings. After days of working in and with the community, we, locals and ex-pat staff alike, share what the locals call a solidarity dinner. Everyone gets cleaned up, all dust washed away, puts on new clothes, and wear our best smiles looking forward to a fun night. Dinner is usually accompanied by loads of karaoke singing (all Khmer songs), dancing, and drinks.

Sawasdee kah!

2008-05-06T13:44:00.004+07:00

This is how the people of Thailand say "welcome". And like our very own mabuhay, it also connotes a host of other meanings mostly for wishing people well.

So by now you have an idea that I am in Bangkok for some business matters. I'll be in PP soon. To those who come and visit this blog from time to time, please excuse me for not being able to post or visit your blogs regularly. I have so many things on my mind and a lot more to do that blogging has to take a backseat for now. But I do promise to resume blogging when I have completed my tasks.

See you soon and kap kuhn kah (thank you):)

Photo Hunt #21 Funny/Creative Signs

2008-04-27T07:59:00.000+07:00

Hi, I am back for this week's Photo Hunt. I was absent from my blogging duties and I want to start making up now...

It is not so difficult to find pictures for this week's theme. Walking around the the streets of Phnom Penh (and China) is like walking around a treasureland of posters and signs where the message being relayed is far from being funny but ended up with a funny message anyway. Here's some.

Let's start from my own inbox:

I do not mind the mistakes in the content, but I DO mind the salutation...

At a hotel in Kampong Thom province:

Along the highway...

Here's one from China...

Here's one poster that I think is nicely done. The message being relayed is a serious one, and it is presented straight-to-the-point to the readers. Even the non-Khmers can the tell the issue right away...

For more funny/creative signs, just head over to the Photo Hunters HQ.

Updates from where I am

2008-04-27T06:14:00.000+07:00

Hello everybody!

Thanks for dropping by even if I have no updates.
I slipped out of Cambodia and in to the Philippines quietly. I am here for matters concerning my health. I do not wish to divulge details about it as I do not want to dampen everyone's mood but let me just say that after some tests, there is no immediate cause for concern, thank God.

From my end, I am enjoying my time here at home in Roxas City, eating home-cooked meals that I sorely missed. A close friend based in Norway commented on my non-existent gimik schedule as biglang natahimik, as opposed to my being a curacha when I was in Phnom Penh where I was almost always out of town doing something in the community.

I must admit though that after a couple of days here in Roxas, I kind of miss Cambodia already. I miss my husband (he still has work - school holiday is two months away), and thanks to modern technology, we exchanged sms and talk through YM almost every night. I still have to stay for more tests but for now, I'll just sit back, relax and enjoy the vacation while it lasts. I am spending time with my parents (who are looking older everytime I come home) and my siblings and their brood - a nephew and nieces - who (except for my nephew) I haven't seen since they were born.

I have been enjoying my holiday and soon it will be over, but let me just show you where I've been spending most of my time:

In one of our family outings, we went to this not so known beach resort in Barangay Basio, in Ivisan town, about 36kms away from the capital city of Roxas. It was such a surprise to see white sand and clear waters comparable to Boracay without going out of Capiz at all! I was even more surprised that only a handful of visitors go there... mabuti nga iyon, we had the beach all to ourselves lang.

Let the pictures speak for itself:

Beautiful, isn't it?
It is still pristine, untouched by the claws of commercialism. I would definitely come back to Basiao with my husband next time.

Cheap phone cards

2008-04-17T23:55:00.003+07:00

For overseas workers like me, we always get homesick. Almost always, a phone call to our loved ones helps to counter this problem, but the crippling rate of overseas call is preventing most of us to get in touch as often as we want to. Calling long distance through land-phone amounts to sky-high phone bills prompting most of us to go for calling cards instead because it is cheaper. Here at therich.com, they are providing an extensive selection of cheap prepaid phone cards and international calling cards touted as one of the best in the market today. With just a few clicks of the mouse, one can search through therich.com’s site for the best and cheapest rate phone card for long distance calls in many destinations worldwide.

One of the better advantages of therich.com’s service is that purchasing phone cards online is as simple and as easy as counting 1-2-3. Just choose the destination and the card with the lowest rates, check out, get the PIN for the phone card and access numbers online, and start calling. Best way to search is to go to their top selling pre-paid cards and new phone cards section and you can already see the rates and number of minutes available.

Now you don’t have to rush and limit your conversation on the phone with your family members because with therich.com, you can talk as much as you want to without worrying about how much the call would cost you. Try the phone cards at therich.com now. Thanks to therich.com, you can still keep in touch with your family regularly without losing a limb.

Emergency

2008-04-17T23:43:00.004+07:00

It's been a crazy 48 hours and I am still reeling from it all. After receiving an unexpected news I hopped onto a plane to Manila, and now, I am in Roxas City where I am awaiting for developments.

I would like to apologise for not posting my Litratong Pinoy entry. I thought I could still squeeze it in earlier but the flash disk where I stored my photo got infected by virus. I will make it up next week. Pramis.

Wordless Wednesday #37: Preparing to work

2008-04-15T15:52:00.005+07:00

This is my Wordless Wednesday entry for the Tuesday-Wednesday edition. To join us, go to the Wordless Wednesday HQ.

Suosdey Chhnam Thmey!

2008-04-12T17:14:00.003+07:00

That's how we say Happy New Year in Khmer.
It starts today, Friday, 11th of April and ends on Sunday, 13th of April. Thousands of locals left Phnom Penh as early as last week, to go to their hometowns and be with their families on this special holiday. Sige, hala, magsi-alisan kayo para naman matahimik ang Phnom Penh!

Today being the first day, people clean their house, believed to drive away the evil spirits, and wear new clothes to greet the new year. Okay, I'm off now - gotta go clean the house before the New Angel arrives.

In case you didn't notice, this is the third time we are celebrating the new year in Cambodia.

Litratong Pinoy #2: Tatlo ang Sulok Ko

2008-04-09T13:51:00.005+07:00

Ito ang Cambodian wat o temple.
Kung nais na makitang mabuti ang detalye, paki-click ang litrato. Kung titingnan ninyo ng maigi, kapansin-pansin ang tatsulok na hugis ng roof o bubong nito. Ito ay karaniwang disenyo ng mga Buddhist wats dito sa Indochina, na kinabibilangan ng mga bansang Thailand, Burma, Laos at Cambodia. Ang litratong ito ay kuha malapit sa Oudong, may humigit-kumulang na 50kilometro ang layo mula sa capital ng Phnom Penh. Ang Oudong ang sinaunang capital ng bansang Cambodia, at dito matatagpuan ang iba't-ibang maka-lumang stupa kung saan nakalagak ang mga labi ng mga namatay ng miyembro ng Royal family ng Cambodia.

Wordless Wednesday #36: Who Ate All the Rice?

2008-04-08T23:17:00.000+07:00

Not me! Promise :D

This is my entry for the Tuesday-Wednesday edition of Wordless Wednesday. Photo shows my pet dog Max, in denial :D. Head over to the Wordless Wednesday for more WW fun photos.

Wat Kampong Tralach

2008-04-07T13:21:00.000+07:00

My husband Rob and I are currently in retreat in the coastal town of Kep to get away from the madness of the capital, Phnom Penh. Kep town was, in another era, a tourist centre for the wealthy from Phnom Penh, who enjoyed its beaches, fish and sea breezes. Now, the municipality as a whole is impoverished and relies on inshore fishing and small-scale agriculture. There are a couple of family-run fish sauce factories, and about 1,000 hectares of salt basins providing employment for about twenty family enterprises and seasonable employment for perhaps sixty more.Kep has always been our choice for weekend getaways because, compared to Cambodia’s other beachtown, Sihanoukville, it still has a “remote” feel to it and there is still a small number of tourists coming in. Besides, Kep has a special place in our hearts, having lived here in 2006 when I started IDRC's rural ICT project here.

Our visit this time has another purpose – for my husband to turn over the brand new computer set with sound system and copier-printer-scanner machine to the monks of Wat Kampong Tralach where he used to teach while we lived here. The money used to purchase all of these was collected from the sales of the Cambodian CD maps, plus, the donation from his family in memory of his deceased grandmother and grandfather. The happiness on the faces of the monks was undeniable, and the excitement of the kids was contagious when they saw the computer games they could play with. Apart from computer operations, we spent half a day yesterday at the wat with Rob teaching the head monk, Ven. Pring Phoeun, how to operate the three-in-one machine: photocopying, scanning and printing documents. The photocopy machine is very useful to them to reproduce their lesson plans and exercises for the students, and also for designing and printing signs and leaflets for the wat. The classes are of mixed ages and abilities, and some travel by bicycle from as far as halfway to Kampot for free English classes. These are children of farmers and fishermen who are eager to study the language, but do not have enough resources to go to a private language school. If anybody would like to donate materials, such as books, educational CDs, or similar, Cambodia Maps CD now has a post office box address:
Cambodia Maps CD
P.O. Box 576, Phnom Penh
Cambodia

**
For more information on the Cambodia Maps CD, please click here.

Public Service Announcement

2008-04-07T12:58:00.002+07:00

Tiny Toones: B Boy Benefit for Cambodia
April 26th 2008, 6pm 'til late
At the Greenwood Collective
8537 Greenwood Ave. NW Seattle WA

Featuring the work of:
World B Boy champs Massive Monkees, legendary Seattle photographer Charles Peterson, immigration activist Many Uch & photographer Stuart Isett.

$5 donation at the door
Photographs for sale
All proceeds benefit The Tiny Toones.

Background:
Tiny Toones was born in the Bassac slum area of Phnom Penh, Cambodia and provides free HIV/AIDS, health, drug awareness, performing arts and language education in English and Khmer to underprivileged youth. It also serves as a community center, with an open door policy, where hundreds of children have a positive environment to channel their energy into learning and performing arts. The group was founded by Tuy Sobil, a.k.a. KK, originally from Long Beach, who brought his b boy dance talents to the streets of Cambodia to help the country struggling to rebuild after 30 years of war.

Funds raised from the event will be used to support Tiny Toones as well as purchased a small mini-van so the kids can be driven safely to school, dance performances and rehearsals. A $5 cover will be charged, plus many talented, local photographers will be donating photographs for sale, with proceeds going to the benefit. Donations will also be accepted online and at the event.

For more info and donations, visit: http://greenwoodcollective.com/tinytoones/

Photo Hunt #20: Glass

2008-04-07T12:34:00.005+07:00

I'm late, but here it is anyway :D

A shot glass of B-52

Gone in seconds...

Litratong Pinoy (LP) #1: Ako ay Bilog

2008-04-03T11:34:00.005+07:00

Ito ang moto-dop o moto-taxi. Kung ang Pilipinas ay may jeepney, ito namang moto-dop ang sagot ng mga Khmer bilang pangunahing transportasyon dito sa Cambodia. Bata, matanda, lalaki o babae - silang lahat ay nakasakay sa moto-dop papunta sa paaralan, opisina, palengke at kung saan-saan.

Sangkatutak na motodop ang nakaka-kalat dito pa lang sa Phnom Penh, ang kabisera ng Cambodia. Sa dami nila, hindi mahirap maka-ispat ng isa dahil halos lahat ng moto-dop driver ay madaling makita sa suot nilang baseball caps.

Gusto mong mamasyal? Mag-liwaliw at mag-shopping? Walang problema. Isang tawag lang ng moto-dop at sa ilang saglit ay nandun ka na sa iyong paparoonan. Ganun sila kabilis! Kung noon ay di pa kailangan ng crash helmet, ngayon ay ipinatutupad na ng gobyerno ang pagsusuot nito. Ang halaga ng pamasahe ay depende sa distansya ng pupuntahan at kung ilan ang pasahero - karaniwang nagsisimula sa 1000riels hanggang 10,000riels (more or less P10-100). Ang halaga ng pamasahe ay tumataas ng doble o hight pa sa pagsapit ng gabi.

Sa itaas na litrato, pinapakita na hindi lang tao ang sinasakay ng mga moto-dops. Kahit ano, actually, pwede, tulad na lang netong bisikleta....

*oist, ang hirap talagang managalog. Pasensiya na po.

Here's the English text:

In the Philippines, we have the jeepney. Here in Cambodia, the moto-dop or moto-taxi is the most common means of getting around the city and they’re not that difficult to spot! There are tens of thousands of them in the city, and moto-dop drivers are all wearing baseball caps.

So you want to go sightseeing? Go shopping? No problem. Just hop on a motodop, a 100cc scooter. Before, wearing a crash helmet not required but in the recent weeks the government has just implemented a law requiring everyone to wear helmets when riding on motorcycles. A ride across town will cost around 1,000-10,000riels (P10-100), more, depending on the distance, and if there is more than one passenger. The price goes up a little at night.

Motodops not only ferry people around; it’s also used to transport goods.

Wanna join Litratong Pinoy? Hop on over and join us here.

Wordless Wednesday #35: Where Am I???

2008-04-01T14:23:00.002+07:00

For more WW fun, head to the WW HQ.

Photo Hunt #19 - High

2008-03-29T13:55:00.006+07:00

In 2004, my husband went on a cycling tour of western Europe starting from his native England, to France, Spain, Portugal and ending at the Rock of Gibraltar. He sent me this photo while he was on a pilgrimage to the Camino de Santiago. This photo was taken in Cebreiro, Spain, in between Ponferrada and Sarria on the Camino de Santiago. It was a tough day for him - a full-day climb, 60 miles from Ponferrada to Sarria, with this hill in between. You can find more on his cycling tour here.

Yen's QoTW #2

2008-03-26T15:59:00.003+07:00

1. Have you ever had a summer romance? Care to share?
- No.

2. Do you believe in love at first sight?
- Not really, maybe attraction.

3. ‘You don’t marry someone you can live with, you marry the person who you cannot live without.’ What do you think of this quote?
- It was made by my dog.

4. Where does true beauty lie? On the inside or on the outside?
- Define true beauty.

5. Did you ever had a crush on a classmate or teacher? Who was it?
- Neither, but I had a huge crush on one of my housemates - Teban Espina *blush*

6. Summer wear….shorts or capris?
- Shorts, of course!

7. Would you ride a roller coaster or sky dive?
- Sky dive.

8. Last stupid thing you have done?
- Pick a fight with my husband.

9. Any summer plans? Trips, vacations and etc. Where?
- Celebrate Khmer New Year in Kep (in one week’s time), sat in a hammock with an ice-cold beer, waiting for the shrimp to jump out of the Gulf of Thailand and land on our plates.

10. In one word, define yourself!
- Okay, I find this a bit difficult so I asked my husband to reply to this particular question. This is what he has to say:

- This is Mr Z.
One word... hmmm
Difficult... not quite right
Stubborn... still not right
Obstinate... getting closer
I know :D... Zarah.

Thinking of changing your web-host? Read this.

2008-03-26T15:51:00.004+07:00

I have been using Blogger for more than four years as my host and so far, I am very satisfied with the service Blogger is providing. However, most of my friends have been telling me that they are going to have their own domains and that they are moving on to other web-hosting services. Sounds tempting, and I have to agree with them considering that there are lots of web-hosting sites that offer a lot of nifty features. However I have heard of horror stories, ranging from experiencing long period of being offline to slow technical support, and t is making it difficult for me to decide.

Of course, having your own domain is a great idea but then I want only the best web hosting site if ever I decide to do so. Good thing I came across Kaushalsheth.com’s site. There, the site owner talked about his difficulties with his previous host and shares his recommended list of excellent sites. I think bloggers like me who are not so familiar at techie stuff should take a look at Kaushalsheth.com’s recommendations before making the big move.

Wordless Wednesday #34: This is where I go home to...

2008-03-25T15:25:00.002+07:00

I know I am breaking the rules again, but please allow me to give you a brief background. Two years ago, I left the comforts of Phnom Penh for a work assignment down south of Cambodia - to the coastal town of Kep. Our organization had no office there yet so I had to use the same guesthouse room (where I live) as my office. There was no electricity yet - generator operates only at night - and so I travel to our project areas by day and do the paperworks at night. Each working day I was absolutely knackered from the bone-crunching moto-ride visiting remote villages. But when I go home, all the exhaustion simply vanished because of this:

Unconscious Mutterings Week 2

2008-03-25T09:47:00.002+07:00

I say... and you think...

Money :: necessity

Unhappy :: lonely

Joking :: in jest

Chipmunk :: cute squirrel

Date :: red-letter day

Slideshow :: powerpoint

Chicago :: windy city

Lifetime :: adventures

Skid row :: rockers

Edward :: king

Photo Hunt #18: Metal

2008-03-23T09:05:00.005+07:00

My entry for this week is -- drum rolls please -- our wedding rings! My husband and I decided to have our wedding rings handmade to our own choice of design, and both were made by the same person. Our rings were made of silver and gold - crafted by a local jeweler here in Cambodia. We chose gold and silver because we thought it is a significant symbol being in a mixed race marriage. Each one coming from a different worlds and cultures, each one bringing a new and different dimension to each other. It's like the ring - two different metals molded into one.

Friday's Feast #1

2008-03-21T16:26:00.003+07:00

Okay, so here's another first, Friday's Feast!

Appetizer
Given the choice, would you prefer to live in the country or in the city?

I'd love to live in the countryside. I think when I retire, I would like to buy a piece of land somewhere and live simply.

Soup
Who is the cutest kid you know?

My nephew and nieces, of course!! And they say funny things you won't expect from them at their age!! I think kids who say the darndest things are the cutest kids of all!!

Salad
Fill in the blank: I couldn’t believe it when I heard ___________.

I couldn't believe it when I heard that I am pregnant!!!!
Charing! I am only kidding :)

Main Course
If you could star in a commercial for one of your favorite products, which one would you want to advertise?

Not for a particular product but rather a campaign to promote ICT4Dev (Information and communications technology for development).

Dessert
What type(s) of vitamins and/or supplements do you take on a regular basis?

I don't take any. I used to take Vitamin C but I always get drowsy so I stopped.

On mortgages

2008-03-21T11:41:00.000+07:00

Just recently, there has been a huge fear spreading across the United States regarding the mortgage business. Here in Asia, we don’t give much attention to and we seldom discuss mortgages most especially housing mortgages. However, due to current economic situation in the US, it has become a by-word in the print, broadcast and electronic media that we, on this side of the globe, are starting to pay attention to this issue.

Mortgage, according to the Wikipedia, is a payment method using one’s property as security for the payment of an obligation or a debt. I may be wrong but in the Philippines, I think it is also known as collateral. A lot of people use their properties as guarantee to pay for their loans and cases of people losing their properties tell us that we should be very careful in dealing with mortgages. Right now, the situation in the US is adding more fear and insecurity about mortgages and if you are looking for your first mortgage, it is best to consult an expert on this issue. It is better armed with enough information so that you could be able to make an informed decision on, perhaps, your biggest financial commitment.

Too much excitement

2008-03-21T09:23:00.005+07:00

I was one of the many bloggers whom Google punished by giving a page rank of 0 from a rank of 4. However, despite that demotion, I still received opps from PPP but they came irregularly, and these are stuffs that I wasn't really enthusiastic to write about. So I decided to wait till Google gives me back my page rank. I waited for about 3months and when I had it finally, the opps at PPP became better.

I was too excited about the new opps that I overlooked some simple PPP rules. So, per PPP's instruction, I have to repost. Sorry PPP, I will rectify my mistakes and be careful next time. But all the same, thanks for giving me better opportunities. It's all worth the wait.