Today was a very busy day! This morning we left bright and early to go to the Russian market. I bought many unique gifts to bring back with me that I am very excited about. After we left the market, Narith took us to the corner of a street where his wife works selling clothes. It was so wonderful to meet her and MaryAnne and I both purchased some clothing to support their family. We also went to this shop where people with disabilities make everything in the store. It was nice to support a great cause and also purchase gifts there as well.
MaryAnne had a Rotary Club meeting that she attended during lunchtime. Instead of attending the meeting with her, Narith and I spent a few hours together. He drove me around the city to a few places where I wanted to capture video including: the King’s palace, the Prime Minister’s mansion that he built for his father, and many other statues and monuments. Then Narith and I went to lunch at this restaurant along the Mekong River. As we were eating, I once again saw the children walking around selling books and begging for money. I went up to them this time to ask for a picture with them. I also gave them each a few dollars and they were very excited. Narith gave the children his shoes to shine as well. It is very sad to see these children on the streets instead of in school on a Monday afternoon. 
During our conversation at lunch I asked Narith to tell me where he was during the time of the Khmer Rouge in the 1970s. He told me that he was 18 years old then and he was sent to work in the rice fields. He showed me a huge scar on his leg of when a soldier hit him with a piece of wood because he was not feeling well one day and could not work. He was in the hospital for months. But worst of all, Narith lost his father and two brothers in 1977 because of this tragedy in Cambodia. They all died from starvation. It was very sad to hear Narith talk about what he went through during this time. Nearly each and every person in Cambodia still has a story of what happened about 30 years ago.
At around 1:30, we picked MaryAnne up from where her meeting was held. Our next stop was meeting Dara and Kim-Ann at the eyeglasses store. Kim-Ann is one of the teachers in a school MaryAnne oversees and our goal today was to buy her glasses because she has very poor vision. Kim-Ann lives in a squatter community and is a single mother with six children that she has to care for. The other night at the Teachers celebration she even took with her all of the leftovers from our dinner so that she could feed her children. She works very hard at her job and is a very kind person. I am very glad we were able to see an eye doctor and get her a pair of glasses.
Finally today we met with Pov, a college student here who is my age. Pov teaches English to orphans, so today we helped him to buy supplies for his students. We bought 65 notebooks, pencils, sharpeners, books, flashcards, and dictionaries. We also got him a briefcase. MaryAnne also plans to give him money to purchase a laptop. Pov was very appreciative. I am so happy I was able to meet him! 
Also, today I purchased for myself an English-Khmer dictionary. I practiced the Khmer language all day with Narith and also with Pov. They corrected me whenever I pronounced a word wrong- It was so much fun! I would love to someday learn the Khmer language so I could come back here and understand what people around me are saying and be able to have conversations with them.
Today was a very productive and accomplished day.
No comments:
Post a Comment