Today MaryAnne and I went to Resource Development International (RDI). It is there where people work to make water filters. A man named John, originally from Kentucky, gave us a tour of the facility. I was able to see the entire process of the filters being made and I learned a lot about the importance of families having a water filter in their home. When John began working here, the statistics showed that 1 in 5 babies died before the age of 5 years old because of diseases from drinking the Mekong River. Now it is 1 in 12 babies, which is better but still a very high rate. I learned that mothers do not even name their babies at birth. They wait a couple of months because it is a high possibility that the baby will not survive. These water filters cost $10 each, which may not seem like a very high price to us especially because this is an item of necessity. However to the families living in the Provinces- in villages like Phum Thom, this is not an affordable price. MaryAnne hopes that someday in the near future she can help to get water filters to more of these people.
At RDI I was able to see a small TV studio that they had as well. In this studio they film a TV show called New World that is comparable to Sesame Street in the U.S. It was great to see the set and the way they went about filming and editing here. Also at RDI I saw the biggest pigs that I have ever seen! I have always wanted a pet pig, but I don’t think my parents would appreciate having one this size.
This afternoon MaryAnne and I had a little bit of down time. It was hot and sunny outside so we went for a swim at our hotel. I was able to get some reading done as well, which is always relaxing. I started another of one of the many books I purchased here about the Khmer Rouge.
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