Hello….here is my blog from Sweet sweet Cambodia…

Firstly I hope you all like the photos, I went abit overboard so theres just a select few up for you to see!! I am going to spending insane amounts of money on printing off pictures when I get back….its not good!!

So..Cambodia. As most of you probably already know, dad hooked me and Sian up with a project in Phom Penh - at Seametry School for a month.So we flew into Phom Penh from Bangkok (horrible flight!!!) and were met by Simon, who picked us up with a tuk tuk driver called Kong and drove us into the city, and dropped us off at our new home!! Which was amazing….a massive flat, 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, a huge kitchen and living area, cable tv!! Heaven!! But quickly aftr showing us around, he then took us to the Outreach Gap house to meet a few of the other volunteers, which was nice!! Wee then had a few days to find our feet, before on Simon took us into school for our first day!

It was all abit crazy really, we met Mouy (the headteacher), then Simon left, Mouy told us Abi (a girl from wales, a teacher at the school), was sick so could we take her classes for the day (obivously we said yess!!), so we were slap bang thrown intot he deep end, a full day at school teaching maths and english, we had no idea what to do in lessons, what they were being taight….and when we asked what they had done last lesson with abi and they said 'adverbs of time', I was like………….oh god!! All I can remember from english at school was that a verb was a doing word!!! Anyway!! So we got through the day, was actually realy fun!! Asked the kids how they were diong stuff in mtahs and re taught myself!!! After the day was over..Mouy asked us if we could take the weekend club, and have two days off in the week instead. So we jumped at that, she wanted us to do dance, swimming and skippnig with them at the weekends in preparation for the Fundraiser that was comnig up! She also wanted us, in the week to take circle classes in the morning with the nusery kids which was interesting!! Then also in the days just interact with the little ones so they can practise there english, and read with the older ones.I was really surprised at how good there english was actaully!! They are amazing, make s me feel so ashamd for not really speaking any other languages!!

So the weekend club was soooooooooo fun!! It was just me and Sian taking it - from 8 until 12 Saturdays and Sundays. We had to practise there swimming with them - as for the fundraiser they ahd to be sponsored to swim as many elgnths as they could - so sian took that. And I took skipping - they had to do as many skips as they could and be sponsored for that too. Was so good, because loads of them cuold skip, byt the little oens couldn't at all - and I actually taught a good handle fo them how to do it, so that was a good feeling!! Then ……later on we taught them dance! Mouy wanetd them to learn salsa, which was perfect considering I used to teach it!! Woooooo! Oh my god, they are SO good!!! I taught them loads of stuff, and they pick it up so quickly, its amazing. They seemed to really enjoy it too - especailly these two boys called Kosal and Socheat (yoc an probably see the ones in the photos!!). So we kind of went our days diong the weekend clubs, every day we came to school all the kdis would scream and drape themselves all over us shouting teacher kate teacher sian!!! Then during the week, we did circle classes with the nursey kids, taught them very basic stuff and sang songs and dacnes. I loved it, and getting to know all the kids was really nice too, they are all so so so sweet -the teachers too!

Once we got in to the swing of things…on our days off we went away first to a place called Kampot…which was gorgeous. A girl from Uni recomded we stay at a place alled bodhi Villa…a guest house on the lake. It was lovely!! Nice little place for me and Sian to getaway to for valentines day..hehe. You could swim on the lake, it had fossferessence at night too. So pretty!! We just kind of chilled uot (and didn't drink, as in cambpdia we decided to have a detox off drink!). We met a guy called ryan, who was a guy from america, travellling playing his guitar ad doing gigs trying to get himself on the map. He did a gig on our last night which was aweomse, and I bought his cd - hes really good! So good luck to him!!

Then back to phomn penh - back at school giong about our days!! Kong would drive us to school everyday………….i actually love him. Hes like our personal chariot driver, hes amazing. The weeks were taken up with fundraiser organising…preparation, rehearsing!! WE also went out to dinner a few times with the other outreach volenteers - but spent most of our time with the other volunteers at the school who wernt from outreach who were really nice!

Then dad came!!!!

Was so nice to see him!!

I went to go and meet him at the airport - and I collected his bag for him before he got through to save him the hassle - turns out he had spotted me, didn't recognize me - and thught some random small person was running off with his bag!! So yes, when he realsied it was me,it was lvoely to see him, Kong and his daughter drove us back to his hotel and sian came and met us and we had dinner!

The next few weeks was sort of spent at school everyday, then seeing dad for dinner every night! It was lovely!! We had some really lovely dinners!!! Then on Saturday the 17th - we had thd fundraiser! It went so so so well!! I was so proud of the kids! They did the salsa dance so so well…I teared up at the end ofit it as so good!!I have a video so you can all se it home!! Ahhhhhh! It was so cute too, srey mey (one of the students), introduced the dance and said 'teacher kate and teacher sian have bought latin fever to us at seametry school, and put us in the carnival mood, we hope you enjoy this salsa dance' HOW SWEET! We also had the nursery kids peform which we'd done with them, a song and a dance to lets twist again. Then also………they had to do the swimming! Which was crazy complicated to arrange but went very very very well!!! So al in all a very scucesful day, which ended In all the volunteers doing a khmer dance that one of the cambpdian teachers had taught us!! Which was hilarious, we did the raffle(I won, standard!! Btu gave my prize to a child!), then the thanksyou!! It was brilliant, and we raised 1000 dollars!!!!!!!!!!!

After the fundrasider all us teachers went on a break to Siam reap which was lovey!! Looked at all the temples for sunset, and sunrise- was very impressive!!!

Came back to phom penh - had my last few days with dad (srru this is all getting abit rushed I have to catch a bus to phuket in half an hour!!) - had to then say bye to dad wich was sad, btu il see him soon!! Flught home is booked!! Ahhhhhhhh May 28th, very excited!!

After dad left, we had out 2 last days at school which was lovely,and on our last day it was so sad. The kids had made us so many presents it was so sweet. Mouy arranged a party at 10.30 where all the school came together, ad we ate food, and they gave us presents!! The handprints.. (you can see in my pics), then the kids wold come up and give us individual presents too..i had more cards than I get on my birthday…Kocheat gave me a t-shirt!! Regina wraped up a pen, and a pensil sharpener and loads and loads of picturs!! Loads of nursey kids made me these little boxes thigns, reaskmay made me a bag!!! Loads of the kdis asked fro my email, wanted me to write them notes!!! It was adorable, all of them kept saying don't leave don't leave, we loveyou - who wil l teach us salsa!1 (sorry big big rusg!!!!! Bus in 10 mins!!), so it was not fun!!!!!!!!!! When we had to say goodbye was heartbreaking too……….I literally huggd about 60 kids, and gave them lots of kisses…….and creid my eys out! But we are going to go back ni may and visit for a few days..so I look forwad to seeing them all again. And heopfulyl teaching them some more dance, and mouy was so impressed with our salsadance a the fundrasie she asked for he cd so they can pracetise when we'ev gone, and then perform it at the end of school show!!

Argggggggggi hate that this is rushed!! But it was truly amazing, and im so gald I did it - and it wsas lovely to have dad out here sharing it too, an was ncie to meet the family he knew from before, mr 2 his tuk tuk driver, and the people at bodhi!! It was also horrible saying bye to Kong our driver, absolute lengend.

3 months left now….i am going to make the most of every day.

xxxx