This week we have trained 111 school directors and about 18 DOE staff on how to write a School Development Plan - SDP. MoEYS has introduced a new format for them to use which involves a tighter time frame and linking activities to goals. Bunthorn as usual did all the talking for our part, which was about how to monitor a plan. I just do not see any point in standing up saying something for him to translate. If he doesn't understand it he will translate it badly....

This morning my landlady asked if she may pray in my house today. Of course I said yes and left her the keys. I arrived at work to be presented with a plate of fruit. Bunthorn was invited to the party in the finance department - by 10 o'clock they (not Bunthorn) were on the merrier side of sober. Bunthorn and I left as we had printing to do for the training tomorrow. (I am not going into the fact that the only member of staff left in the office was a female and ...

Today I saw a good lesson. It did not start well - as we walked in the room the teacher walked out and my heart sank. "Here we go again!!"I thought. But no he had run out of chalk. Grade 3 - Mathematics - The lesson was a revision lesson on what they knew about adding, subtraction, multipication and division. It moved along at a great pace with all children taking part - using individual boards. The level of work would have been appropriate for a year 3/4 class...

My birthday started on Thursday when several of my work colleagues surprised me with a cake and two skirts. Skirts never fit me properly - these fitted perfectly. Last week Derry (ECE chief) had put a piece of string around my waist and stood beside me and that was all it took for her mum to make me two great work skirts. They are cool and very smart. Yesterday - my actual birthday - was spent enjoying myself. Sheila and I went to The Plantation for lunch and ma...

It has been raining - not for long but oh so hard. My landlord - like all Cambodians collects the rain. We are on the mains but water is expensive and although I always use the mains water I know they don't. As you can see they have huge earthenware pots which are filled from the gutter. It took 5 minutes to fill one of these containers (that's with half the water escaping because it was so heavy). There are only gutters where collection is happening, everywhere...