MPX 2 Trip (Day 3)

Today, 6th Dec, is our 1st day of construction.

The task we were assigned to do was to dig soil and use it to fill up the ground in the library. This was just a back-breaking task. I could still remember the achiness my back felt, 'oh' man! Fortunately the students was helping out. They were real experts at the digging. One shove of the chang-hoe, one large portion of soil in the basket. The hole we dug end up real deep, definitely more than my height!

Our work routine is quite relaxing actually. 8am - 11am & 2pm-5pm, with a 3hr lunch, volleyball, bridge, dai-dee, reading, clothes washing, napping ... ... in between.

When we came back home in the evening, the official playtime with the kids start. All I can say the kids really enjoyed our company. They were here every evening till they were supposed to go home to sleep. Without Fail! They are really 'Energizers', always jumping and running around, filling our front porch with their giggles and laughters and singing.
















But I really enjoy myself every night. I would say 'what a great way to chill out after a day of work'.









Of course, the night would not just end with the kids all gone at 8plus 9. Bridge, dai-dee, murderer, other games and chat is the way to end the night.


The consolation for our backache - a back massage. Whew, it really really made me miss a friend of mine.
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A few observations made and a few questions I had in mind:

1. The girls at Cambodia are generally very shy, well at least to strangers. But they love to smile and they will just smile and look away everytime you look at them. Their shyness sometimes also makes me feel shy in return and stop thinking about looking twice at them.
2. I wonder if the students and kids were being brief about how they should behave in front of us by their teachers and parents?
3. What was on their mind when they were told to help us out with the construction?
4. The last point. I should have realized this long ago. The one applying the anchor actually anchored himself back. Talking about conditioned-responding, haha. Case study on hand: Vivian blister incident with the Kelvin's kiss cure.

MPX 2 Trip (Day 2)

We had our breakfast at the Russian market and did some shopping before we set off for the village.

We were there around 3plus, i think. Before getting to our house, we went to the school and took a look at the half-built library.


When we reached the house, it was much better than I first expected it to be.

We had our 1st self-cooked dinner. Haha there's the over-cooked rice which was 'disguised' as Japanese sticky rice...

But after a long day, my hunger did get the better of me. in addition, I'm not really particular when it comes to food, i think i still ate quite a lot.

Have the opportunity to learn Khmer from the kids after dinner.
one - mui
two - bi
three - by
four - bwen
five - prang
six - prang-mui....
ten - dop
eleven - dop-mui...
Hello - suer serdae
bird - jub
dog - chee ka i
thank you - or-kun
I love you - kinom strawlan nyak


I feel that the kids here have a strong sense of pride and a fighting spirit just like a warrior. They are sensible as I mentioned and very likeable. But of course, Ming Sing is always the most adorable one!

Stay tuned to more pics of this super-cute 1 year old boy!

MPX 2 Trip (Day 1)

It's 4th Dec morning, 515am. I was feeling all sleepy but this was the day to Cambodia.

I could still remember the day started off very well. I got my cab immediately at 6am when i reached the main road. Not only this, the radio was playing my favorite song from Selena. Just when I was secretly counting my blessings, I got an even greater surprise. The next song is also by Selena and the next and the next. It's the Selena album! Wow, great for a long journey to the airport.

The hotel at Phnom Penh has no lifts. So it was a vertical marathon up the levels with all our heavy bags. Whew!

Visited the Genocide Museum. It was during the 1975 - 1979 when the Khmer Rouge killed 3 million fellow Cambodians, in the attempt to bring everyone to a common level. It was thought that the educated ones caused the difference between the rich and the poor.


These are the cells of the prisoners. very small. They were cuffed at the ankle and they were given one small box for their bodily waste.


I feel a sense of darkness when I saw the most gruesome display - a cabinet of skulls. This museum really serves as a reminder to the lessons to be learnt from history.

Thoughts at Cambodia

"Ignorance is bliss"

The whole team with the Rotary Club of Phnom Penh had brought lots of new things to the kids. Sometimes i think are we giving too much and we can't promise more. It's just too sad then. I think we won't miss the things which we don't know it exist in the first place. We won't know what we want unless it exists. When we give and we leave, we have no idea what happen next.

Hope that all you children grow up to what you want to be. May you be happy always. Love all of you.

X'mas at Pete's

Ho Ho Ho, to think it's a party nite again.

Look at this, how can we not get drunk.

So much wine and liquor. These are not all. There are more in the fridge...


Anyway, we didn't really need the alcohol to get 'high'. Ask our beloved lady who did it w/o much drinking. Ha ha ha! Our queen of the nite.



It was just a nite of pure fun and destress. We had poppers to pull and music to dance. Yeah too much fun till the police decided to "join" us too. Really went overboard.

I think we had our share of fun together and personally, feels good to see some good old friends after an overseas trip.

MPX 2

This gonna be the journey to a place of my dream. Been wishing for 3 years and in 8 hrs time, I will be on my way.

Will be taking this time to experience the other lifestyle, think about my life, who, what, when I want and need and construct my dreams.

I've been joking it calling this trip the "20 days of seclusion", attempting to reach nirvana. I do wish to come back with a clearer mind and more enthusiasm, equip with new & higher learning.