Lonely Planet

Our kids on the bus to the beach!

I was stumbling thru the web-o-sphere and found some really cool information on Cambodia from Lonely Planet.  One thing I found really interesting from the website was:

Despite this beautiful backdrop, life is no picnic for the average Cambodian. It remains one of the poorest countries in Asia and it’s a tough existence for much of the population, as they battle it out against the whims of nature and, sometimes, of their politicians. According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP;www.undp.org), Cambodia remains poorer than Mongolia and El Salvador, just scraping in ahead of Mauritania, while Transparency International (www.transparency.org), the anticorruption watchdog, rates the country a lowly 151 out of the 163 countries ranked. Income remains desperately low for many Khmers, with annual salaries in the hundreds of dollars, not thousands, and public servants such as teachers unable to eke out a living on their meagre wages.

This makes me want to cry.  This is the Cambodia that I have grown to love and have continued to return to.  But this next quote is so true:

Despite having the eighth wonder of the world in its backyard, Cambodia’s greatest treasure is its people. The Khmers have been to hell and back, struggling through years of bloodshed, poverty and political instability. Thanks to an unbreakable spirit and infectious optimism, they have prevailed with their smiles intact; no visitor comes away from Cambodia without a measure of admiration and affection for the inhabitants of this enigmatic kingdom.

Check out the website, you’ll learn lots of wonderful information!

Samantha Brown in Cambodia?!?!

If you are a Travel Channel junkie like me you may have already watched Samantha Brown’s Cambodia excursion.  And if you are a Cambodia junkie like me you may have it saved in your DVR… I’m just saying’!

But, if you’re not I thought you may want to watch a 2 minute clip of her in Siem Reap getting a fish pedicure.  Yep, that’s right.  And many, many Global X mission trippers have done the same.  What I love most about the clip, though, is that out of the thousands of fish pedicure options she picked the one right in front of Rajana.  Only my favorite place to shop in Cambodia.  Why?  Because Rajana is a fair trade NGO that sells Christian merchandise.  How free-kin’ cool is that!?!?!

Check it out!

Did you see Alex’s latest post?

If not, check it out here.  He has been able to travel to a few of the different providences in Cambodia and has some new information about a school in Siem Reap that is pretty awesome.  And, if that isn’t enough he has some pretty awesome pictures.

Enjoy!

I miss it

It’s been over three weeks since my team came back and I really, really miss being over there  I miss seeing the kids.  I miss knowing that they are OK.  I miss giving them hugs.  I miss having fun with the team. We had a great trip!  Here are some more pictures I don’t think I’ve already posted on here…

Samnang big & Kristie

Having fun at Angkor Watt

Davan, Smey, Kristie & Darrel

Ry at KFC

Cambodia Stats

So much of what we show on here is of the orphanage, obviously, because that is where we go.  And God has been good to the orphanage… a lot of work has been done by many, many people to make it what it is.

So much so, that it may be easy to overlook what surrounds the orphanage or to forget what we drive by to get there.

A house literally right outside the gate to the orphanage.

In Phnom Penh

We don’t know where our kids have come from but I have to believe that they know more about the world than I ever will. Very humbling.

Here are some stats from PBS:

• Cambodia has a population of roughly 11 million people.
• 84% live in rural areas. 
• 42% are under 15 years old.
• 29% are from 12 to 22 years old. 
• 35% are literate. 
• 95% are Theraveda Buddhists.
• Cambodia is one of the world’s poorest nations, with a per capita GNP (gross national product) of $280 (1999).
• More than a third of Cambodia’s people live below the poverty line, and two-thirds of the people have no access to clean drinking water.
• The infant mortality rate in Cambodia is nearly 10 percent.
• Agriculture is made more difficult by the presence of between 4 million and 6 million land mines. These painful reminders of the nation’s war-torn history are scattered throughout the countryside, where they still injure or kill as many as 90 people each month. More than 35,000 Cambodians are amputees as a result of land mine injuries.

Last Day…

At the orphanage!!! It was so sad to have to leave.  Actually, I don’t think it has hit me yet that we will not be going back tomorrow.  But I wanted to share a few pictures with you from our last day.  Thank you all so much for your support and prayers.  None of this would have been possible without all of you and we are so blessed to be the ones you sent over.

Srey Lin, Het, Kristie & Narin

Pov

David & Noelle

Kristie

All the kids

Chean, Pichhing, Ry, and Narin

Narin

Lik

Rothannak

Raksmey

KFC

I thought you needed to see how excited the kids were over fried chicken last night:

Raksmey

Kristie, Narin, Polin, Melanie, and Raksmey

Chhean

Christina, Peanut, Angie, and Srey Leap

Pichhing

Pichhing

Paly

Ry

Pannha

Seyla

Vannak & Kim

Take another little piece of my heart…

Yesterday was SO GREAT!

Because the inflatable slide took over most of the day on Wednesday, our carnival team and sports teams were flexible and we combined both on Thursday! The kids could not have had more fun!

We started the day splitting up the kids into teams and teaching them that they have been chosen by God to be on His team. Each of the kids got a jersey with their team color and we even made team flags. We played lots of fun games like dizzy bat race and sack race and catch the bacon (ask Stuart!). We had a BLAST!

After lunch we went straight up to the carnival games. We had pin the tail on the donkey, bean bag toss, egg and spoon race, bowling, and many more! For every game they played, the lovely Laura supplied them with a fun little prize from candy to bubbles to beanie babies. The kids loved it!

At night we stayed to take the kids to dinner at KFC! Surprisingly the restaurant is fairly popular over here, but the kids had never been. This was only the second time they had been taken out to dinner, too. They ate so much chicken! After dinner we played, danced, laughed, and just enjoyed the time with the kids. One interesting thing to see has been how resourceful the kids are. Even after dinner they were collecting the chicken bones to give to the dogs and puppies at the orphanage.

Slip & Slide… Cambodian Style!

Which I have to say, I like so much more than in the USA!  Ha!  So, what had happened was my team was to put on carnival day today.  Laura and most of the team set up the 3rd floor with tons of games and lots of prizes ready to be handed out… which will all have to happen tomorrow.  Because…

We had a bounce house!! Or, a bounce SLIDE!!! The kids sat extra well thru the devotional, although they inched closer and closer to the door trying to get outside.  After the devotion everyone went to the slide and wouldn’t leave it.  So, we changed plans from doing just the bounce house in the AM and then the carnival in the afternoon.  However, as soon as we got back from lunch someone turned the air back on to the bounce house and we didn’t have the heart to pull the kids (and adults) away.  Even the rain didn’t stop us… actually when it started raining the kids clapped.  And well… pictures speak louder than words:

Monday Beach Time!!!

Kristie & Angie

Seyla

Reksmey — “The Doctor”

And the many faces of Reksmey

Pichhing

What the bus ride home looked like