Kep: southern Cambodia

***ASIA PHOTOS ARE ADDED TO MY YAHOO PHOTO ALBUM! So check them out using the link to the right marked "photo album". Yay!***

So this is what Cambodia looks like for all those who have no clue. I entered on the Mekong River into Stung Streng and stayed in Banlung for 4 nights... that's where I visited the hill tribes. From there we taxied it to Kratie and then I arrived into Phnom Penh on the 14th. We left the next day for Kep and spent 3 nights.

The night before Kep in Phnom Penh, I met a bunch of teachers from various countries and we chilled out at Guesthouse #9 - the original one on Lake Side. The mosquitoes were out in full force and I woke up the next morning with about 20 bites on my left foot and about 5 or so on my right. Hopefully I didn't catch malaria. :-) Anyways, the teachers are very cool people, down to earth, we had some rally interesting conversations... especially with this middle-aged flamboyantly gay dude from California named Salim. I will tell about him upon my return.

Kep

So Kep. The Khmer Rouge was in very heavey force there while the regime was still in power. Many rich Khmers had houses there, the King had a palace, all overlooking the beauitful - but of course very dirty - ocean. It used to be quite a booming city not too long ago until the mid 1970s (just after the civil war) when the Khmer Rouge slaughtered everyone and their babies. Terrible and bloody history. The homes are in ruins, the lands are being clear cut and sold off at ridiculous prices. In some cases there are trees growing out through the walls and the ceilings. It makes for an eery feeling when you drive the streets and see - in the rare cases where the family can afford a cop to patrol their area - families living in poverty in the brokedown homes. What a juxtaposition of imagery and reality. We drove around on motos - we had met up with my new and beautiful friend Roath (ro-wat) and her fiancé Marcel (a middle-aged dutch dude)... this is a whole other story - through the mountain and jungle, breathtaking view of the vietnamese and cambodian islands. We didn't go for a dip though since we saw the sewage pipes spewing into the ocean... haha All in all, it was a very interesting and educational experience... one that I will learn more about after having visited the museum here in Phnom Penh.

life changing trip...

We left for Phnom Penh again on the 18th, then hopped on yet another annoying karaoke-playing-full-blast-the-entire-way bus to Siem Reap on the 19th. It changed my life. It changed my outlook once again. It made me actually motivated to DO something and it gave me the confidence in knowing that I actually CAN do something.

Siem Reap

We were meeting up with a contact Carly knew through a close friend of her's to help her NGO test some water for a floating village. Her name is Leigh and her NGO is called Future Cambodia Fund (check it out cuz you'll be hearing lots more about it!) which is a project her and a friend began a year ago to help the street kids of Siem Reap. It is an amazing endeavor and I was fortunate enough to be present and see what it is they do, how they network, how they communicate with the children and the people of this floating village.

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I will write more on this next time because time has run out here, but do your homework and check that site out please! This is something I will be getting more envolved with in the near future, something important to me, and something I would like everyone to get a grasp on.