Cambodian Hospitals Just Can't Get Enough

Cambodia is testing me, but I refuse to give in. After not even a week in the lovely SR I managed to have my first major bone break. The stairs at the volunteer house are deadly and trekking up them one night landed me with a broken metatarsal.

Initially I thought it was a sprain and was something I could walk off, but after realizing two days later that the giant black spot on my foot was a bruise and not dirt I figured I should probably go to the hospital.

After hobbling over to the local Khmer hospital (and getting an interesting education in Cambodian medicine) they told me I had a small crack, put me in a splint, and sent me on my way. I thought this was bizarre since the splint wasn't even protecting the broken bone in the first place, but I just let it happen since they (hopefully) have more medical training than I do. A splint rendered me useless at placement so I've spent most of the last week just hanging out with whoever ends up being home that day.

One evening I was out and a local Khmer man thought it would be funny to step on my clearly dead foot. An hour and a half of throbbing later I was finally able to move and go home. That was indication I should probably go back and get a full cast.

Stupidly enough I went back to the local hospital where they charged me $120 for the most outrageous and impractical plaster cast I have ever seen.

It looks like a crocheted sock. I could flop my foot around in the boot. I kept jokingly saying I could start keeping snacks in there because there was so much room. After I realized the impracticality of the thing I figured it would be best to go to the ridiculously expensive international hospital I should've been at in the first place.

$735 and a goodie bag full of medication later I managed to hobble out of the Royal Angkor Hospital with a proper cast that will feel like heaven when removed.

Needless to say my first few weeks in the country have been quite the experience, but I still never want to leave. I've been meeting great people and having a wonderful time, and I'll also be able to come home with some pretty interesting plaster souvenirs.

Last but not least! I got my very first tattoo last week and I've never been happier. It far surpassed my expectations and I've been wearing it with pride.

At Home in SR

On Monday I moved from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap to finally begin my placement. Words cannot describe how wonderful SR is. It's a great mix between Western culture and the Cambodia I've grown to love (and never want to leave).

Tuesday was my first day at my orphanage Missionaries of Charity, which is Mother Theresa's order, and I can already tell that leaving will be one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. The kids are between the ages of one month and six years and some of the most darling kids I've ever met. Unfortunately, like many of the kids in Cambodian orphanages, they aren't actually orphans. Large families are a huge problem in the country, especially in rural areas, and many families will take one or more of the kids and leave them at orphanages because they simply can't afford to feed them. This has serious psychological impact on the kids, resulting in many being angry, withdrawn, and antisocial.

To make matters worse, some parents come visit the kids and this messes with their head even more. The majority can't go anywhere near their parents if they have any, as they start screaming and run towards one of the Sisters or volunteers. Having said this, the kids are treated extremely well. They're fed a lot better then kids at other orphanages and treated with kindness. Unfortunately we aren't allowed photos until our last day so I have none to upload until then!

Thursdays we don't work so today we decided to go to one of the floating villages on the Tonle Sap. It was my first experience with a Cambodian scam, but it was lovely nonetheless. First they overcharged us for entrance and then spent the majority of our boat ride convincing us to buy food for an orphanage that apparently houses 150 kids. I saw maybe 20 when we got there. They took us to the community market and told us a bag of rice costs $65 for a large or $35 for a small. They then split the profits, as opposed to it going to the community like we were told. Until we got scammed, the experience was lovely and it was unlike anything I'd experienced before.

I also got my first, and probably last, tattoo done by a local Khmer man. I've never been so happy with something in a long time.

Placement Update

Hey everyone!

So you're probably wondering why I haven't posted anything in regards to my placement, which was supposed to start on Wednesday. I figured I should update everyone as to why this is so if you hear anything from my parents you aren't surprised!

1.) I have had some placement issues. When I arrived last Friday they informed me I would be going to Siem Reap to work in an NGO there. On Tuesday, they told me this was no more and to wait it out while they found something. They hastily phoned around and ended up getting me something last minute at CCIM (Cambodian Center for Independent Media).

During the few days I had I did a lot of thinking about whether or not NGO work was something I really wanted to do, as when I signed up it was called the "human rights" program as opposed to "working with NGOs" as it is now. I decided instead to switch to childcare and teaching. I'm doing a split placement in Siem Reap starting on Wednesday Tuesday!!. Strictly orphanage work for 2 weeks (it can't be longer as the kids are very small and get attached to long term volunteers) and then teaching/orphanage work for the rest of my time here. This might come as a shock to whoever is reading this, but I wanted to be happy while I'm here since it is 11 weeks and I felt like the NGO work I was given would just make me want to count down the days until I go home, not dread going home.

2.) I was extremely ill and couldn't have gone to placement even if I had one. Refer to previous post if you missed my illness. I am better now though! I feel great and probably have a gastrointestinal system of steel after what it went through.

Here's another adorable photo of some street kids to keep happiness levels up!

Blessings, Bugs, & Bedrest

As I write this I am lying on the bed in my guesthouse victim to the infamous Cambodian stomach bug. The last 24 hours have been absolute hell, both on me and my roommate (poor girl). I have a sneaking suspicion that my 25 cent roadside iced coffee is the culprit. However, this experience was inevitable and here's to hoping that I now have the immunity 10x that of any Canadian!

Update: This was the result of that lovely stomach bug! I'm much better now though.

Cambodians are known for eating crazy food, possibly borderline disgusting, but I feel like if I'm going to be in Cambodia, why not live like a Cambodian? This includes eating their crazy foods! Scientists thing that consuming bugs is the way of the future for most developing countries. Many of them are loaded with the proteins that people are currently unable to obtain. The Khmer are one step ahead of everyone else. They've been consuming bugs forever, and I decided to join in the fun the other night.

As soon as I saw this woman selling the largest spread of bugs I'd ever seen, I knew I had to try something. Unfortunately, I didn't have the guts (no pun intended) to take a bite out of cicada, so I settled for a small bag of chili flavored crickets. I was absolutely terrified to take my first bite. I had no idea what to expect, but they turned out to be delicious! I also ate a fish eye, which unfortunately was not documented.

Cambodia is a very religious country, with over 95% of the population following Theravada Buddhism. Wats and monks greet you on every corner, making a stroll through any city, town, or village an extremely peaceful experience. Yesterday I visited Wat Ounalom, which is the center for Cambodian Buddhism.

As we wandered through the grounds we noticed a small stupa nestled behind a fence. Upon approaching, an extremely old Khmer man ran over and said he'd open the temple for us. Unbeknownst to me this stupa housed an eyebrow hair of Buddha, making it a very religious place. The monk proceeded to bless us, which left me with an oddly calm feeling as we left.

Also for one more smile-inducing photo before I'm done my rambles, here's the most adorable shopkeeper I've ever seen. I've bought three shirts from her thus far because she's so cute and will probably be back to buy more. Grandma looks great too.

Cambodia's Brutal Past

The past couple days have been filled with learning about Cambodia's bloody history. It's impossible to understand what has shaped this country into what it is today without diving into the Khmer Rouge's reign of terror.

When Pol Pot marched into Phnom Penh in 1975, no one knew what citizens were in for. His radical ideology had him convinced there were spies within the country, and he was determined to exterminate anyone who could betray him. As a result, he established S21 Prison, more commonly known as Tuol Sleng, in Phnom Penh.

At S21, prisoners had to state what they could've done to betray the state. People were forced into confessing for crimes they had never committed, mostly because the torture became too much to bear. Prison commanders would document their biographies and take photos, most of which haunt the rooms of S21 today.

Once their biographies were documented prisoners were placed into rooms. The type of room depended on what type of person they were. Some were placed in small cells, others placed in large rooms on their own, shackled to the bed.

Prisoners were kept here and tortured for 1-6 months depending on what their crime was. During this time, people were tortured in the most inhumane ways possible. People were dropped into buckets of human waste, had their fingernails ripped out, had small cuts made on parts of their body, etc. If a person was able to survive S21 and torture was complete, they were loaded onto trucks and taken out to Choeung Ek, more commonly known as the Killing Fields.

Only 11 people managed to survive S21, one of which I had the pleasure of meeting. Chum Mey managed to be useful to the S21 commanders because unlike them, he was literate and was able to help document biographies and confessions. Today he lives in Phnom Penh and has penned a novel about his life, which I purchased and look forward to reading.

Choeung Ek was the end for anyone who ended up there. People were killed with a blow to the head or a slit to the throat because Pol Pot thought bullets were too expensive. Once killed, people were thrown into mass graves, unmarked and unknown to the world. Currently, 86 mass graves have been dug up. There are several more, but they will remain undisturbed in order to bring peace to those buried there. It's not uncommon to walk through Choeung Ek and see bones under the path, as the rain washes the dirt away and unearths what lies below.

Once the bones were/are unearthed, they get placed in the memorial stupa that lies in the middle of Choeung Ek. The 17 tiers in the stupa hold the bones of everyone who has been found at the Killing Fields thus far.

The past couple days have been mentally and emotionally exhausting, but I can't express how happy and thankful I am to have gone to both of these places. The suffering of the Khmer people has made them stronger, and I've never met a more kinder group of people. These historical sites are hard to bear, but I think they've made me understand Cambodia a bit better.