Habitat Build Day #1

The site is a long bus ride from the city....at least 1 1/4 hours or more, depending on traffic. It is hard to imagine driving our big bus of 40 plus volunteers with all the motorbikes and tuk tuks flooding the streets and darting around, but the driver did great. Even getting the bus around corners of narrow intersections. Arrival scene:

When we arrived in Oudong at 8:30 after leaving our hotel at 7 a.m., a great welcome was in store. School children lined the long walkway, girls on left and the boys on the right, all holding flags and singing and cheerful. It was easy to be overwhelmed by the appreciation they had for us.

JOHN, NEIL AND MARCY
SHOW OFF THE NECKLACE
 GIVEN BY OUR GREETERS.

Local women along the greeting line placed handmade necklaces on each of us. Then, a orientation meeting followed after which, we walked with our homeowner to house #22. Our team was divided between two houses with 15 at this house the six others working on #17 with volunteers from other teams. Three team members went to work on the farm, plowing the earth behind an oxen and planting young seedlings. And one more, to the community center where he worked splitting bamboo and setting up.

STACKED BRICKS WAITING TO BE A WALL.

HOMEOWNER SOPHA
PLACES THE FIRST BRICK OF THE BUILD

MANY HANDS, MANY BRICKS, MAKE A WALL.

GARY SETS THE FIRST OF THREE WINDOWS

A concrete foundation and floor plus the first two rows of brick were already laid. Our goal was to complete a total of 10 rows including putting the three windows in place. Temps were in the high 90s but we managed to finish the assigned work and headed back to our home hotel at 5:00.

 Long day.

Satisfying start to the Build.

Welcome Reception

As is usual, we were treated to a fine welcome dinner accompanied with a traditional Cambodian dancing performance. Greetings were given by Habitat Cambodia staff folks and also one of the country's government officials. I lost count of the countries represented here: New Zealand, U.S., Canada, Mexico, Belgium, Australia, Korea, Germany and many others. It is an international group of volunteers.

The setting sun presented a perfect glow to the event.

The reception was held on a large patio overlooking the river. It was a clear night with a gentle breeze blowing. Tables of ten and a homeowner joining the volunteers at every table. A lovely mother of two young children at our table. The building work begins tomorrow morning, Tuesday.

L TO R: NANCY, HOMEOWNER, MARCY AND STAN

In and around Phnom Penh

Many beautiful sights to visit in this capital city. At the entrance to the Cambodiana hotel, a Habitat banner welcomes the teams.

Here are some views of the highlight spots in the city:

WAT PHNOM

NATIONAL MUSEUM COMPLEX
CONTAINS IMPORTANT ANGKOR ARTIFACTS

NATIONAL MUSEUM COURTYARD AND BUDDHA

PAVILLION IN THE ROYAL PALACE GROUNDS

LOGO OF THE KING, ON A DOOR DECORATION
IN THE THRONE BUILDING

And from a sad time in the country's history, photos of the Toul Sleng Genocide Museum, the famous S-21. It had been a school and the classrooms were converted to a prison during the Pol Pot years 1975-79. Now a museum and a testament to the madness of the Khmer Rouge regime.

PHOTOGRAPHS FROM EXTENSIVE RECORDS SHOWING
THOUSANDS OF PRISONERS WHO BECAME THE
 ULTIMATE VICTIMS OF THE EXECUTIONS
 AT THE NEARBY "KILLING FIELDS".

Many of the thousands of Cambodians who perished under the Khmer Regime were dumped in mass graves scattered around the country. Prior to 1975, Choeung Ek ws an orchard, but under Pol Pot this particular killing field was the site of brutal executions of nearly 17,000, most of whom had suffered torture at S-21. A memorial stupa now stands in memory of those buried here.

CHOEUNG EK MEMORIAL,
PHOTO BY VOLUNTEER CHARLES ZWICK.

Welcome volunteers

PHOTO: HABITAT FOR HUMANITY INTERNATIONAL

Habitat for Humanity Cambodia and home partner families welcome volunteers for the Khmer Harvest Build. “I want to build my own house with volunteers from overseas. I have no experience but I am willing to learn. The thought of having a house that belongs to me makes me happy,” said Kim Keomheng, a 42-year-old cake seller.

At the build site in Oudong, Kandal province, thousands of soil blocks are waiting in neat stacks. Some 350 international volunteers from New Zealand, the United States, Korea, Germany and Hong Kong will build alongside 22 families. The volunteers will also make bricks and work on a nearby farm which will provide a source of livelihood for some families.

Independence Day Cambodian style

No additional team members arrived today. More coming in on the 11th.

But much festivities as November 9 marks a national celebration for the country. And it lasts from the 9th through the next two days. Three in all. His Majesty King Norodom Sihamoni presided in the morning at the Independence Monument in a celebration to mark the 58th anniversary of national independence from France. Parades and fireworks. And a holiday from work and jobs for many Cambodians.

Photo at right by Habitat
team member Gary Tan

Hello Phnom Penh

Bernard Tan and Gary Tan of Singapore, win the prize for first arrival in the city. Next to arrive, Nancy DeVries and then James Vargo. And so we are beginning to gather and make acquaintances of our team.

The city is like many of the Asian ones, busy with a traffic mix of cars and motorbikes and tuk tuks. You must have to focus to safely ride your bike as all vehicles drive along within 12 inches of the each other. Helmets for the bikes are required, but not always worn, and the regulation is loosely applied.

First night here,  Nov 9th, and a few days ahead of the official Habitat work. Bernard and Gary plus Nancy and Nancy's cousin, Ellie, visiting from Chiang Mai, Thailand, joined for dinner at a local Khmer/Thai restaurant.

Touch down in Cambodia

Hello from Siem Reap, home of the most fabulous architecture from 10th century through the 13th and now a UNESCO world heritage site. In all, a considerable number of temples, seven of which we visited  in three days. Build to honor kings and queens and pay respect to Buddha.

The best know of these is Angkor Wat. There is some restoration going on now and for protection, green tarps are now shrouding large parts of the best photographic persepective. There is a better sunset photo  posted last summer. You can find it in the first post of this blog.

Photo above is the "Smiling Buddha", at Angkor Thom in the temple, Bayon. The image also appears on one of the units of Cambodian currency.

Next stop is Phnom Penh and the the Habitat Build. I'm flying there Wednesday and really looking forward to meeting the other volunteers on our team and getting to know them. From the bios, they all sound like great folks!