PSK 09 Part 7 - The Celebration

Day 14:
It's time to move on. Our mission at Prey Veng is completed. The morning before breakfast, the landlord wanted to have a photo taking session with us. Kinda like taking a class photo.



After breakfast, we packed up and returned the logistical items to the NGO. Then we took some time off to visit the market and this might really be the last time I'm walking to the market. Don't really think I'll be so on to visit the place like Eric and KH did :p

When we were finally back at the youth center and ready to leave, the emotions get really high, just like last year.. But we still managed to get some good shots before we leave - the Sang Khem big family!



The bus trip from Prey Veng to Siem Reap is about 6 hours. In a more local context, it's about the time we'll take to drive from Singapore to KL at 110km/h. But we really didn't move at that speed, so the distance should be less. Along the way, we also kana tok by some restaurant, really expensive food..

We had dinner at Siem Reap, at 7000riels/head, really cheap and nice Zi Cha + free flow of rice. After dinner, we visited the night market, and for me, I just went to one corner of the market to relax.



Day 15:
The hotel this time was really shiok, though slightly more expensive than last year, I felt it was money well spent. Today is the day we visit Angkor Wat, though not that interesting a place, it's still a must go if you visit Cambodia.

The morning we visited the smaller temples and after lunch, we went to the main temple. It really wasn't as nice as last year, not just because it's the second time that I went, but because of the restoration works in progress. Look at the green nettings!!



After dinner, I decided that I'll go back to the hotel while most of the team went to the night market again. It was a good time for me to enjoy some quiet moments by myself.

Day 16:
The morning and noon was spent at 2 different markets. This is the last chance to do our shopping and everyone really bought a lot of souvenirs, except for me, since I don't really wanna buy the same things I bought last year, lol..

The highlight of the day was the cruise along Tonle Sap where we get to enjoy the final sunset at Cambodia. Somehow I felt relieved as the sun slowly disappear beyond the horizon, my journey as VPD of the project is almost coming to an end :)



Day 17:
We flew back to Singapore at 12pm, and some of us stayed for popeye lunch, like a year before. Somehow I see this becoming a routine for future batch..

Afterthought:
After PSK09, I attended a mentoring training. Like the instructors say, many of us neglect the importance of giving ourselves credits for things that we have done. We might keep thinking of the things that we had failed to do and want to correct that the next time and improve ourselves. However, I thought celebrating is very important as it spur us to achieve greater heights. Give yourself a break. Here's a video for you if you bump into this post :D

PSK 09 Part 6 -Camp II

Day 11 - 13:
After the break, the team was rejuvenated and ready to complete the education camp, or were we? I was slightly sick on day 11 but was well again by day 12 and ready to give my English lesson. Though I think my lesson wasn't that fun, the kids still kinda enjoyed it, lol..

Day 13 was the finale day. In the morning, we had some competition style games and breaking the participants into teams to compete against each other. The way they played were quite aggressive and we were lucky no blood was shed.

Afternoon was "disco" session, but there weren't many people, mostly the regulars who came. With the end of the last song, our mission there has ended.

Some of the youths invited us to an exhibition match of football. At 5pm, we made our way to a nearby school where the match will be held. It was 6v6, and we really had fun. The field was quite rough and some of us were hurt in the game, but nothing can dampen our spirit to have fun. The match ended in a 8-3 defeat.

PSK 09 Part 5 - Break Time?

Day 10:
One more week and we'll be headed back home, and today, the youth centre took a break from the camp. After breakfast, we all changed into a slightly more formal outfit and made our way to the church. Just like last year, we will be there to have a Christmas celebration, but we'll not be performing this time round. Something else that's different was that we had to walk there!! No more convoy!!!

We reach at about nine. There were various performances from different groups and the performance was like 3 hr.. Phew, when it's time for lunch. This time, it's curry pork and bread, really nice! After lunch, it's the dance segment and we were all invited to join in and have fun. This was when the Love Export team finally come, and they joined in the dance after their lunch.



At around 3pm, we left the church and most of us went to the market. Mostly, it was free and easy until after dinner, when we had a good sharing session to end the day.

PSK 09 Part 4 - Camp

Day 7 - 9:
The second highlight of the trip was the educational camp, lasting a grand total of 6 days. With feedback from last year, we tweaked our camp content a little, focusing more on conversational english. To cater to the younger ones, we also had the english divided into beginners and advanced level.

Apart from that, we also had handicraft sessions where we learn handicrafts from them. Though it was originally intended to be the other way round.

Though we're suppose to be giving conversational lesson, there were still the need for translators to help convey the message in Khmer language. Many thanks to the friends who helped out with translating :)