Life and Hope project

Painting, now it has a different meaning. It's messy, that leads to a lot of paint fights. Before this all happened, the adventure began before.  We were driving peacefully along the road, all of a sudden there was a loud BANG!!!! The tyre blew, which left us stranded on the side of the road, whilst half the team continued on. The rest of us were left standing in a jungle for about an hour, hungry and hot, laughing at the silly games we were playing. We got to the Children's Development Building and the painting began. A large two-story building inside and out, a small one-story building, filled our one and a half days of work. 3 coats of paint later and the shopping adventures began, where we got rid of most of our money. We all very exhausted from the hard work and the extreme humidity. That was the journey of the last two days.

-Amy Guest and Tamlyn Robinson

Khmer language lesson

Our teacher for the day was Nen.  He not only taught us Khmer phrases, but was also happy to chat about Buddhism and being a monk.  Heincluded role plays for greetings and no one chickened out.  Everyone has a go and participated to their best.

Question time saw questions being asked from all directions.....

Can women become monks?

Can monks marry?

How do you become a monk?

Can you explain mindfulness?

The lesson was amazing.

First impressions

Day 3 on our Cambodian trip and I feel the group is adjusting to the Cambodian status quo. The locals are inherently friendly and polite, kind and hard-working- but the level of impoverishment in which they live in does not seem to match their sorroundings. The streets are paved with rubble, loose paving slabs and half-finished construction, but despite this they remain optimistic and push forward: this is their life. For us foreign westerners so used to a cleaner, less hostile society- it is quite something. Pity is not the emotion I would convey towards these honest people but, truly, humanity- in its richest form.  Love and hope for a future shared between all members of the world. Even in this environment, there is beauty in the chaos. The rushing of cars on wrong sides of the road, laboriously bartering for a good deal at restaurants, public transport and the unwritten law of Cambodian society: life goes on. Today we're finishing the painting we started yesterday for the Life and Hope Association, a boarding house for children affected by violence within their home, under the supervision of Buddhist Monks.
Sam B

Day 1......or is that day 2???

All team members have arrived safely with luggage intact. Not bad for only having 45 minutes in Singapore for the Vic team!!
The flight in at sunset was great. Watching a sunset from above the clouds is not something everyone gets to experience.
By the time we all had a bite to eat and found our rooms, it was time for a very well earned rest - for some of us it had been a 24 hour day.

This morning saw a team of eager members just wanting to get the program started.  First stop was a visit to Wat Damnak for a Khmer language lesson.  Our students thought they had seen the end of the classroom for a while, but instead they participated for 2 hours in the language class.  We think the teacher forgot that none of us can read Khmer script, so practice drills proved to be interesting.
Everyone asked questions and our teacher, Nen, was very open to answering questions about being a monk and a little about Buddhism.

After lunch, the students worked in small groups to hit the market and buy items for the health/education packs.  They bought kramas (or scarves), soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste, shampoo, combs, hair ties, children's books, balls, pencils, pens and hats.  Welcome to the world of bettering.  The leaders who supported the students were impressed with their skills, given that they had never had to barter before.  They enjoyed and embraced the challenge and handled themselves in a wonderful manner.

The Military Museum again proved interesting.  Both tour guides gave their version of the recent history of Cambodia and all students have come away with their own perceptions of what they heard. Some students were shocked by the recent history and were confronted with a guide who had been extensively injured both during the war and in the years after as a result of landmines.  He had lost the vision in one eye and had also lost a leg.

Tomorrow our next project begins and we are at Children's Development Village working with the Monks from Wat Damnak.  It will be an early start and a long day - but one that history tells us will be a successful day.

Internet is proving a challenge and we hope we will be able to post to tomorrow.
Cheers

WELCOME TO THE 2016 TEAM!!

Hi all and welcome to the blog site of the 2016 Schoolies Alternative team to Cambodia.

This year marks our 10th year and we are excited to have 36 students participating this year.  The students come from Kerang Technical High School, Cohuna Secondary College and Kerang Christian Community College in north western Victoria as well as students from the Northern Territory through the Northern Territory School of Distance Education (including Jabiru, Tiwi Islands and other remote communities).

Once again the students and leaders will contribute to this blog throughout the 2 weeks of our adventure.  We encourage you to read all about their activities by accessing this blog regularly and spreading the word.  We have tried to set the blog so that you may comment.  Please be aware that this is a public site, so all comments can be read by anyone accessing it.

We look forward to sharing our experiences with you all.
Cheers