Saturday, September 26, 2009

A funny thing happened on the way to becoming a Peace Corps Volunteer…

The journey has no doubt been long. To us, the two months of training have gone by exceedingly fast while at the same time being incredibly slow; especially those first two weeks with our host families. Without being able to speak the language the days felt like years (at least now we have a bit of a foundation for moving to permanent site).Tonight was our, K3’s, last night together until our mid service training in February. No tears were shed but by looking at everyone’s face you could tell that we all will be missing each other when depart for our permanent sites tomorrow. It’s daunting to know that we will be without a “support system” within our towns and cities, at least until we build those relationships ourselves. For some of us it will be the first time away, on our own, trying to navigate that kind of relationship building in another country. Although we were and are all fully aware that we would be living with a Khmer family, surrounded by Khmer people, and not having another volunteer or American close to us… now that it is upon us we are all a bit apprehensive. Over and over we kept talking about how it was for Peace Corps volunteers nearly 50 years ago when the first volunteers went to Africa. They did not have cell phones or the internet. And getting to their sites sometimes took days. It all made our “grievances” look very trivial in comparison.

This last week has been one of the longest during my training. Last weekend was Pchum Ben, a holiday only celebrated in Cambodia (that I know of). It is hard to explain but I guess you could say it is similar to that of Day of the Dead in Mexico because it is dedicated to the departed and lifeless. The holiday itself is 15 days long. The very last weekend of the holiday the families travel to their ancestral home and meet with other family members. And on the last Saturday they go to the Wat (Buddhist Temple)and pray with the monks in front of the stupa, where their dead family members’ ashes are entombed. They give gifts for their ancestors and to the monks. And throughout the day they eat A LOT of food. It was not until Pchum Ben that I had my first bout of diarrhea. I blame it on the sheer quantity and variety of food they made me eat. It really bummed me out because I was trying to win the prize for the only volunteer to never get it in Cambodia. I failed, miserably.

The rest of the week was filled with getting our stuff ready to travel to permanent site, taking our language proficiency interviews, saying goodbye to our training families, and getting sworn in as volunteers. All of us passed our language proficiency interviews (go K3s!). I think I have a bit of test anxiety because just the idea of taking the test made me nervous, and so during nearly the whole thing I was a bit of a wreck. Luckily the only question that I feel I really “messed up” on was when the tester asked me to compare Khmer culture and American culture. Only hours before had I even heard the word “culture” in Khmer and knew no other substantial words in Khmer to make an intelligent answer. What I came up with was this: “Cambodia has Pchum Ben. For Pchum Ben they go to the Wat and sit in front of their dead family and eat a lot of food.” I didn’t even mention anything about American culture. Luckily I passed with an Intermediate Low which is what the majority of the other trainees received.

On Friday, September 25th we were sworn in by the American Ambassador to Cambodia, Carol Rodley, in Phnom Penh. It was a fun day. Our school directors came from each of sites for support and to have a brief conference before the swear-in. After the ceremony we were able to mingle with some RPCVs (returned Peace Corps volunteers) that live in Phnom Penh. Many of them have prestigious jobs with organizations such as USAID and Helen Keller International. It is safe to say that many of us are looking forward to the possible opportunity to work with an organization such as those in the future. Also in attendance was the Cambodia’s Minister of Education, Im Sethy. Thirty years ago he was one of a handful of teachers who came to Phnom Penh to build Cambodia’s Education system from the ground up. The following are links to articles about our swearing in ceremony:
http://khmernz.blogspot.com/2009/09/us-peace-corps-volunteers-sworn-in.html
(more websites to come.. .hopefully)

What was the funny thing that happened to my on the way to becoming a volunteer? It was how much I enjoyed it. When I first arrived here I was set on to prepare myself to serve Cambodia as much as possible. In the process of doing so I not only learned a great deal of technical information but also how to have fun here. The kind of things that will help me be mentally stable while being away from so many people I love back home. Silly Khmer card games? Check. Good places to get ice cream in Phnom Penh? Double check. How to order the best coffee and sweetened milk combination? You bet :)

Tomorrow I leave for Rumeus Hek. Who knows how frequently I will have internet but I will try to post as often as possible :) Thank you for reading!

Monday, September 14, 2009

Magical Mystery Tour or One of the Most Inspirational Weeks of My Life

It all began on a Wednesday morning. I and nine other Peace Corps volunteers set out to learn more about the health system in Cambodia, and the needs of its people. As we will be the first set of Peace Corps Volunteers in Cambodia to work in health and it is very exciting (and necessary) to see what we will be able to (and must) do in our communities.

The week was a whirlwind. From 6 am to 6pm we had meetings and language classes somewhere in between. We visited NGOs that teach women and village health volunteers about nutrition and the importance of breast feeding. Near Phnom Penh we visited IRD, a nongovernmental organization who does anything and everything in terms of making a healthy and sustainable Cambodia. We met with representatives from a group called Friends Helping Friends, HIV positive Cambodians supporting other HIV positive men and women in their communities by educating prevention, teaching trades in order to help them make enough money to get the care they need as well as help their families, and support groups to share their experiences. We went with them to the hospital to see the some people who are currently living with AIDS. It was sobering to see the effects on people once the disease has set in. There was a young woman who had lost both her parents when she was very young to the disease only to then get it herself. She was in the hospital for a brain tumor which had only recently been discovered when earlier that week she had randomly lost the ability to talk. Her grandparents were at her side laying packs of ice or her body. She lay very rigidly, staring at the ceiling moving her hands rhythmically over her body, constantly petting her arms or her stomach. Next to her were two people who were nothing more than skin and bones. The representatives from Friends Help Friends said that these people had given up taking their medications and had succumbed to AIDS. They did not move while we visited the ward. We left the hospital in complete silence – many of us crying. Cambodia has one of the highest HIV rates in SE Asia. You can read more about it at http://www.aidsalliance.org/sw7234.asp .

“Water water everywhere but not a drop to drink”

Many many many of the places and people we visited talked about water. It is a big deal here in Cambodia. The funny thing is, the problem isn’t with scarcity – there is a whole bunch of it here (almost too much during the rainy season… at least to walk in ;) ) – it’s just that it is really really dirty. Fecal matter, arsenic, you name it, these are just two of the most common and dangerous things found in water here. The arsenic is naturally occurring and is found in deep wells around the Tonle Sap. There are a few NGOs working in partnerships with American universities, such as IRD(www.irdc.org) , that test for arsenic as well as educate the public about the dangers of arsenic (FYI arsenic is undetectable through the senses, no taste, no smell, no anything). Fecal matter is a whole other issue. Animal poop as well as the human kind is prevalent on the ground and in the drainage ponds, waiting to be consumed, made into fertilizer, or stepped on by a young naïve Peace Corps trainee. Unfortunately the poop also finds its way into the drinking water, causing severe diarrhea to those who consume those evil microorganisms. Most adult Cambodians seem to be immune to them as I have seen them not only swimming in, but also drinking out of, these shallow ponds. The children are not immune and diarrhea (i.e. dehydration) is one of the main reasons why young children are even admitted to the hospitals here. Because of this and other health related problems caused by water, most of the presentations we saw were on how to keep water clean and healthy.

This week I finally had one of those moments of, “OMG I’m in Cambodia” and I was really happy about it. This week was inspirational not because of what I learned but who I met. If you ever want to meet someone who truly wants to make a change in the world, come to Cambodia and talk to any one of the staff at their NGOs, health clinics, or hospitals. I would write more about the specific NGOs and people I met this week but I think I will save that for the book :)

I am excited to get to site and really get to know my community. It will only get harder from here though… so maybe ask me about it in a few weeks.

A week and a half until swear in and then I move out to my permanent site:)

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Rumeus Hek (Roomy High),,

Is a very rural town 13 km from Vietnam and about 40 km from the provincial town. On Tuesday I was told that is where I will be living for the next two years and on Friday I went for a two night visit. The family is wonderful and, believe it or not, they have electricity. It is only for about 4 hours a day but it is enough for me to charge my phone and computer if need be. My father works in the District Office in town and my mother works part time at the referral hospital. That is another benefit of Rumeus Hek.. it has the referral hospital. For a 25 mile radius it is the only hospital to speak of. With two/three doctors it can be very busy. I was able to meet with some of the staff on Sunday to discuss what kind of role I can play at the hospital and community, both as an educator and volunteer. This part makes me a bit nervous as I am not an expert in health education or teaching English as a foreign language. Due to it being a very poor country and Rumeus Hek being a very poor district, the doctor made it clear that human resources are invaluable to them; especially someone with a college degree and a little experience. I cannot wait to be of some help :)


The family has four children, three girls and a boy. The eldest daughter is at University in Phnom Penh and the other three live at home. Their house is large by Khmer standards and has two large community rooms – one downstairs near the kitchen and another upstairs with a television. My room is adjacent to that room and has two windows that look out over their fruit trees (Mango and Coconut, mostly). I am still unsure of how many “bedrooms” they have.. .this seems to be a bit of a challenge as Khmer people often sleep in the same room they cook/host guests/watch tv etc (also having only known them for two days I felt it a bit awkward to just walk around their house).


One more month until swear-in after which I will move to my permanent site and I am getting increasingly anxious. I will not have internet access in my town and the nearest internet café is a 40 km bike ride away. If you would like to get a hold of me you may write to me (although my mail will be in the provincial town i.e. 40 bumpy km by bicycle) or you may call me. Send me an email for the digits


Will I know enough Khmer to survive? Will I be able to handle the 40 km bike ride to my Provincial town? Will a day go by in which a mosquito does not bite me? Only time will tell...