On Tuesday, we made our way from Bangkok to Phnom Penh. With traffic held up all over town as a result of protestors and marches, it took us abbout 45 min to go 3 km from our hotel to the intersection near the UN. Our cab driver (as well as myself) was obviously getting slightly impatient and perturbed by the situation, but the gridlock was impossible to reroute through. He did take the option of crossing the Chao Phraya river to attempt traffic on the west side, but no sooner did we exit the bridge then we hit gridlock once more. Ah politics, wreaking havoc with traffic in big cities the world over. We finally made it to Don Mueang about 90 min later. Thankfully, as always, I had budgeted extra time prior to flying out, and we were able to check in, clear immigration and security in plenty of time to have lunch at S&P before boarding.
The short 1 hour flight to Phnom Penh was uneventful and we arrived on time. A relatively quick taxi ride took us downtown to The Billabong Hotel, our home-away-from-home in Phnom Penh for the last 6 years or so. First stop, after saying hi to Thora and performing introductions, was the pool! Time to wash off the sweat and dirt and grime from travel and polluted streets. After everyone was settled in, we had a beer by the pool where we met a large international school group from Singapore who had just returned from a house build. It was good for our newbie builders to meet these teenagers and to hear how much they enjoyed the experience.
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| Rockin4Tabitha 8 build team - Me, Thora, Dermot, Susan & Rory |
We have 3 full days in Phnom Penh, during which time the team have to visit the Killing Fields and Tuolsleng, mandatory tours which are not enjoyable but do help our builders understand the cultural and political history of Cambodia. These aren't places which you would ever repeat visiting - once is enough. But it is a very humbling, and disturbing, look at the evil side of human nature, how power and ego can corrupt. I first visited both places in 2008, my first build, and the memory of those trips is fresh in my mind even now. Tuolsleng especially affected me, but others say that the Killing Fields were worse for them.
In the evenings, we have been checking out different restaurants near Sisowath Quay. Last night we went to have a Happy Hour drink at the famous FCC (Foreign Correspondents Club) and wound up staying for supper. Not the cheapest nor tastiest meal in the city, but the view from the 3rd floor patio overlooking the Tonle Sap is worth the expense.
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| View of Sisowath Quay and Tonle Sap from the 3rd floor patio at FCC |
I have been taking care of the business side of our trip while the others are off being tourists - a meeting with the CEO at Manulife to discuss potential sponsorship of R4T, off to the Tabitha office yesterday to meet Janne and pay for our van, and today we have to settle up on our van for the zircon hunting part of the trip, following the build itself. I'm beginning to feel like a travel agent!
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| Central Market, Phnom Penh |
This morning, following a very reluctant run during which I got very lost returning to The Billabong (resulting in a much longer run than originally planned!), I headed out to the walk along the river and check out the selection at Citadel Knives. Very nice window shopping, but I think I'll save my $$ for the trip up north. I then headed into the local produce market, something that I always enjoying doing - checking out all the strange and exotic fruits, vegetables and both living and dead creatures destined for peoples' supper tables. I feel bad for the chickens, tied up by their legs and lying peacefully on the ground, when above them on the table, their freshly dead, plucked friends are ready to be sold. Although I suspect chickens are way too stupid to recognize their fate.
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| Vegetables at the local market in Phnom Penh |
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| Fruit at the local market, Phnom Penh |
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| Live chickens awaiting the same fate as their nekkid sisters above on the table |
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| Muslim woman butchering meat in the local market, Phnom Penh |
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| Small (3-6 inch) fish for sale in the market - not much meat on these |
Tomorrow is our orientation at the Tabitha office with Janne. There will be another large group from Autralia being "oriented" with us. After this, we are lucky to be able to head out for lunch with Janne, Nancy and Wolf (who are here from Ottawa visiting Janne), and our full team. Then, it will be last minute shopping for lunch fixings to put into the baguettes during the build days. I went and completed my grocery shopping this morning, purchasing my now regular odd mix of baguette fillings - pate and cherry jam, along with some Laughing Cow cheese (which does not need refrigeration) and peanut butter. Pringles are also a staple on the build - the salt and carbs are a perfect mix - as well as some ridiculously expensive Nature Valley granola bars. All set to go!
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