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A Visit to Kampong Cham Province

We have had a wonderful week. Sunday was really exciting as Dary picked us up to drive a few hours away to Kampong Cham, a poor province along the mekong, where some of the 125 elementary and high school students the Cambodian Arts and Scholarship Foundation supports in poor provinces allover Cambodia live. We went off the barely two lane highway to get to very very poor villages and tiny hamlets down tiny dirt lanes along rice field dykes. Even at slow speed the mercedez van was bucking like a trampoline and scores of waving and helloing kids would appear to chase us to the next student's home in our dust cloud. The van itself was a wonder, the boys and men stroking it lovingly and asking the driver extended questions. But as word spred that we had arrived, a crowd of eager smiling faces of all ages would soon form.

We were in the Prey Choon district, in Skun, where the CASF has 8 girls under the quidance of a wonderful couple who share the Education Councelor duties, helping shape the girls growth both at home and at school, and who report regularly to Dary between her visits from the capital. The husband is in army administration, a quiet man who, very unusually, fiercely believes in girl's education, and his wife is Chantah, a sparkling personality who is constantly teaching herself more and more advanced english, and is as passionate about CASF, treating the girls as daughters. On the white board in her small one room home, beside her daughter's latest math work, was a list of Chantah's impressive new words, including blockade, armistice, constitution, restitution, law breaking company and boycott. Above her daughter's work was written ''love is the enemy of study !", perhaps wisely, as her daughter is absolutely gorgeous, and as vivacious as her mom. This powerhouse of a woman has lived with terrible chronic stomach pain for ten years but it hasn't dulled her radiant smile and abundant energy.

As we sat down with the adults that spoke good english, a slew of the girls and other relatives and kids surrounded us and we were served some special delicious sweets; slices of bamboo leaf wrapped sticky rice with yummy spicy pork and sweet bean paste centers, and banana leaf wrapped pumpkin jelly with crunchy coconut filling being our favourites. They seemed very gratified when we made pigs of ourselves :)

On visits to the girl's homes, we met their extended families families, and usually all the neighbors too, who would join us on the raised bamboo slat bed in the cool under the stilt houses. There were invariably some very old shaven headed ladies, who always seemed to sit by me, and all the while we asked questions thru Dary of the girls who answered in varying levels of english, the grandmother's would nod and smile to me, patting my cheek, stroking my back, holding my hand, and rubbing my feet.My favourite was a bright eyed 84 year old with a big smile featuring only two front red teeth, at right angles, who said ''theng yu, theng yu'' all thru the visit, nodding over to her lucky CASF grandaughter. The typical schedule of one girl is to bycicle 2 hours to school, then to extra foundation arraged tutoring and then all the way home to study till 11pm. The sad part was when other kids and parents begged us to send them to school, too, heartbreaking moments CASF founders Fred and Kitty Lipp have described in their moving testimonies at www.cambodianscholarship.org and in the foundation's newsletters.

At every stop we were impressed with how grateful the girls and their families are, but also that invariably the whole village was so proud of them too. Most of the time they would be the first of any village child to be able to finish high school. One of the girls was teaching the little kids who will never go to school some simple english, which they delighted in delivering in anything from little shy whispers to shouts with gales of laughter. Sam was a big hit, playing games with
the boys and getting everyone to laugh. In most of the hamlet's there are no teenage girl's left, except the CASF student, all the others having had to go to work in factories, or often dubious bars and cafe's, at around $45. a month, to help support their families.

We were extraordinarily lucky as a CASF graduate working as a manager in a local bank was getting married, and we got invited to the all day wedding which we enjoyed dropping into between visits. A big satin tent with an impressive draperied and gold leafed gateway was set up, with kmer fabric covered chairs and tables leading up to a semicircle of quests of honor and the bride and groom, all resplendant in silk damask outfits like their ancient ancestors worn. The bride and groom were in gold silken damask ones with many pleats, and lots of ''gold'' jewelry belts, necklaces and hair ornaments, with thick gold snake ankletts around each ankle. These are copies of royal outfits, and for a day they are prince and princess. These two greeted and welcomed us with the utmost enthusiasm, insisting it was a great honor to have us there, me in a worn travel dress, and Sam in old shorts ! But as the quests sported everything from heavyly encrusted sequined lace bouses of\ver silk skirts to worn but clean sarongs and even pyjamas, we relaxed. In the morning visit a local pin peat orchestra was playing and then a matronly mc and an irrepressible younger male partner traded apparently hysterically funny jabs at each other's sexes, with all the villagers laughing till they cried. In the backround many of the village women were cooking over a dozen big braziers, while a small army of others chopped and mixed and flavoured busily.

When we returned to share lunch at the wedding, a feast of four different delicious dishes, we were invited into the house's only room where the pinpeat orchestra had been squeezed in, candles and incence were burning and the bride and groom were now kneeling together in front of a big golden cushion for the knot tying ritual. First the parents, and then other couples kneel on either side of them. Into the couple's joined hands a gift of money is placed, then you dip a red string in perfumed water, men tying theirs to the grooms wrist, and women tying theirs to the brides, while wishing them every happiness together. you finish by dipping a sprig of sacred plant leaves in the perfumed water and shaking it over thier joined hands. They insisted that Sam and I do this ,too, which we we shy but thrilled to do.

TEACHING ENGLISH AT 6AM EVERY MORNING TO THE CASF GIRLS

This week every morning we got up at 5:15 am (those who know me well will be amazed I had a smile on my face!) to go teach english conversation at 6am to the Cambodian Arts and Scholarship girls in their modest dorm before they left for university classes.

We explored all sorts of subjects together, starting with a great ice breaker: " what are good and bad qualities in a boy friend or husband ?" The enthusiastic listing of personality traits, and thoughtful listing of each girl's top 5 qualities was a lot of fun, and very revealing of each girl's character. These girls are so special, they realize they have been given a very rare opportunity to be deducatd at elementary and high school level, let alone university, an impossible dream for 99.8 % of girls, according ot one ngo guy we talked to. They paticipated very earnestly with lots of courage and well developed senses of humor, learning new vocabulary and conversing shyly. We had some funny pronounciation moments...trying to clarify selfish and shelfish for example. No one wanted to go out with a lobster ! They are remarkably helpfull and encouraging to each other, and seem to have developed a remarkable sisterhood full of support, fun and affection.

The girls are naturally concerned about their futures so we spent a lot of time talking about the details of resumes, making relationships for good recomendation letters, and the art of making connections staring now, and handling job interviews to best effect. The handshake lesson was hysterical as we progresed from wet fish to correcting Arnold Schwartzeneger grips from these tiny smiling ladies. They loved Sam and I clowning around with corrections of any sort as it eases their embarasement if you're being nutty.

As the week progressed we got to know them each much better and our admiration for them just grows and grows. They became much freer at the end of the classes when they could ask any questions of us and we had fascinating conversations of everything from the Kmer Rouge to first loves and family stories. Some of these girls have very sad family backrounds and display a resiliance and fortitude we can only admire.

The finale yesterday was going into the infernal heat and dark of their local market to get vegetables, pork, chicken and fish for the feast we spent the afternoon cooking together, kibitzing and laughing away as we washed and chopped, and learnt some wonderful Kmer recipes. Their beloved director Darry arrived from her SOS first aid course that evening with a wonderful surprise, her darling little 14 month old son Amarun, who the girls adore. We had a true love feast, laughing and teasing and ending in a crescendo of I love you ! I will miss you too much ! Please come back soon ! and about a hundred hugs each. These girls are firmly in our hearts, and we feel devoted to helping the foundation fund their education.

Suezan and Sam from Nova Scotia