Priscilla Meets Mr. Madrid

Off to Day 2 of my temple exploring, I am walking through the Bayon at Angkor Thom and I ask a guy to take a picture for me.  We get to talking and it turns out he is from Madrid, Spain, Sergio. We just start talking and following each other through the temple and I was just being friendly and getting to know him.  He works for the UN, recently graduated with his MBA, and discusses his recent work in Vietnam.  As I keep talking with him, I begin to gain some interest as he is pretty cute, intelligent, loves wine, and rides a motor bike. 

It turns out he already saw all of the temples as he it was his third day, but he nicely accompanies me to all the temples I want to see. As we are walking through the Terrace of Elephants, he mentions his girlfriend, which came right out of left field.  I was a little surprised by that, but figured the good ones are usually taken.  He says that she is his soul mate and he wants to be with her forever.  It is clear that we are just two friends enjoying each other's company. His tuk tuk driver drives us around from temple to temple and we went to my favorite temple, which is where they filmed the movie Tomb Raider.  The trees and vines are absolutely incredible and I jump up the temple rocks to the top. Going through the temples is like a maze and like a child, I could sit and explore for hours.  We ride through the rice fields and it is so picturesque that I just sit, breathe in, and cherish the moments. 

As the day comes to an end, I want to cetch the sunset at Angkor Wat main temple.  I had to pick up my bike so I quickly jumped off the tuk tuk onto my bike and Sergio and I agree to meet at the main temple.  I am pretty amazed at how fast I ride over there, but the sunset is so important to me.  Unfortunately, it is overcast and there is not much to see and we decide to part ways because he has to head to the airport for Spain and I have dinner plans so we say farewell.  It was such an innocent yet romantic day in a way.  Maybe I will meet someone like him one day as I always joke that I am going to move to Spain and meet the man of my dreams ha!

USE THIS PHOTO SUNSHINE

                          I kept running into this beautiful spirit-so cute

                                       At the huge Tomb raider tree

USE this PHOTO SUNSHINE

Angkor Wat Continued

On my first day of Angkor Wat, I went to the main temples with Yuskay, his daughter, and her mother and brother.  As local Cambodians, they had never been to Angkor Wat.  Most Cambodians do not get to go through school and actually learn very little about it.  Yuskay's daughter was so excited.  We were racing each other off the bridge and I spoke with the brother(I am having difficulty remembering names and have so many names in my notebook to find it!).  He is teaching English, but is in fear of losing his job because many people are getting laid off. He is so lovely as he speaks so highly about my profession and being an American.  He asks about the culture and why so many people are obese.
I was so happy that they could finally experience Angkor Wat as it is such a significant part of their history.  Yuskay's daughter enjoyed the monkeys climbing around the streets and temples and I enjoyed watching them eat some coconuts. 

Death Among A Wonderland of Beauty

Cambodia is one of the most fascinating countries I have been to because of the history, the people, the government, and the poverty.  Only 30 years ago, 1975 the Khmer Rouge communist party came in to Phrom Penh and took over Cambodia under the dictatorship of Po Palt.  This was  a Cambodian Genocide with over 2 million people dying within 4 years. 

Po Palt wanted equality among the communities and he wanted people to become better themselves as farmers.  He sent them to villages to work to death, starved, and brutally executed.  It is not like the Holocaust where people were put in gas chambers or killed with bullets.  Cambodians were killed by axe and tortured to death because they did not want to waste bullets.  And this only happened 35 years ago, which is fairly recent. 

I am reading about it in the book And then they Killed my Father.  In fact, I can not even finish the book because it makes me so upset and walking down the streets of Phrom Penh where it all happened, I feel haunted. 

Overtime, things have improved, but people still suffer the consequences of this life changing genocide.  Many amputees walk the streets as they lost their legs in the mine fields of the regime.  It is tragic and frustrating to read about people because it makes absolutely no sense.  At least in the Holocaust, there were basic principles that they had followed.  Doctors, teachers, students-innocent human beings just wiped out by an insane individual-tragic. 

Kantha Bopha Foundation

Biking past a sign that said, “Free Charity Classical Concert,” I had to turn around and go back.  I went back to the guesthouse to pick up Yuskay and off we went to an educational concert to spread awareness and gain donations for the hospitals.  And I was blessed to have met an incredible human being, Dr. Beat Richner- the Director of the 4 Kantha Bopha Hospitals in Cambodia.  Every Thursday and Saturday, he plays the cello while stopping to speak and educate tourists on what is really happening in Cambodia, which is corruption and injustice for children. 

The facts were mind boggling and disturbing for someone like me to hear.  Among expensive hotels and shops, there is a hospital with 1000 children being hospitalized per day. Children diagnosed with Meningitis, tuberculosis, Dungue fever, and in need of blood transfusions. 

Facts from Dr. Beatner

80 percent of drugs used are fake

20 percent of drugs used are toxic

10-15 percent of drug intoxication per day

58 cases of meningitis

65% of Cambodians with Tuberculosis

80 % of mothers are living on half a dollar a day

The hospitals are run based off 90 percent being private donations

All the services in the Kantha Bopha hospitals are free. 95 percent of families in Cambodia are too poor to pay for child health care

 Education and Inspiration from Dr. Beatner:

Is Saving a life a private affair??

A system of Absurdity-yes! Officials coming in spending $400 a night at the Sofitel directly next to Kantha Bopha, but they do not help or give money??

Without justice, there will not be peace

Abuse of the infrastructure

The US government does not want to give donations because patients do not PAY for their insurance or hospital stays?????

The government does not want to help their own children rather watch them suffer and die when resources can be utilized if the government would step in and do something.

Dr. Beat Richner is a true inspiration and his work in Cambodia is incredible.  This man has been working for 30 years directing, designing the hospital, and trying every way he can to get donations.  This is a real organization that truly saves lives.  I say this because I know people are skeptical about where their money is going.  These children really need your help and Dr. Beat Richner is working against a corrupt system and government that does not want to help their children.  Your donation can help save a child’s life. 

HOW CAN YOU HELP?

Donations can be sent to:

CCB CAMBODIA COMMERCIAL BANK

26 BOULEVARD MONIVONG-PHROM PENH

ACCOUNT NR 80003 3 009679

As far as the government, there is a lot of corruption and problems with the infrastructure, which negatively impacts the children and families of Cambodia.  Kids are waiting for blood transfusions and sitting on life support, tourists are sipping on tea and biscuits or taking a swim at the Sofitel.  The real Cambodia is hidden from tourists and awareness needs to start now for the real trouble that this country is in. 

Making a Difference- You can Do it Too

My friend Yuskay told me had a daughter and my immediate thought was, "Oh, he is married with a daughter." This is not the case.  On his first trip to Cambodia, he was friends with a family where the father tragically passed away.  In Cambodia, the pharmacies did not have regulations on the medications they were selling and people were just given pretty much anything.  One day the father was feeling very ill and went to the pharmacy.  He was given medication and the next day he died. He left behind his wife and daughter who were unable to care for themselves financially.  This is where Yuskay stepped in and said he was going to help this family.  Each month he sends $15 to his daughter, which helps pay for clothing, school supplies, and other costs for the young girl.  And he comes to Cambodia to visit and spend time with her when he gets time. 

This is what makes a real difference in someones life and you can do it too.  $15 US a month is a minimum payment on credit card, what you may spend on coffee/fast food, a new shirt, etc. $15 can go a long way for a child living in Cambodia. I admire Yuskay for actively taking part in a child's life and I wish that more people would engage in such beautiful acts of love and kindness. 

Japanese friends in Siem Riep

In Cambodia, I stayed at Takeo guesthouse, which is a Japanese guesthouse with mainly business men staying there.  It cost $2USD for the dormitory, which I shared with two Japanese guys.  They were very kind, nice guys and staying with them made me feel safe and protected vs. fearful and worried. The guesthouse is run by a Cambodian family, but they have the Japanese guests and cook Japanese food.  I enjoyed eating a nice dinner with the family and the guesthouse is run by Mrs. Mom.  Mrs Mom is very caring and watches over all the guests. She said in the middle of the night, she goes into the room to check on all the guests and makes sure their stuff is all locked up.  She was such a sweet lady and so wonderful with her children and grandchildren. 

At the guesthouse, I met Yuske from Japan, but currently lives and studies in Australia.  He is similar to me in that he loves to travel and move from one place to the next.  We had such great conversations that I cherish and can't begin to write about what two intelligent, curious minds brainstormed and discussed, especially with the government in Cambodia.  We biked through Angkor wat to see an amazing conference and classical concert.  Then we had dinner at my favorite restaurant having Khmer Fish Amok-sooo amazing wow.  The next day we planned to meet up at Angkor Wat as he wanted to introduce me to his daughter.. to be continued...

Angkor Wat- A World Treasure

Not only a UNESCO World Heritage center, but one of the most amazing world treasures.  It is not at all what I expected as it stretches across beautiful lakes, trees, rice fields, and villages-it is incredible. 
Visitors get the choice of visiting for one day, three, or a whole week.  Loving architecture and history, I had to do three days to see all the main temples and the hidden treasures as well. 

For the sake of time here is a brief description from Wikipedia on Angkor Wat:


Angkor Wat (Khmer: អង្គរវត្ត) is a temple complex at Angkor, Cambodia, built for the king Suryavarman II in the early 12th century as his state temple and capital city. As the best-preserved temple at the site, it is the only one to have remained a significant religious centre since its foundation – first Hindu, dedicated to the god Vishnu, then Buddhist. It is the world's largest religious building.^[1] The temple is at the top of the high classical style of Khmer architecture. It has become a symbol of Cambodia, appearing on its national flag, and it is the country's prime attraction for visitors. Angkor Wat combines two basic plans of Khmer temple architecture: the temple mountain and the later galleried temple, based on early South Indian Hindu architecture, with key features such as the Jagati. It is designed to represent Mount Meru, home of the devas in Hindu mythology: within a moat and an outer wall 3.6 kilometres (2.2 mi) long are three rectangular galleries, each raised above the next. At the centre of the temple stands a quincunx of towers. Unlike most Angkorian temples, Angkor Wat is oriented to the west; scholars are divided as to the significance of this. The temple is admired for the grandeur and harmony of the architecture, its extensive bas-reliefs, and for the numerous devatas (guardian spirits) adorning its walls.

The modern name, Angkor Wat, means "City Temple"; Angkor is a vernacular form of the word nokor (នគរ), which comes from the Sanskrit word nagar (नगर), Thai, Nakon, meaning capital or city. Wat is the Khmer word which comes from Sanskrit word "Vastu". Prior to this time the temple was known as Preah Pisnulok (Vara Vishnuloka in Sanskrit), after the posthumous title of its founder, Suryavarman II.^[2]