Home Sweet Home...sort of...

Hey!  We're back!  We arrived in Buffalo on March 8, and got back to Bayfield on March 10, but between severe jet lag, unpacking and doing all the things it takes to resume our life in Canada, I've barely been able to think, let alone write.

I'm feeling really wierd about this entry, because I still haven't finished blogging about our trip and about life in Cambodia, and the kids....and by saying 'We're back!', it's like this should be the last page of this blog.  But I'm not done yet!  Messing up the chronological order of the entries is kind of like leaving a story somewhere in the middle, half-finished, and then telling the ending.  A little part of me wonders if my readers will still want to come back to read the middle parts if they already know how the story ends. 

In no particular order, here are things that I miss about being in Siem Reap:
1) Hot weather (We left 37C and came home to 37F)
2) Not having to make my bed or clean my room
3) Not having to do laundry
4) Really good food at really good prices (ditto for wine and liquor)
5) Being able to wear flip flops everywhere
6) Being chauffeured around in a tuk-tuk or just being able to walk to wherever we needed to go.
7) The kids at Honour Village... I miss them big time...
8) The fantastic staff at MotherHome Guesthouse who made us feel like royalty...(to be featured in a blog soon!)
9) Our Cambodian friends, who were all so generous and warm ....(You know who you are....)
10) Free buffet breakfast at MotherHome, and free lunch at Honour Villiage  (I gained 10 lbs in 2 months - OH YES I DID)

What I am so happy to return home to:
1) My family and friends here
2) My own bed and my own pillow ( I LOVE my special pillow)
3) A wardrobe that has more than 14 items of clothing to choose from, (except I can only fit about 14 items right now anyways) 
4) Real decaffeinated coffee...and flavoured decaf... (A big treat for me, although I know you coffee snobs will think I'm a freak).
5) Living quarters at least 10 times larger than we had in Cambodia  (Holy cow!  We are so lucky..)
6) Good, fast internet.  (I promise to upload videos and more pictures soon)
7) My own home...(home, sweet messy home)

 What it sucks to come home to:
1) Two months worth of laundry and cleaning
2) A knee-high stack of mail - ditto for voicemail
3) Last years Christmas presents (and Christmas tree) still not put away - (Wait! maybe this is good... Like Christmas all over again *sigh*)
4) A storm that dumped ten inches of heavy wet snow and broke the top of one of our mature trees (I hope it survives - We braved the elements and went out in knee-deep snow to splint the break and I pray we've given it a fighting chance)

Snow in the back yard
It's melted a lot in 2 days



Heavy, wet snow in the front yard
There's green grass under there somewhere...

5) a 10 lb gain on the scale...OH YES I DID!!...(Weight Watchers here I come with a fist full of money..)
6) Jet lag.. 12 hours time difference, so our day & night is totally backward. 
7) A big repair bill for our car because the brakes seized up again... (Thankfully this year it was only 1/5  the cost of last year's bill...)
8) Winter coats, boots, mitts...

Why I feel so lucky and what I am grateful for:
1) The Japan earthquake & disaster happened 3 days after we got home.  (Another 3 days and it could have been us...)
2) We got to see Preah Vihear Temple only 5 days before fighting broke out there.  Who knows when the next tourists will be allowed to go... (5 days later and we would have been in the middle of the bombing...)
3) We got to see Bokor Palace before the road to the top was completed...(Our group had the place to ourselves.  Once the road is finished, it will be packed with throngs of tourists ).
4) All our wonderful friends in Siem Reap who made our stay feel like home.  You know who you are...
5) Being an honoured guest at a Cambodian wedding... Having our photo taken with the bride and groom as special guests, and dancing the first dance with the bride and groom... wow..
6) Being fortunate enough to be able to go to the other side of the world for two months (and to have the resources to do it)
7) Lots and lots of other things, some mentioned above....

Random Photos

Every day, I see different things that I think might interest my readers, and I take a photo here or there.  I find the longer I've been here, the less photos I've been taking, probably because things are beginning to become  routine, rather than new and exciting.  Here is a gallery of random photos.

The road in front of our guesthouse.
This dog is not dead, just merely sleeping.

A chicken just outside our guesthouse

This statue stands just outside Kids Plaza
just down the road from us.
Kinda scary, actually.

A couple of kids playing down by the edge
of the Siem Reap River.
A lot of debris & garbage gets tossed into the river.

Kids everywhere love boxes

A new 'recycle' store with a big picture window 
has just opened up around the corner.
People inside were stripping down to try stuff on.

Prom & Sreymau have a new puppy!
Her name is Panda

When we asked Prom if this was his new baby,
he replied "No.  Second wife."

This spider was in Sue's bathroom

When you compare its size to the hooks on the wall
you get an idea of its size...

Detail on a roof that we pass by on our walks

Cupping is a form of traditional medicine
practiced in Cambodia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire_cupping

You can buy whiskey
with snakes & scorpions inside the bottle

Transporting a sign

What Some People Will Do To Make Money...

Last year, we went to Pub Street a few times, and that's where we first saw the 'mobile magician'.  (If you click on those highlighted words, it will bring you to an article about him.)  He's a fairly young man who makes his living by roaming the streets doing magic tricks, performing death defying feats, and collecting the donations from people who enjoy his performances.  
  
Although Pub Street is a big hit with tourists, it's an area we prefer to avoid, mainly because it's become noisy and crowded, prices are inflated, tuk-tuk drivers drive you crazy, and beggars abound.  So it was only by chance that we were in Pub Street area, and once again enjoyed Mr. Pinchor.  Last year he had a rickety cart equipped with a huge loudspeaker that carried all his equipment.  Nowadays, he walks the streets carrying a boom-box, with all his stage equipment under one arm.

While we sat at a cafe enjoying a cold drink, he set up his show only a few feet in front of us.  I managed to capture a few photos...Not great, but maybe this video (click on this to see the video) will give you an idea of what lengths some people in this country will go to, in order to make ends meet. 

Setting up his equipment
Boom-box on the curb
The ring of knives is real
He adds a couple of huge knives at the bottom

He sets the big knives at the bottom on fire

He dives through the ring of knives and fire

"I hope you like rice!"

Last year when I emailed everyone that Gordon and I were going to spend two months in Cambodia, one friend sent back this five word message: "I hope you like rice!".  Fortunately, we both do, and we also love Khmer food, which is like no other ethnic food I've tasted.  (Let me just qualify that by saying I love most Khmer food.  I need to write an entire blog about that!)

When we're in Cambodia, we mostly eat in restaurants, which isn't awfully expensive.  If you're careful about watching your prices, an average dinner runs about $3 to $4 (not including beverage), less if you're willing to try a Khmer-run restaurant.  If we have a longing, we can easily find western food or select from any number of ethnic restaurants, from Indian to Mexican, and everything in between. 

Sometimes we eat Indian food.
The best part of eating at Little India is watching
our Cambodian waitress dressed in a sari.
We've recently discovered India Gate restaurant -
better food, but not the same entertainment.

Viva Restaurant serves Mexican & Khmer food
Interesting combination, but I'm not a big fan of Mexican
so it's not high on my list 

Irriwadi is one of our favourite restaurants.
They also have a large selection of non-vegetarian  food.
I'd love to have their recipe for Tea Leaf Salad and Eggplant Stew



Thank Buddha it's Thrusday!
We sometimes eat here on their 'bogo' night. 
Or on Wednesday they also have $1 night
which is a special tapas menu
(drinks are $1 each too!)


On the street between Old Market and Central Market are three pizza restaurants all in a row, obviously in competition with one another.  I've never tried any of them, but I've heard if you order the Happy Herb 'Special', it does have 'happy herbs' on it.

Happy Herb Pizza



Happy Special Pizza

 

Ecstatic Pizza

If you're living in Cambodia full-time, and cooking your own meals, you'd better be prepared to give up (or limit) some foods, unless you want to break your budget or break the bank.

Do you long for Corn Pops? 
Be prepared to spend $8.70 for 500 g.

Healthy muesli will cost you $10.50

Longing for a hot cup of decaf coffee?
A jar of instant decaf will set you back $18.85.

How about $7.20 for bacon?

I don't think I'd make pickles if the vinegar costs $9.30 a gallon

All of a sudden, pasta isn't such a cheap meal. 

If you're willing to shop, many things are very reasonable here.  We buy some of our snack food at Apsara Market around the corner.  A can of soda pop costs about 50 cents.   Dried fruits or nuts can cost from 25 cents to 80 cents a package. 

We like these for a snack.
$1.45 for a package of 15

There are several bakeries here, left over from the French influence, so yes, you can get bread and pastries, and prices are very reasonable.  One baguette costs about 500 riel, which is the equivalent of 12.5 cents. 

There is a bakery just down the road from our guesthouse.
I snapped a picture of these ladies sorting baguettes out back

You can also buy some neat treats from the street vendors.

These are the equivalent of TimBits (dougnut holes)
Notice the toilet paper roll below, which is used like napkins.

I love barbequed bananas!
1000 riels (25 cents) for a skewer of 3. 

Depending on what you like to drink, alcoholic beverages are very reasonable here as well.  We can buy Kangaroo Reserve Wine (Australian) for $3.80 a bottle, your choice of chardonnay, merlot, cabernet sauvignon or shiraz.  Here is the best bargain we've found so far, and it tastes pretty good!

One litre of passionfruit-flavoured vodka
from New Zealand - $3.95!

Giant Puppet Parade!

Last night, we watched the Giant Puppet Parade.  This was our second year of witnessing it, and it was as much fun as ever!  The large puppets are lighted on the inside, giving them an almost eerie quality.

Click on this link for info.  http://www.facebook.com/giantpuppetproject?v=wall#!/giantpuppetproject?v=info  In their own words, they describe this as  "A local childrens community arts project, the largest of its kind in Siem Reap. Providing a creative platform for disadvantaged children to foster and promote expression and self confidence through art.  The Giant Puppet Project relies solely on kind donations and sponsorship to make this an annual event." 

We went armed with lots of small bills to add to the collection pots.  I think I recognized some of the same giant puppets from last year, so I'm not sure if they make the same ones each year or save them from the year before.  All the children make all their own hats and decorations.

I managed to get some pictures, despite the hoards of people who kept stepping in front of my camera.  They probably don't show the parade as well as I remember it, but hopefully, you will get an idea of the enormity of these puppets, and the enthusiasm of the crowd.  After the parade, I noticed one man standing on one of the tables at our restaurant.  I'm guessing the owners weren't too delighted about that, but I bet his pics are better than mine.   

The parade is coming!

Music and dancers at the head of the parade

Blurry, but it gives you an idea of the size of these puppets.
They all have moving parts, and are lighted from the inside 

Close-up details

These are all kids from different NGO's participating in the parade
Adult volunteers collect donations and try to keep the kids together

The puppets are very large. 
Their moving parts are controlled by long bamboo poles

Naga, a 5-headed mythological snake

He's really long......carried by lots of people

Ibis, I think

See how big it is!

Smaller birds 'flying' on bamboo poles

I want a hat like this!

A truck made into a float, with a giant rabbit coming up behind

His ears go up and down, and so do his arms

Ears up!

A giant spider!

A truck with lovely decorations

Kids leading the way for another puppet

Intricate decorations on this one

A car!

Th-th-thats all folks!