Party On!

Last year, I wrote in detail about a  Cambodian wedding we attended.  It was an elaborate affair that lasted two days, so packed with activity that it took two separate blogs to describe everything.   You can read about it here  and here. 

This year, we were thrilled to learn that Mao, the cook at Honour Village was getting married on January 15th.  The biggest drawback was that it was held in Pursat province, a good 6 hour drive away.  Many of the Honour Village volunteers wanted to attend, but after weighing several options, including renting a van, we realized the cost would be prohibitive, so we had to drop our plans.   Imagine how thrilled we were to learn that Mao had decided to have another wedding party in Siem Reap on February 5th, for all her friends here. 

Everyone at Honour Village was all excited about going.  I knew that however none of the female volunteers had a nice dress to wear to the wedding, so I opted to wear something more simple rather than the fancy dress I had made while here a few years ago.  

The Honour Village volunteers ready for the wedding.
Men don't have to dress up, but women usually come in full formal attire.
Lee (far left) wore a traditional Malaysian sarong.

I opted not to wear my glitzy Cambodian 'go-to-wedding' outfit,
but I still went to Old Market and had my nails done.
Price - $2.00 US

Since all the wedding ceremonies had taken place three weeks earlier, this party was a scaled-down event, but nonetheless a full-blown celebration.  It was held at a nearby restaurant, and when we arrived, we had to look twice, because we barely recognized Mao. 

This is how Mao looks at work

Here she is all dressed up for the wedding party.  Wow!
And that's my handsome husband wearing his new Cambodian shirt.

Soon after, the staff from Honour Village began to arriveh.  Te ladies were dressed like princesses and made up beautifully.

Honour Village female staff. 
(One of the houemothers stayed back to take care of the kids.)



Seng



Srey Lean

Sela

Chai'Ky

The tables were laden with soft drinks and beer, and plate after plate of food arrived.  All throughout the meal, the music blared from massive speakers, as it does at all Cambodian celebrations.

Loads of food and plenty to drink.

When everyone was finished eating, the dancing began.  First some Western-style dancing, then some more traditional Cambodian-style dancing. 

Me, dancing with Da.
His wheelchair doesn't stop him from having fun.

Cambodian-style dancing is fashinioned after Apsara dancing, in which hand movements are slow and graceful.  Typically the fingers bend quite far back.  I'm told they begin at a very early age to flex the fingers backward to increase and maintain flexibility.  Everyone dances in a counter-clockwise circle, with the center of the circle unoccupied, except maybe for a decoration at the hub.

Sela and Va
Serious facial expressions are part of this dance.

Notice the bent back fingers



I'm trying, I'm trying!



Jane and John join in the fun

Guys sit out the dancing and drink beer.
Typical.

The party went on late into the evening.  It was a night to remember, and everyone had a great time.

I think Gordon and Da had an especially good time.

And Sew It Goes....

Despite a couple of starts and stops, regular sewing classes are (finally) fully underway. After the trials and tribulations of plastic canvas, we moved on to basic hand sewing stitches.  Their first project was a little drawstring bag, which the students now use to hold the sewing needle case we made, along with some spools of thread. 

Smile of pride

I made it myself!

Now we're finally getting into the good stuff, the fun stuff ~ Embroidery ~ fancy stitches whose sole purpose is to be decorative and beautiful, and to give pleasure to the needle artist that creates them.  

I teach embroidery three days a week.
There are about 25 students, divided between 3 classes per day. 
Ages range from eight to fourteen.
Skill levels range from fair to amazing.

Each morning I arrive, I'm greeted with questioning eyes, and "Day?"  (Khmer for "Sewing?"), as they make hand motions of pulling a needle and thread.  These kids just love embroidery and can't wait to get to class for the next lesson.  Once they've all settled and materials are distributed, each child needs to be shown the next step 'one-on-one'.  It's the best method I've found to teach hand sewing, even when there is no a language barrier.  If I stand behind them, and work on their piece, letting my hands be their hands, they seem to easily grasp the steps. 

Teaching individually also gives me an opportunity
to sneak in some hugs

Watch carefully to see how it's done!

Sela, who is one of the housemothers, is a big help.
She translates important instructions into Khmer,
and is also learning to embroider at the same time.

Sometimes I find teaching these complicated stitches challenging, because my Khmer is fairly limited.  Something I've also had to keep in mind is 'lefties' and 'righties', because most stitches will have different approaches.  (I switch-hit for the lefties).   Getting everyone started and under way takes a little while, and sometimes the students get impatient while waiting their turn, but eventually, all heads are bent and all eyes are focused intently on their work. 



OK, so some can't resist looking up at the camera.....

Total concentration

More boys than girls
It just worked out that way

  

Careful stitches



Sometimes hair gets in the way



This boy was labelled 'unteachable' because he is failing in school.
Even on his first attempt, his skills are excellent and his work is beautiful.
"Unteachable?"  I don't THINK so!

As the class sits quietly stitching, a light breeze comes through the open windows.  For a few blessed moments, the only sounds are of birds chirping, and the background noises of everday activities outside - the clatter of plates and cutlery as tables are set for lunch, the 'chop-chop' of cooks preparing vegetables, the 'zzz-zzz' as Gordon saws wood by hand,  and squeals of little ones playing.   Inside my classroom, the children are hushed, focused and deep in concentration.... for a few moments anyways.... Then one after another, they'll hit a roadblock, or have a question, or need more thread or need help fixing a mistake...and then it starts.   "T'Cha! T'Cha!" (Teacher! Teacher!)...and I'm on the run again.

One or two are struggling, and I try to give them all the help and encouragement I can, but most of these kids are really bright and pick it up quickly.    Delight and pride are evident in their facial expressions.  

When I was six years old (many, many years ago),  my very patient grandmother taught me some basic embroidery.  I remember clearly that I stitched a blue bird with a red breast onto a pillowcase, probably made out of a flour sack.  (My mother treasured that scraggly creation for many years).  Those few hours of her loving attention instilled a passion for needle art that has never left me.  Now at the same age that my grandmother was then, I am trying to carry her gift forward.   If she were alive today, I wonder what she would think of it all.


Thanks, Grandma!



Meditate on This

Each day at 11:00 am, children, volunteers, visitors and staff at Honour Village drop whatever they're doing and assemble for meditation.  After a few moments jockeying for places around the room, everyone settles into a comfortable position on the floor (Lotus posture for those more limber; legs crossed or out-stretched for those whose youth and flexibility are declining).

We sit on the floor in House Two.  The children like to sit near their
favourite volunteer to sneak in an extra cuddle.

Once everyone has quieted down, Da or Seyla, who lead the meditation session, usually give a few words of instruction in Khmer.  (I think it has something to do with sitting up straight and being quiet.)  Then Da rings the bell, and the room is hushed.

Da leads the meditation session. 
He lost both his legs as the result of a landmine accident.
Seyla, one of the housemothers, is on the left. 

Da times the session for five minutes using the clock on his cell phone.  Amazingly, except for the occasional cough or shuffling, even the smallest children stay still and quiet for the entire time, despite frequent outside construction noises or jets taking off overhead.

Five minutes of quiet reflection

Even the smallest seem to find a tranquil inner space

Occasionally some need a little support



...and some find it harder than others to relax

After five minutes, Da rings the bell again, and everyone opens their eyes.  This is the time when Da, Seyla, or Chhunly make announcements or talk about expectations regarding the children's behaviour or studies.  I'm not really sure what they're saying, since it's all in Khmer, but occasionally I kind of get the gist, just by the tone of voice or length of the lecture.   It's probably not much different than what gets discussed around a family dinner table. 

Announcement time.
One way to keep the attention of the youngest members
is to have them sit in a semi-circle in front of Da & Seyla.

Sometimes when the announcments go on for a long time,
some of the kids lose intererst.

The after-meditation message on this day was particularly long-winded.

I go to meditation every day when we're out at Honour Village, and I love it.  It's wonderful to take five minutes out of my day to sit quietly and peacefully.  It's not something I've ever done before and I've come to see real value in it.  When I open my eyes after those five minutes, I feel renewed and refreshed. 

I'm certain it benefits the children too.  I believe that gathering together to quietly reflect gives them a sense of oneness, of community, and of family.  And you know, just like any family, there's always fun to be had.  Like the time last week when, just as the first bell rang, somebody farted.  Imagine everyone nearby choking back the fumes, and trying to keep a straight face while searching for that inner quiet place.  It was priceless.  I'd have given anything to have my camera ready.

Gong Xi Fa Cai

'Gung Hei Fat Choi' (Happy Chinese New Year!) is how I'd always heard it said.  This year I found out that's Cantonese, and since Mandarin is the official language of China, the more accepted way of saying it is 'Gong Xi Fa Cai'.  

Last year, in my post about Chinese New Year, I described some of the interesting traditions observed by Cambodians of Chinese heritage.  Sadly we didn't get to see any Lion Dances this year (a personal favourite of mine) which you can read about (and link to a video) by clicking on that link.   And as I've written previously, Chinese New Year is surprisingly popular in Cambodia.

Stores everywhere sell bright red lanterns and banners

Our guesthouse all decked out for the event

On January 22, Chhunly, the manager of Honour Village, invited all the volunteers to a Chinese New Year's Eve celebration at his home in the countryside.  Rather than having a separate party for the volunteers as he did last year, this time we were treated to a special delight....an opportunity to join in the ceremonies with his family.   

The drive to Chhunly's takes over half an hour by tuk-tuk.
Our driver had to make sure we had enough gas to get there.
There were seven of us, so we took two tuk-tuks.



This is Chhunly's mother's home, which is right next door to his.
The ceremonies were held upstairs in this building.



Inside the house, all the offerings were neatly laid out on a mat.
These included fruits, rice, bowls of food, bread, soda, sweets.
At the front left were trays of fake money, as well as other items
that ancestors would need in the next life to be comfortable
There's a significance to the five bowls of rice and five glasses of drinks.



Chhunly lit incense and said prayers.
The spirits of all the ancestors were invited to join us and enjoy the offerings.



We were each given a lighted incense stick
and invited to say prayers
It was very moving.

Eleven children looked on.  Then each one was given an incense stick 

Chhunly gathered all the incense sticks and placed them at the front.



Then Chhunly and his mother began to collect up a little food from each dish,
and placed it on a big banana leaf on a large tray.
Chhunly's mother is wearing a white prayer scarf for this solemn ceremony



Chhunly explained that this tray is for the ancestors who cannot climb the stairs.
To make sure they get fed, the tray is placed outside at ground level.
Notice there is a lighted cigarette on the far left.
Apparently one of the ancestors enjoys a smoke now & again.



Not unlike our Christmas tree, the Chinese have a traditioal tree
decorated with red envelopes containing money hanging from the branches.
The tree was next to a shrine, and there were more food offerings here.

Gordon and I brought a red envelope for each child

 


The fake money and other offerings were brought outside.
Notice there are all sorts of items represented in the packages -
Shoes (clothing), gold, cigarettes, and some sort of certificate?



All these items were placed in a big metal pan and burned.
They believe that by burning them
they are sent up to heaven to their ancestors

Under the canopy, the cooks were busy preparing our feast.
Everything is cooked over wood fires

The table was heaped with food.
Rice, noodles, fried noodles, wonderful soup, Khmer curry.
duck, chicken, fish and lots to drink.

No special Cambodian feast is complete without prahok.
Sometimes referred to as 'Cambodian cheese'
It's an acquired taste
a very spicy  strong-flavoured fermented fish paste with red ants.

I think there were about fifteen around our table,
and about the same number seated at two or three more tables
All of Chhunly's family were there

These are our two tuk-tuk drivers.
We ate with chopsticks, which is not often done in Cambodia.
More often, Cambodians eat with a spoon and fork.  No knife.

Little guy enjoying a taste of dad's beer.



Yummy fruits for dessert.
Oranges, mangosteen, longan, dragonfruit, apple



Pineapple chunks served with salt



Chhunly's nephew enjoying a chunk of fruit



All worn out from too much partying

Thanks to the generosity of Chhunly and his family, we were able to partake in an aspect of Cambodian life that most tourists don't ever get a chance to experience.  I can't speak for the rest of the volunteers, but I left there feeling enriched, enlightened, accepted, and a little warm and fuzzy.  And no, it wasn't the beer.... Unlike that little baby, I stuck to soda water.