The City vs. The Villages

Everyday traffic in Phnom Penh.

The city of Phnom Penh is very representative of life in an urban center of a developing country. Roads are paved, but potholes are plenty. Trash of all kinds is left by the roadside for the weekly pick up--or for the monsoon rains, whichever comes first. The air is filled with exhaust fumes stifled by the suffocating mid-day heat leaving one with a slight cough. The children, although adorable, relieve themselves wherever they please--this includes marketplaces where people buy their food. Motodups, tuk tuks, and cars with blasé drivers and passengers create their own road rules as they drive. And, the water ways are highly polluted making drinking water scarce.

My neighbor's home and yard.

Living in this capital city full time is opening my eyes to real Cambodian culture for people who have the means to reside or work (or both) in Phnom Penh. However, I find it important to not spend all of my time in the big cities when I visit a country because there is still always a larger population living in the outskirts and beyond. In order to fully understand a populace, it is crucial to see and experience how everyone lives. I received many opportunities to see urban and rural settings while I was on a Dialogue of Civilizations Program through Mainland China last summer because my Professor was very adamant about us understanding the contrast between urban and rural livelihoods in China. I am similarly trying to recreate that well-rounded exposure to Cambodian society while on coop here. This is why when I received the opportunity to visit a village 50 K outside of the city with a woman who works for the Harpswell Foundation this past weekend, I took it!

The children running away from the "Tickle Monster" (aka Me)!

The name of the village is Tramung Chrum and it is located in the province of Kampong Chnang. The people and culture of Tramung Chrum are unique in that they are Muslims in a predominately Buddhist country. Yet despite their religious practices, their lifestyle is very similar to those of other villages throughout the Cambodian countryside.

With no running water or electricity and strictly dirt roads, the villagers wake up with the roosters and cows as the sun rises and proceed to work all day long in the rice paddy fields, preparing the meals in the homes, cleaning the family's clothes by the wells and allowing the children to frolic in nature. The simplicity of this seemingly peaceful lifestyle is temporarily alluring to a stressed-out foreigner or over stimulated city dweller, until one realizes that the simplicity is accompanied by a lack of food variety and ready supply of water, a lack of education and health care, and most importantly a lack of means to earn a significant living for the family. During my stay here this past weekend, I frequently imagined some of the Harpswell girls--who now live in the dormitories in Phnom Penh--coming from rural villages and provinces such as Tramung Chrum. I cannot even begin to fathom the culture shock that they are experiencing on a daily basis as they try to get comfortable with the big city living.

Women and children from the village of Tramung Chrum
visiting with us and watching us prepare our dinner.

Despite their remoteness from society at large, in true Khmer fashion, the villagers were overly hospitable and eager to meet my friends and I. During the past month, in both Phnom Penh, Kep (an area of the country by the sea), and Tramung Chrum, the Cambodian people have been nothing but kind and welcoming towards me. Smiles never seem to depart from their faces and their eyes are filled with a curiosity to learn and observe everything and anything (even if it's a lackluster viewing of a few barangs--Khmer word for the French, or any White person--eating dinner). I look forward to more adventures within and outside of Phnom Penh. It will be nearly impossible to see and do it all while I am here in Cambodia, but I hope to leave in December with a balanced understanding of the country and its people.

FOR SALE: Books, DVDs and ... Opium?

I had been warned by many who have already traveled through Cambodia to expect a lawless society whereby anything and everything is attainable and achievable, especially in the major cities of Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. With that said, I was still caught off guard when a 12-year-old Cambodian street peddler flashed a bag of opium to my friend. We were seated at an outdoor cafe one evening around 10 pm on a Saturday night and we soon realized that this boy was not alone. 

Among him was a group of seven children carrying baskets of various books and DVDs to sell to the expats and tourists who frequent the strip of restaurants and bars down by the riverfront in Phnom Penh. Their English speaking skills were nearly flawless and they all had the charisma to match the energy in their voices, "Books! Books! You like? No, well how about DVD for you beautiful? I have good one for you. No? Okay, how about this?" And ... BAM!, a plastic baggy of opium--a Class A drug-- was presented to her for 'a cheap price just for you beautiful ladies,' concealed only by the books and DVDs blocking the view from potential undercover police.

A child fishing in the Tonle Sap to feed himself lunch.

There are now many nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that campaign on behalf of these children who essentially have no voices. The NGOS adamantly discourage tourists from giving them money by claiming that most of the money the children collect in a night will go into someone else's pocket and therefore not directly benefit them at all. Instead, it has become a widely requested alternative to buy the children an inexpensive plate of food or drink if you feel as though you have to do something for them.


Disheartening? Incredibly! No matter how much I read about children being used as a source of income for families, or see children across the globe out at all hours begging for money, I have not yet become desensitized.  Behind every group of peddlers and beggars I constantly search to see who is in control of them. In a country like Cambodia, and in a city such as Phnom Penh, it is very possible that the adults they return to at the end of the night are domineering men or women using them as free labor.

A little girl selling items outside of an Angkor
Temple to raise money for her family.
She is about 4 years old.

I am one of those tourists who cannot ignore the children, whose small frames and frequent coughs leave an impression on me. I requested the permission of a restaurant owner to let a group of 3 young street peddlers sit town at a table away from the customers so that they could share a full plate of food for $2.50 USD--on me. He agreed, so long as the children did not try to sell their 'merchandise' while they were in his restaurant. The children were well behaved, so it was a win-win for everyone. 

Although I realize I cannot do this for every child I meet, I do not regret helping those that I can. We must all understand that their annoying and incessant demands (which are undeniably  targeted at mainly white tourists) to buy their goods is a means of survival, and not something that we must ignore and dismiss as petty child-like behavior. Purchasing their goods (especially the cheap and illicit drugs) will only do harm to both the seller and buyer. There are alternatives on how you can handle these transactions, and I encourage all travelers in developing countries to not become desensitized to it all. 

"Why on earth do you go there?"

This question is posed to most people who want to come to Cambodia. It is actually more of an exclamation than a question. Karen Coates, the author of the book Cambodia Now, sums up the most accurate response: "Perhaps I go to Cambodia to challenge, awaken, expand the soul." I wish I had read this book before I left the US for I could have more powerfully answered my family, my friends and others who all bombarded me with this same question.

Nellie (another Leadership Resident) and myself
outside of the Royal Palace with a few of our girls.

I arrived in Phnom Penh, Cambodia this past Monday, 30 August 2010 and will remain here until 22 December 2010. It is my first time living abroad. A mix of emotions swirled inside me before I left the States, but deep down I knew this would be an experience that would enlighten me to issues I have only read about in books and ultimately allow me to grow as a person.

I will be volunteering as a leadership resident for the Harpswell Foundation (www.harpswellfoundation.org). While I was searching for a coop opportunity this past Spring I was on a mission to find an organization that would provide me with a fulfilling experience in my field of International Affairs.  Established by a man named Alan Lightman in 2006, this remarkable non-profit organization aims to provide housing and education to children and young women. In short, I am living in a dormitory for college-aged Cambodian women. I will serve as a role model, English language teacher and friend for these amazing girls with the goal of empowering a new generation of female leaders for the country.

My bedroom at the dormitory. I have the
bottom bunk of the bed against the far wall.

I was immediately excited when I saw the dormitory and introduced myself to the girls; I knew that Cambodia was in fact the right place for me to do my second coop. They are all genuinely eager to learn about me and where I come from. (It should also be noted that these girls are incredibly diligent about their studies!) They have a work ethic that greatly surpasses mine, and as cliche as it is, I know I will be learning more from these girls than they will from me. This is what happens when you intend on giving yourself to others. You end up getting so much more in return; more than you could have ever expected.

Two of the Harpswell girls
with me in a tuk tuk, which is a primary form of transport
for people in Phnom Penh.

I am now passionate (which is a phrase I don't say too often) about immersing myself in the Khmer culture. Over the course of the next few months I will undoubtedly learn a lot about this city and the history of the country. Next week I will begin to take language classes so that I can better communicate with the girls, my amiable neighbors who smile constantly, and of course to help improve my odds at bargaining for lower prices wherever I go! I am confident that this will be a very rewarding experience for me. Karen Coates has nailed it: Living and volunteering in cambodia will most certainly challenge, awaken and expand my soul.