The Great Eastern Woman’s 10k
Up at 5am this morning with my number one fan! Here's my runners breakfast - Gourmet Oatmeal inspired by my uncle Ken and aunt Marilyn Watson from our Whistler days.
30 minutes before the race, my friend Megan and I had our Potassium intake. After the race we hold the remains of our stamina.
This was my first try at a real race. The Great Eastern Woman's 10k was attended by a couple thousand women. Here we are in our holding gate. If you look carefully you can see my short friend peering to see the handsome photographer.
The music is pumping...as was my heart and head (hot morning!)
A great challenge!
They can always make you smile
Over the past couple days I have been working one on one with students to assess their prior knowledge before commencing our new Food Unit. The title is "Where our food comes from?" and I've been having the children tell me their thoughts and draw pictures in relation to this question on a large A3 (as we have in Singapore) paper. Many of their food related questions come out naturally in this small group setting such as "How do I cook a chicken?", "Why are yellow watermelons yucky and red ones yummy?", "How do we make a banana?" and "Where do crackers come from?"
Today, when I was working with "Leslie" on her page she said "Food comes from God". I asked her what kind of food and she added "hamburgers". Apparently God likes hamburgers a lot. Leslie concluded that bread also came from God, however, when I asked about how God made the bread she became puzzled. After a moments thought, Leslie confidently shared that God uses the Angels to help him make the bread! We moved on to other ideas from there. These moments make me smile and I hope reading it can also make you smile.
Dan and I just got back from our staff BBQ and a free orchestra concert at the National University of Singapore. Tomorrow (Tuesday) is a holiday (Hari Raya Puasa - Muslim) and so we plan to enjoy lots of time together doing as much of NOTHING as possible.
Thanksgiving in Singapore
Last night, Dan and I had 41 people over for turkey dinner! It was a fantastic time for families and friends. Everyone brought along a dish to share and 3 willing birds lined the festive tables. Thanks Mom and Dad for the colourful leaves from home and the garden pictures!
We were so busy playing host and hostess that we didn't get the chance to take photos! So, I took a picture of the bird craft I'd prepared for the children present at the dinner to take on.
Cambodia – Phnom Penh (The Lighter Side)
One of the most (happily?) ironic things about being at the Killing Fields was that outside the wall surrounding the fields - all we heard was children's laughter. I believe there is a school outside the walls, and that it was recess, because there were children playing and laughing everywhere. A stark but welcome contrast to what was behind the walls.
In Phnom Penh Carly and I had some amazing food. There was a Spanish Tapas restaurant that we found thanks to some recommendations from others called Pacharan. This was without a doubt the best tapas restaurant I have ever been to. The Chorizo was sent straight from heaven above, as was the Sangria and Chocolate Tart for dessert. Not to mention the goat cheese salad and meatballs.
We also dined at another Tapas restaurant (probably the 2nd best Tapas restaurant I've ever been to) called Friends, which employs and trains street youth and helps them get off the street and train in a vocation. The food was amazing and the atmosphere and ambience fabulous.
You can also really dine on the cheap, as Carly and I found out when we picked up some fabulous grilled bananas and a few French loaves for about 37 cents.
Cambodia – Phnom Penh (Tuol Sleng and Choeung Ek)
I'm not really sure why, but I absolutely fell in love with Phnom Penh. It was dirty, polluted, full of garbage, dust and grit - and yet, there is something about it. Carly likened it to Bangkok, and on the surface I would totally agree - but there is just something about it that's - different.
Maybe it's that we ate some of the best food I've ever had in my life, or the people, or the history of torment that lingers to this day - I couldn't say for certain.
Carly and I went to both the Killing Fields of Choeung Ek and the Genocidal Museum at Tuol Sleng prison (more commonly referred to by English speakers as S-21). I'm no expert on Cambodian history, but a brief rundown is that the Khmer Rouge (a communist group more or less led by a man named Pol Pot) took over Cambodia in 1975 and began a mass genocide of anyone who was educated (you were murdered if you had a high school education), anyone who wore glasses, anyone who was religious (Christian, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist - didn't matter) or anyone who provided any opposition to the government whatsoever. If you were educated, but your young children weren't - they would kill your entire family anyways - wife, children and infants - they didn't want to risk the chance of anyone coming for revenge later on.
Tuol Sleng was formerly a high school that was transformed into a detention, interrogation and torture center by the Khmer Rouge in May of 1976 where people were detained, tortured, starved, raped, poisoned, hung, tortured in countless ways - prior to either dying - or being sent off in a pickup truck to Choeung Ek - or some other area where the Khmer Rouge created mass graves for all the murdered innocent. Because they were trying to preserve the limited ammunition supply - people weren't shot - but instead were beaten with hoes, shovels, tools, poisoned or burned with acid, stabbed or bludgeoned to death. People were often buried alive. Infants and small children were grabbed by the ankles and clubbed against a tree until they died.
I'm still in utter disbelief that all of this took place such a short time ago - and with all of the peace-keeping efforts that are supposed to be in effect to protect against this type of genocide (that still goes on today in many parts of the world) - it would seem that instead the world stood by and did nothing, until Vietnam came to Cambodia's rescue in December of 1978. You would think that crimes like this would be punished - but instead Pol Pot was rewarded for mass murder by receiving a seat in the United Nations as the "official" government of Cambodia during the rule of the Khmer Rouge. After Vietnam overthrew the Khmer Rouge - and because of rocky relations between Vietnam and "the West" - the UN thought it better to leave the seat in the hands of the Khmer Rouge rather than handing it over to Vietnam. Pol Pot continued as a leader of the Khmer Rouge for several more years, ordering more executions and causing more chaos. He died in 1998 without ever being put on trial for his crimes.
This is a photo of the Memorial House at Choeung Ek - it is filled from floor to roof with the skulls of those exhumed from the mass graves in the surrounding fields.
These are a few shots taken at Tuol Sleng prison
The lady who founded Tabitha (the group we built the houses with) told us a story of one of the Cambodians she has worked with for several years. This girl was forced to work at Tuol Sleng prison when she was just 4 years old. They placed her in charge of a room full of infants (I don't remember the exact number - 60? more?) and it was her responsibility to care for them and ensure that they didn't make any noise. If any of the babies would cry for too long, the guard would become furious. He would storm into the room, pick up the screaming child and throw him/her against the concrete wall. For three years that little girl had to live in that prison, and still has nitemares to this day- living with the guilt of those children dying in her care - even though it was no fault of her own.
Cambodia – Kep
Where the heck is Kep? Well - we're going to skip on Phnom Penh for now, and do that entry last. But - this was our sweet Tuk Tuk transport from the Phnom Penh airport to our guesthouse (in the pouring rain).
We did make it to the Killing Fields at Choeung Ek before heading to Kep - but I'll cover that later. On Tuesday Carly and I met up with a bunch of teachers from CIS that were heading to a small village (if you could call it that) near Kep (which is in the far south of Cambodia, on the South China Sea, only a few kilometers from the Vietnamese border). We took these shots along the way at one of our 'pee breaks'.
For the record, it is not uncommon to see the standard scooter or motorcycle acting as a family sedan for FIVE! Unfortunately, this shot only has three, but nonetheless - Dad holds onto the baby or youngest in front as he drives. Behind him are the next two oldest, and Mom takes up the rear holding on for dear life.
We were off to build 10 houses in 2 days for families that had previously lived in tiny little thatch huts that provided almost no protection from the rain. Based on my poor estimating skills, these thatch huts were about 4-5 feet in height at most, and offered about 20 square feet of living space, sometimes for a family of 8. We teamed up with Tabitha to do the house building. These families are responsible for saving US$30 towards the house, and the team chips in the rest. Total cost is about US$800 per house. It has taken these families two YEARS to save US$30. There is no electricity or running water (or clean water for that matter) to be found anywhere near the place where we were building, and the roads to get out to this area of town must be experienced to be believed. Rarely paved, and often full of huge potholes, it was a bumpy ride to say the least.
If I recall correctly, it is approximately 120 kilometers from Phnom Penh to Kep, which took us about 3 hours of driving time due to road conditions. We stayed at a guest house there called N4, which is just off the South China Sea. Here are a few shots of the guest house area.
Each day for the two days we were there, we drove approximately 40 minutes from our guest house to the "village" where we were erecting the houses. This picture does a pretty good job at showing the thatch huts that these families have been living in - alongside the houses we were building.
I'm sure that you, as well as I - can't imagine a family of 8 living in the "big" house, let alone the thatch huts to the right in the background.
Here are a bunch of other shots we took, including some great ones of the families and kids, and some not so great ones of us doing work.
We broke off into groups of 6 or 7 - this was the first house our group finished.
I'm certain that this man was still in utter disbelief at his new home - he cried - it was gut wrenching to watch.
Contrary to popular belief amongst my friends - I do know how to use a hammer:
This was a group shot we took after the last of the houses was finished.
Cambodia – Siem Reap
The city of Siem Reap is most notably know for its temples of Angkor. Up until a few years ago this town has been fairly quiet but is now in the midst of a tourist boom.
We flew into Siem Reap early Sunday morning and returned to Singapore the following Sunday also from Siem Reap. Old French shophouses, shady tree-lined boulevards and a quiet river are remnants of the past, while fancy 5-star hotels and international restaurants are quickly up and coming.
As in the other parts of Cambodia we visited, US dollars and Riel (Cambodian currency) are equally accepted (most things we found were always priced in US dollars in these main towns we visited). Bargaining for everything (tuk-tuk rides, car drivers for the day, merchandise, services such as massage) is the way to go and it was done with a smile from both sides!
While in Siem Reap at the beginning and end of our travels, Daniel and I enjoyed our 2 days spent at the temples of Angkor, a visit to Psar Leu (Central Market), a tour and shopping at Artisans d'Angkor (a school training artisans and selling their products), excellent food (especially the Khmer curry, fresh spring rolls and cashew chicken at Khmer Kitchen) and foot reflexology. One day at the temples of Angkor US $20 each, Angkor beer on tap for 25 cents US, 1 hour foot reflexology US $6.
The market stretch
Our guest house - La Noria
A peaceful breakfast before heading out to the Angkor temples
Angkor Wat
Ta Prohm (Jungle temple - also where Tomb Raider was filmed)
Heading into the entrance to Angkor Thom
Bayon
Baphuon and Prah Khan area
Dan's tour guide (explaining about the elephants and garudas - half man and half bird)
Phnom Bakheng (the climb to watch the sunset)
Day 2
In and around Bantey Srey (approx. 30km drive from entrance to Angkor)
Pleased to receive some cereal we were carrying
Artisans d'Angkor 
Flying from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh (capital city of Cambodia)
United Nations Week
This week we celebrated our multinational community and how we are Better Together. The Opening Ceremonies and Parade of Nations kick started the events for the week. All students had the opportunity to wear national costumes from whatever countries they identified themselves with. Grades 1-3 children paraded behind their county flag while us in preschool stuck close together and did a mini parade and wave as we circled the gym.
I must say I felt such pride in my heart as the Canada flag rounded the corner, coming into view. Our Canadian clothing so casual compared to the elaborate outfits many others wore (hockey attire, roots gear, t-shirts, sandals, slogans such as "Canadian Eh?" and "Keep life simple - sleep, eat cereal, be Canadian").
The second day's highlights were the Food Festival and Class spins where kids would visit different classrooms for an assortment of activities. For this day I had painted t-shirts with my kids using their handprints and painting on their national flags.
Even Daniel came to try out some new foods. I think the Iranian Biryani rice won his taste buds favor where I really enjoyed a fresh Vietnamese Spring Roll. Oh, I also liked the Canadian maple/caramel popcorn.
Yesterday we wrapped the week up with the Closing Ceremonies. The primary choir sang, we heard some other songs and storytelling but the focus was on a performance by a drumming group. My children were so exhausted! With the week's routines out the window I had tears over discovering morning snack had been missed (even though we'd been at the food festival eating ALL morning) and children keeling over to sleep during the drumming music. We were all ready for the start of the holiday! Off to Cambodia in the morning....