Volunteers Abroad Reviews and Feedbacks

Raksmey, the ABV Director was the one who helped the most- so nice, helpful, available. He made everything very easy. They took us to the closing arguments of the prosecution for the Dutch trial (Khmer Rouge tribunals)- what an amazing experience!

Tip for future volunteers… (Clothing, travel, personal items, donations, sightseeing etc)

Try to find and bring good beginners English books. You can bring one copy and make 5-6 copies (for the kids to share) when you get there (they’re pros at copying books there). The crappy, photo copied books you can get in the markets are outdated and useless. I feel like I could’ve helped so much more with good books. And come with loose lesson plans (or ideas) for teaching English to different age groups. I would’ve felt a lot more prepared armed with more ideas.
Keep all your valuables on you (duh). I would leave my purse in the open office in the orphanage and got $20 stolen from my bag.

Be very thoughtful about giving out money. It can be hard to know if the cash you give them is going 100% towards the kids. If you can bring supplies (tooth paste, laundry soap, rice, etc…) rather than give them cash so you know its being used properly.

Personal Paragraph (Testimonial)

Here are some posts from my blog~

CPCDO

I made it to Phnom Penh safely and have just started my second week at the orphanage. Let me just say these kids are AMAZING. The first day I walked in the gate 3 little ones ran up with hellos and hugs which was so cute made me feel so welcomed.

There are 71 kids at CPCDO ranging from about 4 months to 17 years old. Typically I teach English to a young group for an hour, then an hour to an older group in the morning, play for an hour, then a 2 hour lunch break, and then I repeat the same in the afternoon with a different group of kids. It’s funny as I didn’t get any guidance really- on my first day they said, “here you go, now teach some English!” But it’s great cuz you could do just about anything and the kids are happy- they’re very eager to learn English and just love the interaction. We talked about body parts one day and we ended class by doing the hokey-pokie. They had never done it before and thought it was hilarious- “…you put your nose in and you shake it all about…”

Their living conditions are hard to see. They only have 2 toilets for all of them (although they’re in the process of building 2 more); the kids sleep on wooden bunk beds with no mattress or padding; the building isn’t fully enclosed, so when it rains hard the whole place floods; many of the kids wear the same dirty clothes days on end; there is no soap for them to wash their hands; no diapers so the babies run/crawl around without bottoms and wee/poo wherever they are; and on and on… It was a bit disturbing at first, but I’m  starting to realize that these are living conditions for many of the population here in Cambodia anyways, not just the orphans.

I have 2 especially special little boys there who I really want to take home with me. One is probably about 1 and the other about 3 or 4 years old. They follow me around everywhere and want me to hold them all the time. When I have to put one of them down to go to the bathroom, they will usually stand there and cry at the door till I come back out. It is one of the most incredible feelings to walk in in the morning and watch their faces light up and raise their arms to me to pick them up. It brings tears to my eyes to think about having to leave them at the end of the week.  I’ve taught them duck-duck-goose, some “Sound of Music” songs (Do, a deer a female dear… and, raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens…) and they really seem to love playing hangman. The stickers, books (thanks Margaret & Anita!), balloons, crayons, coloring books and bouncy-balls have been a big hit! I also bought some new school books with the money some of you donated already!

I feel very lucky to be here and definitely feel this has been the most intense, challenging experience so far, but of course the most eye-opening and fulfilling. I had my first wave of homesickness after my first day, but am feeling better now. I have to say though, as much as I’m enjoying my travels, I will be happy to come home!

I heart Cambodia

Another amazing week with the kids! One day we talked about colors and the verb “to want”. I had a bag of balloons and we took turns asking “Do you want a yellow balloon?” They would reply with “Yes, I want a yellow balloon” or “No, I want a blue balloon”. I love to see how excited they get about small things like that and just the enthusiasm and silliness of kids in general.  It’s unfortunate to realize that there isn’t a whole lot of consistency to their English studies- when a new teacher comes in, there is no guidelines to what needs to be done next, what the kids know already- no sort of organization. I wish I could’ve been there longer to help come up with some sort of system. Maybe next time…

On my last day we played games- “What time is it Mr. Fox”, limbo, duck-duck-goose and sang songs. They love to sing! I went to the gas station and bought popsicles for everyone which was exciting.  The kids love seeing pictures and videos of themselves. We spend many hours taking photos and videos on my camera, looking at the pictures. Often they would take off with my camera to take pictures and would come back with all sorts of funny pictures.

A new volunteer (from another organization) came in that week and she has initiated getting some of the kids medical attention. She was actually able to get a doctor to come into the center and check out the kids who were having some issues and get treatment for different things as well as HIV tests. I gave her $100 because she was paying for everything out of her pocket. I also gave the center $80 to finish the 2 new bathrooms they just built- to make doors and add plumbing to run water to the bathrooms. They were very appreciative. My mom, sister and my friends Margaret and Lynne have offered donations and I will be arranging supplies like tooth brush/paste, detergent, rice, etc… for the center. Thank you for your support!

One of the babies had an abscess on his bottom that had to be lanced and the doctor had to clean it out the next day because of course it had gotten infected. Later he was in the babies room just crying by himself (as he often is) and I was able to pick him up  and calm him down. I cuddled him for about an hour, him leaning forward on my chest so as not to have to sit on his tender bottom and even got him laughing at one point. It is so tragic to me that a little one like that who is in pain doesn’t have a mama to baby him when he’s sick. I wish I could’ve stayed another week just to take care of the little guy.

It was tough to say goodbye to everyone, but I am so thankful for the experience.  I hope to be able to do it again for a longer period of time someday. I hope to do some similar work in the States as there is a huge need there as well for community development and support for the poor.

My Cambodian Family

I forgot to tell you how great my host family was while in Phnom Penh. Living there are the parents, one daughter and 2 sons (all in their 20’s) and the grandmother. They have another daughter who is married with a son that lives close by. Traditionally you live with your parents till you get married there. The oldest son was my age. The grandmother was a bit senile, so she seemed a little confused when I walked in the door each time, but when I would stop to say hello she would grab my hands and tell me how beautful I was.

They had a lovely 4-story house (a typical style for middle class) and I had the entire 3rd floor to myself with a patio in the front and the back. I had a big empty front room to do yoga in the mornings. They cooked me loads of delicious Cambodian food and packed me lunch on work days. Fresh fruit (many of which I’ve never seen/had before-yum!) and cold water all the time.

The daughters were so sweet- took me out on several occasions, one of them invited me to a wedding of her husband’s cousin, the other took me to the S-21 museum on the weekend. I experienced my first 3-person scooter ride and a small scooter crash with each of the sisters. It’s not a true Cambodian experience without either of those events it seems. The youngest son drove me to work and picked me up every day. Only the daughters and the oldest son spoke limited English, so I couldn’t really communicate with the parents or the grandmother, but so much can be said with a smile and a bow.

The mother gave me a beautiful blue silk scarf with the traditional Cambodian checker print. She must’ve asked her daughter how to say “A souvenir for you” as she handed it to me. There were some tears when I parted and I hope I will see them again. Maybe I can come back when Pheap (the youngest daughter) gets married.