Samrong diary 4
Final week and reflections:
Well, these past four weeks have been quite a rush. We arrived in northwest Cambodia one month ago and had no idea what to expect of our experience living and working there. It took us some time to get acclimated (especially our stomachs) and learn our way around town. Our Khmer has remained very limited, so we mostly communicated with gestures and smiles. We felt warmly welcomed by everyone at CIDO and really enjoyed spending time with them. We celebrated the completion of our mission there with a small party with delicious food, drinks and the entertainment of dancing children.
During our last few days, Kyle compiled an interactive map using GPS coordinates and photos he and staff took of every school gate *visit the Green Shoots website soon for that update*
In addition, we began collaborating on our final evaluation which will include analyzing survey responses from about 15 schools.
On Monday, we had the opportunity to visit the Anjali House Center for Street Children in Siem Reap for the certificate ceremony marking the successful completion of garden training for about 20 students. The garden here has just been developed in the last year.
Some challenges they’ve dealt with are poor soil structure and fertility, since the soil was just filled in after construction. However, Anjali House students and staff are brainstorming strategies to improve for the next season. The students spoke great English and shared with us their experiences raising a crop and what they’ve learned. They are divided into about five groups- each overseeing a particular crop, such as eggplant, cucumbers, and tomatoes. Most of them are enthusiastic about continuing to grow vegetables and providing healthy food for all the students at Anjali House.
Overall, our work assignments challenged us and gave us purpose. We are very grateful for the opportunity to do meaningful work with a passionate team, and contribute in some small way to improving the health of people and the environment in Cambodia. We feel that the program goal of diversifying vocational skills of students and teachers is well underway and we expect to see continued improvement with each year.
We are very impressed and inspired by the scale and progress of the ASPUS project and are hopeful about its future impacts on Cambodian society.
We all need more reminders of the positive change people are making around the world, so stay in the loop to follow the evolution of the ASPUS program!
-Katie
