Happy Christmas

As we celebrate the birth of Christ I thought I would take this opportunity to update you on my year. This year has been a year of surprises and new challenges.

Work

I started working part time juggling 3 roles. Sharing a 1/2 class, doing non-contact time for the Bilingual Bicultural classes and volunteering one day a week with Scripture union.

Half way through the year I found myself unhappy at work and I decided to take leave. Looking back I can’t believe I made such a drastic decision with no real way to earn money lined up. A couple of days later I heard about a teaching job at HOPE International School in Cambodia and in amazingly quick time I applied and got the job. A few miracles later I was on long service leave (with 2 weeks notice rather than 2 terms notice as the requirement is), organised a person to housesit and was off to Phnom Penh.

As a result I have spent the last 5 months working in Phnom Penh. It has been a wonderful experience and I have met many great people.

Working in a Christian school is something I had never planned to do. It has been good to work with such an amazing staff with such a heart to serve and to meet families who are committed to serving God and the poor. Photos includes many of the Khmer staff and a short term mission volunteer.

Life in Cambodia

Phnom Penh is a hustling bustling city, with heavy traffic and noisy streets. I am woken in the morning to the cries of “nOOm bpung” as the street vendor walks down our street at 6am selling bread. By this time people are up and getting ready for the day. In Cambodia people are early to rise and early to bed. One thing I will miss will be the motodops. Travelling around with city is so easy. I step outside my front gate. A man on a motorbike (or a few men) raise their hand to ask if I want a motodop. I nod and a motorbike whizzes to my feet. Sometimes men race from either end of the street. I sit side saddle on the back and direct the driver where I would like to go. The bumps on the dirt roads only adding to the adventure.

Sport

I have been playing some touch football over here in Cambodia. Well, it is really touch rugby and I get a little frustrated with the guys sometimes. The girls played an exhibition match the weekend of the Rugby 10s tournament. We played in the Olympic Stadium. It was good to train and play a little more seriously. Wet season has played havoc with regular games as playing on the fields in the rain would ruin them.

Church

At the start of this year I made the decision not to host homegroup but continued to lead the group. It has been good to see some new people come into the group. Next year I will not be leading the group.

I have been attending a small church here that is pretty much a home church. I mix of westerners and Khmer. I have appreciated the casual interactive approach to gathering together.

Travel

I have had some lovely opportunities to get to see some of Cambodia while I have been here. My long time friend Nina came we spent some time exploring the Cambodian coast together. It was lovely to spend some time with her. It was interesting to see the shells of a former life of the French and the present life of the Khmer.

One of my most treasured memories here was a day outing with the Khmer staff from work. On a long weekend we went for a day trip on the motos. We picnicked by a river, laughed, ate, and spent many hours on our butts.

I hope to do a little more travel with some Khmer friends after school finishes in the few days before I leave.

I also got a chance to go to Chiang Mai in Thailand. This made me realise just how undeveloped and poor Cambodia is. Living in Cambodia day in day out I had become accustomed to life here and stepping into Thailand was a lovely break but made me realise how difficult life in Cambodia can be.

2006

I will be teaching full time at Upper Mount Gravatt. I am looking forward to working in the community I live in and being able to serve the school. I have been working with some of the staff at the school in my role with Scripture Union this year and am looking forward to the challenges ahead of me. Other than this I have no idea what the future holds.