Fire in Siem Reap town today

Alan and I were coming out of Lucky supermarket when we noticed big smoke behind the building. Kosal was picking us up so I went with him on his moto to see what was going on. We went behind lucky, turning right. Many people were also racing to see what was going on. We saw thick, black smoke rising. Kosal had to stop his moto as there was a jam. I hopped off and walked towards the fire.

I saw this - a fire truck was already there and people were helping to pull the hose to spray the fire, which was engulfing a typical Cambodian provision shop, made of wood, with a zinc roof.

You can see the fire truck in this picture.

The policemen were trying to get people to stand back, away from the fire.

I stood opposite, outside the Angkor Land Hotel. This guy was racing to connect a hose from the hotel to help put out the fire.

The fire trucks managed to hose down the flames in less than 15 minutes.

The house was completely destroyed by that time.

You can see the coconuts spilling all over the ground. The umbrella was also burnt. There was hardly anything left of the small provisions stall.

The fire truck was leaving and you can see the policeman on the right holding up the electrical wire with his baton. At first I was thinking he was trying to prevent the wire from catching fire. 

Then I realised he was lifting the electrical wire to let the fire truck pass under.  You can see more clearly in the photo below.

This lady was crying and hugging her son, so I assume it is her shop that burnt down. She had only grabbed her little blue metal cash box. 

I felt so sad for the lady I wanted to cry. Must be terrible to lose everything in this way. But many Cambodian houses are similarly vulnerable to fires, because the walls are made of wooden planks and zinc sheets for the roof. Very few people have fire insurance so when you lose it all, there is nothing you can do. I've often thought about the houses we have rented in Cambodia. What happens if there is a fire? The landlord loses everything because the tenant cannot be expected to pay, and the landlord has no insurance.

The house Alan and I rented in Siem Reap is actually a death trap if there is a fire because there is only one door in and out of the house. Plus, all the windows have grilles (typical here in Cambodia because of security concerns).

Thank goodness the Bloom guesthouse is better designed, with a front and back door, another two more doors upstairs to the large balconies on the front and back. Best of all, there are no grilles on any of the windows - good for easy escape in case of a fire!

Sun's visit

On Monday I went to pick my friend Sun up from the Siem Reap International Airport. Here she is coming out of the airport - she travels light! I was so happy to see her!

Sun was impressed and surprised with how modern the airport was. Like many people, she had assumed because Cambodia is a third world country, everything must be shabby. She was also surprised at how large the houses in Cambodia can be - like the guesthouse we rented. She asked how much it would sell for in Cambodia. I have no idea but the landlady said she was offered over USD1 million for her house and land (60m by 70m). Sun could not believe it.

I met Sun at my first job - she was the designer and I, deputy editor, at the magazine we worked at. I've known her for more than 11 years now! She is very talented and has lived in London for almost a decade, working as a designer. She was telling me how expensive Singapore has become. She had to lug home a Nespresso (some kind of trendy coffee machine) for her family because it cost SGD300 in the UK and SGD650 in Singapore. A branded handbag was 50% more in Singapore than in the UK. What's happened to Singapore? Singapore used to be the place to go for electronics and designer goods, and the UK was known as "Rip-off Britain".

Well, partly the pound has dropped. But the other thing is that goods in Singapore usually arrive through designated distributors (middlemen), which take their cut. In the UK, you can now buy things through Amazon, direct from the maker.

Sorry for the digression, this was supposed to be about Sun and her visit.

I took her to the Old Market to do a bit of shopping after she went to the temples alone (at USD20 a day entrance fee, it is not something I can afford to do often). This nice young lady showed us how to use a kroma (traditional Cambodian scarf that has multiple uses). Sun is wearing it the traditional way for women. 

Here she is with the kroma on her head using her girly iPhone, studded with pink crystals. Very surreal - who'd have imagined a young woman to be wearing a kroma on her head and using an iPhone at the same time!

Sun has a kind heart and bought two books ($5 each) from Khim, aka "Jerry". Khim is a 16 year old Cambodian boy who lost one leg due to a car accident in Phnom Penh. He told me he was compensated with USD2000 by the driver of the "big car" but had to give $500 to the police. I asked why and he said it was because the police stopped the car from driving off. He then spent about a thousand at the hospital for the operation and to "buy blood". He has been selling books around Pub Street and the Alley since his dad died and family moved to Siem Reap a few years ago. Khim is a very happy, optimistic boy.

I did not take enough photos of Sun and with her. She actually stayed at our guesthouse and was our first customer. I took photos of her in the big bed with mosquito net but it's in her iPhone. She'll have to email me the photos!

Sun was around when I signed the contract for the new Bloom shop. Yes, we are moving! Our lease ends this month and the landlord is jacking up the price to an unrealistic amount so we are moving. This space is 200m from the Old Market, near all the "Happy Pizza" shops and the new D's Books (which moved from Pub Street this year - no doubt also due to increased rent).

Sun thinks I should have a projection on one wall, relating the Bloom story (that's her arm there!). She told me I can get a second hand projector cheap in Singapore because it is old technology. This is the space - currently used as a parking lot for the owner's motorbikes. It's longish and has a lot of potential, I think. But I am no interior decorator. If you have been to the Bloom shop, you will know how amateurish it is. Not at all slick like some of the other souvenir shops in town.

Soon it was time for Sun to go. I asked her what she thought of Cambodia. She found Cambodians "very sweet" and the town and shops interesting. She plans to return next year with her family which will be great because she is such a cute and bubbly person. I really had a great five days with her and miss her already. Sun took Om Pheon's tuktuk everywhere and left the Bloom guesthouse team a small tip when she left, so they were very happy.

I took her to the airport. Her Silkair flight was delayed by 15mins so we sat chatting. Suddenly there was a commotion and we saw the airport staff using a broom to hit a snake. It stopped moving and this man tried to brush it to the side. Not knowing I speak Khmer, the man told his friend I was "cherkoot" (crazy) for wanting to take a photo of the snake.

The dead snake in front of the airport trolleys. Sun was a little freaked out - I guess you do not see snakes in many airports around the world. But I think snakes are part of nature and wished they did not beat it to death.  But many Cambodians are scared of snakes, I suppose for good reason.

After leaving Sun, I saw this on the way back from the airport: Cambodian families waiting for a plane to take off.

This was the plane, a Vietnamese carrier. I told Om Phoen to stop for a bit and saw the plane take off. It was very loud! Om Phoen asked me if this is what I take to go home. I said something like that. Planes are pretty amazing. This is how they work.

Thary the bracelet maker

Thary is a young Cambodian man who was born with very small legs. He is from Takeo province but came to Siem Reap about a year ago to look for work. I first met Thary at the Angkor Night Market, where I had a shop (now closed because I could not compete with the shops selling copies of our bags at very low prices). Thary was employed at another shop as a salesperson for US$30 a month, working 7 hours a night (5pm-12am). (As a comparison, we were paying our shop assistant $80).

Handicapped people are often bullied because it is hard for them to get jobs. Anyway, Thary was hoping I would be able to employ him but I could not as the shop already had one person. When I found out he could weave bracelets, I offered him free space at the Bloom shop (next to the Warehouse pub) to do the work. But I did tell him we did not have much passing trade at that time as it was low season.

So what Thary did was he looked around and found a spot in the Alley, south of Pub Street. It is a great location, as there are many tourists there at night. Soon he was able to buy a motorcycle. He jokes with Kagna, our shop assistant, that he is a rich man now. :)

You can see Thary's crutches in the photo. He needs help to get on the motorcycle, but once he is on it, he is independent. I always tease him about his motorcycle and his fancy new haircut. He is very proud of his red bike and always shows me where he parks it.

I brought my French friend, Aline, to meet Thary. Aline is an awesome lady. I really admire her. She raises money every year from her small village in France to help Cambodians through Deborah Grove's Helping Hands, an NGO that has done some amazing, innovative work in Siem Reap. (Deborah's story is much like mine - came to Cambodia on a holiday and something happened to shock her into action).

Aline was very happy to meet Thary and chose many bracelets (US$1 each) to take home with her as gifts for donors and for fundraising. Here she is selecting from the many bracelets Thary has made. The inside of the bracelets are cut from plastic soda bottles which is then covered with colourful thread that you see hanging. You can choose 2 colours for each bracelet - one for the background, and one for the name.

Aline also ordered some (US$2 each) for her daughters-in-law and granddaughter and here you can see Thary making them. He ties the thread to his toe and starts weaving. You can already see the words CECILE being formed. Thary is completely self-taught. He did not read books or watch Youtube videos to learn how to make the letters. He figured it out all on his own. Very clever -- I can't do it!

A happy Aline and an even happier Thary (He told me Aline was his only customer that night - it's low season so things are a bit slow for us all). If you are in Siem Reap, do drop by to give Thary a pat on the back for being such an entrepreneur - and don't forget to buy his bracelets!

Broken chair

I took this photo to show people that nothing is quickly thrown away in Cambodia. Everything is used until it absolutely has got no life left. I contrast this with Singapore, with its throwaway culture. I know people who will throw or give away a pair of shoes once the heels are scruffed. I've even received donations of clothes from Singaporeans - with tags still intact!

Anyway you can see this plastic chair has been sewn together with wire after it broke in places, to extend its life.

The funny thing was where I saw the chair.

Here! Outside ABA bank on Sivatha in Siem Reap. You'd think a bank would have enough money to replace a broken chair...

I love starving artists

So do I - that's why I don't give them any money, lol.
(Spotted in downtown Siem Reap.) 

Happy with Tandem Bike

is quit funny. New addition to Siem Reap. So far I have only seen a Caucasian man with his son riding one. Looks fun.

More Siem Reap graffiti

Almost 2 years ago I wrote about graffiti art appearing in Siem Reap. This was the first that I noticed. Since then, they have been popping up everywhere. I like the colours and think they brighten up the place. I have been trying to find them all. This one is on Sivatha, near the florist (there is only one).

This one is just opposite Pub Street in the old market area, just round the corner from the U-Care pharmacy.

This is in The Lane, behind Pub Street. It says "Thank You (aur kun) Siem Reap" 

The names are Sopheara (Khmer), Taz and Katherine (not Khmer). I guess this was a Cambodian-Western collaboration. Aw-koon guys/gals ! :)

Then there was this...

some children's drawing on a wall next to this altar, which I found funny, lol.

Siem Reap shops

Slipper shop on the same road as the Handsome Man shop.

Cambodian fashion is very similar to Thai fashion. Bright bold colours and tight fitting.

The Camera Repair shop is next to the bottled water shop.

A new luxury watch shop on Sivutha Boulevard

Wedding cake house on the road to Psar Leu

fitting for a bakery!

Satellite TV (and World Cup) in Siem Reap

This is the cable TV company in Siem Reap,  RSCTV. We get 85 channels for US$5 a month. One of the best deals in Cambodia, which made me wonder if many of the channels were pirated - duh. These are the satellite dishes used to receive all the channels. Ch'ran, ch'ran! ("many, many").

The company is great - very professional. Every month their guys come on a motorbike to the house to collect the money (now why can't the electricity people do the same, saving me this trouble?). They always give us a receipt for the $5. We had some problems with channels 80-84 (84 is my beloved Al Jazeera) and told them when they came round for the bill. They returned an hour later to fix the problem. Service is very good and we are very happy with our cable TV.

My poor (ok, not so poor) friends in Singapore have to pay a minimum of US$50 to watch the World Cup, but we get it for free (via Malaysian, Thai and Vietnamese sports channels). The high prices led to public demonstrations, rare in tightly controlled Singapore. Yes, Singaporeans are serious about their soccer, lol.

Stretch limo in Cambodia

You don't expect to see this sort of thing in Cambodia, one of the world's poorest countries, where 77.7% of the population live on less than US$2 a day, 59% have no access to safe drinking water, 83% without access to basic sanitation and the life expectancy is only 58 years. (See http://www.dollaraweek.org/learn)

But in touristy Siem Reap, where the Amansara (Angelina Jolie supposedly stays here when she is in town) charges upwards of US$750 a night, you can find things like this stretch limo. Initially very jarring to the senses - but I'm not surprised anymore.

The limo belongs to Sokha hotel, owned by the Sokimex group, owned by Oknha Sok Kong, who has close ties with the ruling Cambodian People's Party.  FYI - Sokimex shares in the revenue from the sales of tickets to Angkor Wat, the other beneficiary being the Apsara Authority. (See here and here). Currently, Sokha hotels is building an US$80 million, 600 room, 5 star hotel in Sihanoukville which has come under some scrutiny. It has also started construction on a 800 room, 5 star hotel in Phnom Penh.

Anyway, just so you know - you can travel in style like a hiphop mogul, even in Cambodia.

Me and Mavis on NewsRadio 93.8 today

I just got an email from Shaffiq, a super nice reporter from MediaCorp who visited Siem Reap last week and contacted me about an interview. I was so surprised to see him sitting on the floor of the Bloom shop when I went to meet him. How atypical of a Singaporean! (Usually the Singaporeans I meet in Cambodia are a little haughty, and obsessed about cleanliness - no way would they sit on a shop floor in Cambodia!) Straightaway I knew I would like this guy. :)

We had a great time, having dinner and drinks almost every day he was here. Shaffiq fell in love with Siem Reap and says he will be back.

Anyway, I introduced Shaffiq to Mavis whom I've written about before. She runs Touch A Life, a food programme here in Siem Reap. Mavis just rented a house this month in order to start some sort of a soup kitchen for the rubbish collectors and other poor and needy people.

Shaffiq interviewed us on tape and edited it for the radio programme - it wasn't 'live', thank goodness! I learnt it was broadcast on radio in Singapore this morning and Shaffiq emailed me the transcript. Here it is:

10/06/10 Helping the needy in Cambodia FTR
Siem Reap, a major gateway to Cambodia, is only about two hours away by plane from Singapore.
It still has the feel of a charming sleepy little town.
However, this may change - thanks to a rise in tourist traffic as the majestic Angkor Wat lies only a stone's throw away.
Despite this development, Cambodia remains one of the poorest countries in Asia.
Many of its people are still picking up the pieces after enduring years of hardship - from a war with Vietnam that only ended in 1989 to the atrocities of the Khmer Rouge regime that left some 1.7 million people dead.
Even though most Singaporeans are content to just join the droves of tourists over the ruins of Angkor, some have decided to reach out to needy Cambodians and help them get on with their lives.
Shaffiq Alkhatib caught up with two Singaporean women who are doing just that - and are calling Siem Reap home.
IN: Tucked away...
OUT:...938LIVE
DUR: 5min 21s
TITLE: 10/06 Cambodia FTR
===============
Tucked away along a little street in downtown Siem Reap lies a shop that's only slightly bigger than a bedroom in a typical HDB flat.
But unlike the many stores in the area that mainly offer trinkets to tourists, Bloom sells colourful, handmade bags made from recycled materials such as rice sacks and animal-feed bags.
Its owner is 38-year-old Singaporean, Diana Saw.
She used to draw a six-figure annual salary when she was the regional General Manager for an Australia-based multi-national publishing company.
But a trip to Siem Reap in April 2006 with a friend from a non-government organisation or NGO against child trafficking changed everything.
The NGO, called Riverkids, is run by a Singaporean couple.
"During that four-day holiday, I encountered a mother who sold her newborn baby boy for a hundred US dollars. How can you know about things that go in your own backyard and go on with your lives? And so I decided because I don't have children and I don't have a mortgage, I could easily just move. So I convinced my partner that this is the right thing to do. Now I don't earn anything because I started Bloom with my own savings and I wanted the money to go to the Khmers. But as a business, I've learnt you can't run business that way. So at some point, I have to pay myself a salary."
Ms Saw returned to Cambodia a month later to rent a house.
Another month later, she settled there.
She stresses that Bloom is not an NGO but a social enterprise.
She has hired 15 local Cambodians to make the bags in Phnom Penh and two to take care of the shop in Siem Reap.
" To me, I feel the NGOs here, a lot of them have not left a legacy. If they did their jobs well, they could up and leave and the country will still be able to operate without them. But I don't think that's the case in Cambodia. If the NGOs were to up and leave, a lot of people will lose their jobs and it's still one of the poorest countries in the world. So for me, I want the benefits to accrue to the poorest...And the other thing I noticed is when people get donations, they have this welfare mentality. And I think if people need jobs, you give them jobs. Teach a man to fish rather than throw him a fish."
Ms Saw pays her employees a minimum of 70 US dollars for a 40-hour work week.
In Cambodia, similar workers usually get 20 US dollars less and they slog for 48 hours a week.
"I follow Singapore law. They have 14 days sick leave a year, plus 14 days public holidays. So they've got 28 days paid annual holidays. And that's why nobody resigns from Bloom basically."
Business may be "blooming" now.
But Ms Saw still encounters cultural differences that sometimes hinder her noble intentions.
"For me, it's always the culture. You adapt or you'll die! If people are interested in doing business in Cambodia, you really need a very good local partner or friend. I was very lucky. Even my landlords have been very helpful to me. People have been very generous. I've got many good Cambodian friends - from my landlords to my staff to even former staff. They've come back to help me whenever I have a problem."
Another Singaporean, 55-year old Mavis Ching, prepares free meals for the needy in Siem Reap.
She usually finds it difficult to communicate effectively with the Cambodians as they speak Khmer, and she isn't fluent in the language.
"But there are enough people who I know speak enough English to help me by. Otherwise, when you reach out from the heart, it's easy to get things done."
The former piano teacher is the founder of an NGO, called Touch A Life.
Ms Ching, who arrived in Cambodia in June 2008, now whips up about 2,500 meals a month.
She would then hop on a motorcycle to distribute them to the residents of nearby villages.
"In Cambodia, I cook meals which I offer to poor people. I think they deserve to have a free meal once in a while. They're vegetarian-based meals, vegetables with proteins coming from eggs and tofu. I had two different kitchens to cook in. One was in the kitchen of a hospitality school - the Shinta Mani Hotel and another one was in the kitchen of a disabled group of people. I decided to help them by having them cook for me so it was a means of income for them. But now the hotel is being renovated for expansion, so that one is out and the disabled people have moved to the village."
Because of these changes, Ms Ching has decided to use her own kitchen.
She wants to operate a meal centre from her own home this month to serve about 100 needy people a day.
Ms Ching will open her doors to them three times a week.
Two days will be set aside to distribute food to the villagers.
"I can tell you the total expenses, including transport, it's about 1,500 US dollars a month. (And where do you get your income from?) It's from well-wishers, friends, family, people who feel moved to help."
Some of her Cambodian friends pitched in - they transformed the verandah of her rented bungalow into an eating area for the needy.
They also built four wooden tables and eight benches, and transformed her backyard into a kitchen area spacious enough to prepare large amounts of food.
It also comes with a sturdy new shelter with a thatched roof so that Ms Ching and her volunteers can cook in comfort.
Ms Ching and Ms Saw are glowing examples of individuals who have left the comfort of home to do their part to help the needy.
I'm Shaffiq Alkhatib for 938LIVE.
end

Touch a Life Food Programme in Siem Reap

I took these photos on April 6, when I went with my friend Mavis on one of her many trips to feed poor people in Mondul 3 district, a very poor area in Siem Reap. Tourists are often surprised to learn that Siem Reap is one of the poorest provinces in the country. Step out of Siem Reap town, barely 30 mins away on a motorbike, and you will see the crushing poverty. (In 2008, I wrote about New Hope, an NGO operating in Mondul 3).  


Mavis (in the middle) is a Singaporean mother of two who has lived in Malacca, the former Portugese colonial town in Malaysia, for two decades. She started a food programme in Malacca and brought the programme to Siem Reap about 2 years ago, which was when we first met. 


The beauty on the back of the motorbike is Jesseca Liu, a popular Malaysian-born, Singapore-based, actress. Jesseca had come for a visit with her family but got stuck without a flight out (long story). It was funny, we took her for a massage in Siem Reap and all the massage girls insisted on taking a photo with Jesseca cos they recognised her as Ruan Mian Mian, the Vietnamese bride in a Singapore drama series called "Portrait of Home" (同心圆). The show was dubbed in Khmer and shown on TV. Everywhere we went Khmers would gawk and say she is sa'at. They especially loved her fair skin. Having met her I can confirm she really is beautiful, inside and out.

This is one of my heroes, Bel, a Cambodian man who lost his right leg when he stepped on a landmine when he was nine. Bel helps Mavis by delivering the food she cooks to the villagers. I was so touched seeing him ride his moto holding on to his crutch with the packets of food strapped to the back of the bike. 

Bel in front, Mavis and Jess on second bike. I'm behind them on another moto, balancing sitting side saddle and taking these photos. Yes, I am almost local!

The first stop. You can see why. A malnourished girl with her mom who has 3 other children. Boxes of food (vegetarian, Mavis believes it is best) for the whole family.

Food for the families identified as very poor

Here you can see Bel, on his crutch, feeding the children. I am always touched when I see these photos. Really, to the point of tears. Here is a man whose life must have been hard. He told me he remembers bleeding, bleeding all over the place and the trip to the hospital took over a day and when he arrived, he was stinking from sweat and blood and no wonder the nurses weren't kind. 

And look at Bel now. Only in his twenties and a proud man helping his fellow Khmers. I know I can be cynical and doubt the good foreigners like me are doing for this country because Khmers can be so manipulative and corrupt. But people like Bel put me to shame. He still has a hard life but despite this he tries to help other disabled people whom he takes in and feeds. I want to do more for people like Bel. They really do deserve better.

Wee happy children with wee packets of crackers.

Where the children live. Leaf roof, zinc and cardboard walls. Where is the toilet I hear you ask. There is none. They do everything in the bushes. No running water either. Water is from common wells some distance away.

Nothing is wasted. Leftover rice is dried in the sun and fed to the animals. Mavis will be back Tues and I'll post more photos of our next trip. Read more about Bel and Mavis here at atablefortwo.com.au. If you would like to donate to help Mavis please go to Touch A Life. If you would like the money to go to Bel and his KILT (Khmer Independent Life Team), please let Mavis know.