New Hope Cambodia

Yesterday, we rode in a tuk tuk down the main drag of Siem Reap and took a right on a dirt road across from a huge 5-star hotel. Ten minutes later we were in a tiny village of straw houses. The people here have a completely different life than the one down the road. There is barely any food. No running water (and what's there isn't clean). No electricity. Very few jobs besides collecting trash for pennies and karaoke (sex) work. The poverty cycle here is entrenched and, without help, insurmountable. Most families have one parent left, and that parent works 12 hours a day, seven days a week to earn food. Children have to work in order to help buy enough food to prevent starvation. There's no way a family can afford the bicycle and uniforms necessary to get their children to the local school. And without education, there's no hope for a different future.

We came to the village to visit New Hope, a non-profit that is throwing a wrench in the poverty cycle. New Hope was started by Kemsour, a man from the village, and is run by Kerry, an Australian woman who came on vacation to volunteer and didn't leave. They have started a school with English, Khmer and vocational lessons, and a free medical clinic that treats 200 people a week. Kids come to New Hope for school and women come to learn a trade like sewing so they leave the sex trade.

The crux of New Hope's funding is sponsorship. Individuals (like you) sponsor families in the village. By giving $25-45 a month, a family is supported with rice, salt, medical supplies and a little bit of cash. It's enough that the kids can stop working and go to school instead. The families do not become dependent on foreign help - it's just enough to raise them above complete and absolute poverty. Just enough that, if they work hard, their futures could actually change.

It's hard to explain how it felt to visit with the children and walk through the village. The kids were so happy and adorable. They were hanging all over us - each of us had two kids on each hand, one hugging us from the front and one from the back. They just wanted a little affection, and they were so excited to see new barangs (foreigners). We felt no pity. The only emotions we could feel were happiness and hope because these families have a chance to get out.

Please think about sponsoring a family if you can. Take a look at the families that are still unsponsored on the New Hope website. Or just give a one time donation, there are a lot of other things they need.

It's really an amazing organization, and as far as I could see there are basically no administrative costs. It's all going to the villagers with a focus on education and health.

That's all for now. New posts to follow this week.

This one's for Mike

This post is in honor of our favorite popcorn eating guy. We found the only bar in Siem Reap that serves free popcorn and we chowed down. Plus the beer is only 50 cents. Maybe Mike and Jenny will be coming to visit.....

Photos!

Hi! Check out a bunch of cool photos Keith took when we went to a nearby silk farm and a temple buried in the jungle. They're on Keith's photo blog because uploading them again would take another week. Enjoy!

Daily Details

Hello! This is Lynsey writing. I decided to write a domestic post to give everyone an idea of our daily life here. Hold on to your hats

Keith and I have a corner room on the third floor of our guesthouse. One window looks out onto the roof of a very nice, very expensive hotel next door. The other looks over the courtyard downstairs. The little roofed area is where we eat meals, usually two a day. The other we have in town. A meal is roughly $3. It's only more if you eat somewhere they have you trapped - a nice hotel or something. We feel completely ripped off if a restaurant charges $5-6 for a dish, it seems ridiculous here. Apparently we've adjusted to the price scale in Cambodia.

So, a typical day. We wake up around 6:30 am, and for whatever reason, we're always starving here, so we head downstairs to the little restaurant. The food is great - eggs, bread, fruit, yogurt, pancakes - anything you want. They also make delicious shakes. We asked what's in the shakes, because I suspected I was drinking ice cream for breakfast. The answer: fruit, ice, and fresh milk. That made me feel better. That's a watermelon shake in the picture. Also, fresh milk is what we have to ask for here. Most Khmer people drink sweet (condensed) milk in their coffee. I made that mistake the first day, it was tooth-achey.

This first week, we haven't been very busy with work, so we usually plan an excursion for the morning, a temple or museum, and then get back to the guesthouse for lunch. By that time it's much too hot to be outside anyway. After lunch (a sandwich, curry, or stir fry) we head upstairs and turn on the air conditioning.

We avoid the heat with emails, books or a movie (we have HBO and Cinemax in English, I told you we aren't exactly roughing it). The only rule: NO NAPPING. Jetlag has been tenacious. Once it's cooled down, we head back out for a walk and dinner in town.

The national dish in Cambodia (besides rice) is amok - pieces of fish or meat baked in coconut milk with spices. When you look at it, you can't really tell what is it, but it's completely delicious. At least one of us eats it each day. I also eat a lot of vegetable curries. Anything with vegetables. The other options are usually Western and add up to a lot of white bread.

Then to bed. We're struggling by 9:00 om and by 9:30 pm, we're out. Hence the 6:30 am wake up every morning.

That's it! Pretty standard, but I had a request for daily life details. As projects pick up, we'll fill in more information. I also promise more food pictures soon!