IFIL Blog: Kambodscha hautnah

Cambodia is a country that bombards your senses. As you walk down the streets you will find markets giving way the smells of fresh cooked curries, fresh fish laying in baskets, incense, and of course, exhaust fumes. An old lady cracks an egg into a sizzling wok and gives you an intriguing look as you keep walking. Baskets are filled with mangoes, rambutans, jackfruit, mangosteen, durians, and the list goes on. Vendors walk down the streets with a pole slung over their shoulder, two baskets on either side full of these fruits. Motorcycles, mopeds, tuk-tuks, and oddly enough, LEXUS’s, honk their horns at each other in warning of their presence. Children come up to you and beg for money or try to sell you fake copies of the most popular western books like The Alchemist or Lonely Planet Cambodia. A meal can be had for anywhere from 50 cents to10 dollars, with the locals usually paying half the price of the foreigners. Bargaining is a way of life here and if you do not bargain, you will pay too much every single time. A good rule of thumb is to divide their first price by three and use that as your first offer, expecting to get a final price of about one half their original price. The constant buzz is present only in the main cities, where life takes a slower pace in the rest of the country. Alissa and I have now spent about two weeks in Cambodia, traveling the cities and the countryside. Our task is to organize a successful study trip for 9 students throughout Cambodia. This has been both educational, challenging, and fun. We have had chances to deal with the local people in everyday settings, using our Cambodian phone to call informed moto drivers we have found on the street, confirming the dates we have organized with them. Everyone is very friendly here and a pleasure to work with. One of the things it is important to remind yourself here is that everyone is just trying to make a living. Some common questions you will be asked as you walk down the street: “Hey you, tuk-tuk”(as the driver makes a flicking motion with his wrist, pretending to drive his moped), “Hey you, where you go? Moto? You want moto?”, or when arriving to town with a backpack on “Sir, Where you stay? I know great place! Riverfront! Cheap! Air conditioning! Balcony! Fan! 4 dollars!”. This may not seem too intimidating, but when you have 6 people saying the above sentences to you at the same time for 4 blocks, it can get on your nerves… We have organized visits with multiple NGO’s, individuals, and agencies dealing with all sorts of issues throughout Cambodia. This will help us fully understand the issues Cambodia has been faced with in the past and how they are being dealt with today and in the future. We will learn about the implications of the current tribunal in Cambodia, where Khmer Rouge leaders are currently being tried in the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) which we will be visiting on August 12th. We will speak with Khmer rouge survivors, writers, and leaders of NGO’s. Groups like DC-Cam (the Documentation Center for Cambodia), the ECCC, and the Center for Justice and Reconciliation will be explaining to us the full implications of the tribunal and its consequences for modern Cambodia. We will visit healthcare centers for women and children in the countryside. We have also organized a visit with the Red Cross in Siem Reap in order to learn about their community based health development program, aiming to give people access to clean water, health facilities, and educating them about nutrition. In addition to all of this, we have our itinerary packed with fun sights and activities. We expect the group to be “templed out” afterwards (a common term used by travelers describing the state of mind experienced after seeing temples, temples, and more temples!). We also plan to visit the Irrawaddy river dolphins (sadly close to extinction) in the northeastern town of Kratie (pronounced Kra-Cheh).Moving past Kratie and Phnom Penh we will visit old unused bamboo trains and the killing caves used by the Khmer Rouge. We also will be visiting museums, massive markets, shopping malls and of course the world famous Angkor Wat in Siem Reap!

The last two weeks have been a great experience and we wait in eager anticipation for the next two weeks with our fellow travelers. Our journey begins soon in Phnom Penh, expect another article once we are on the road with the group!

Trevor Simmons and Alissa Rosskopf

Ifil.ch, die Initiative für Interkulturelles Lernen, ist eine studentische Initiative und wurde im Jahr 2006 von Studierenden der Universität Bern, Genf und St.Gallen gegründet.

Dieses Jahr geht es unter anderem auch noch nach Palästina, Brasilien oder zur UNO nach New York. Students.ch ist für euch dabei und bloggt via IFIL aus aller Welt. Mehr Infos und diesjährige Destinationen findest du hier!