Written By Colin & Jessica
We have had such an exciting week of adventures, but it started with an over 6 hour drive from Battambang all the way to the Mangrove forests near Kampot. We stopped for lunch in Kampot at a delicious noodle place, and then we arrived in the mangrove community where we met Annie and Sal. That night, we all dressed up in costumes for Halloween and did our own trick or treating. It was so fun seeing everyone come up with costumes from the random things we had.
The next morning, we got up and set out on the river to collect Mangrove seeds. We collected over 500 in just a couple of hours, and after that we returned for a superb lunch. After our rest time back at our bungalows, we rolled up our sleeves and bagged the many seeds that we had collected in the morning, which we did to keep them safe before they were ready to be planted. The next day, we loaded up in a van and headed out to Kampot, where we met back up with Annie for paddle boarding. After a morning spent on the water, we drove out to La Plantation to learn about the process of growing pepper. We toured around the plantation and learned about some of the environmentally friendly pesticide alternatives. After that, we took refuge in the shade for some tasting of their peppers and other herbs they grew. The next day, we started with the familiar task of collecting Mangrove seeds, collecting over 400 this time. Later, after lunch, we went out on the water again to plant the Mangrove seeds that had matured enough.
The next day, we spent a little time potting seeds again before going back to Kampot to return to our noodle place, where we said our final goodbyes to Sal and Annie. After that, we got back into a van to go all the way to the nations capital of Phnom Penh, where we had dinner at our lovely hostel before going to bed.
Our first day in the big city, we took a quick trip across the city to visit Future Forum, an NGO dedicated to encouraging young people to think for themselves and express their own opinions.
The next day was heavy, as we visited the S21 prison and killing fields. We learned a lot more about Cambodia’s recent civil war and genocide, and we all took moments to respect the pain that this beautiful country went through.
On our final day in the city, we went to another NGO, this one called Friend Future Factory. It is an international organization that encourages travelers to be more conscious and considerate of the children in the nations they visit. The NGO also finds ways to support local communities by providing training and skills to local people. We ended our final day with an exciting night of karaoke at our hostel.
What were three of the top highlights this week?:
The first highlight of the week was definitely Halloween. Maddie and Katie dressed up as baddie bugs, Garret dressed up as a minion, Grant was his alter ego, Sapphire, Jamie was a leopard, Kate was a princess, Caroline was a cat, Colin was the sun in the sky, and Jessie was tired and went to bed early. We had so much fun trick or treating at the OE’s doors and dance partying. The next highlight was collecting mangrove seeds. In total, we collected about 1000 seeds, and it was so amazing to boat and swim through the mangroves. The squishy mud was fun to play in, and searching the trees for seeds was a good game of I spy. Lastly, everyone absolutely loved paddle boarding. There was one big board that held four people, and everyone else got their own smaller board. We went out on a small lake and then went up an estuary, where we enjoyed the nature and then did a group check in at the top. At the end, we all hopped in the water to cool off. Overall, we had an amazing time connecting with nature through the mangroves, and we were hesitant to leave.
What is something you or the group is challenged by this week?
Although this week was beautiful, it might also have been one of our most challenging weeks of the program so far. We had to do some pretty last minute planning to get ready for student directed travel week. This lead to some pretty late nights and some tough decisions to make, including giving up our dreams of a kitchen. Also, many of us were sick or not feeling well at the beginning of the week, leading our group to feel very small. However, we fought through it and we are leaving Cambodia a lot healthier and ready for whatever comes next.
What’s on for next week? What are you looking forward to? 🌎
After such an exciting week of adventures in both cities and forests, now you must wonder “where to next?” Well wonder no more because we are in for a packed week at an eco village and community. We will be learning about how the people of Gaia Ashram live in an environmentally friendly world by minimizing waste and keeping harmful materials out of their community. It is a beautiful space full of nature and friendly people!
