Week 3

This week has been diverse. The beginning of the week was extremely tiring as we were getting used to allot of new things, so both Beth and I had a bout of slightly teary culture shock. For the first 3 days we were getting to know the kids and began to adapt to their timetable.
The first screams, yells and jumping on the floor boards above, tend to be at an invigorating 5am sometimes earlier. We eat breakfast and then a section of the Kids leave for school at 7am. We spent the mornings playing with the kids at home, and watching the Magna teachers giving lessons and doing activities with the children. At eleven everyone returns to the orphanage for lunch which is greatly appreciated after a long morning. The afternoon consists of a siesta with the younger kids whilst the rest are at school and then more playing and activities followed by dinner at 5. The younger children have outside showers under a hose and any scabies wounds are painted with Iodine. Bethany and I crash into our beds at eight o'clock.
On Thursday and Friday we were relieved to be given some instructions, in English, of what we would be doing during the year and we were given a vague timetable. We will be teaching English and some computer skills, holding activities for the Kids at the orphanage and doing some administrative work in the hospital.

I am going to give the food I have been eating  section of its own; rice, rice, rice.
For breakfast we have rice with a small piece of meat and occasionally as a treat some egg. Lunch and dinner consists of , of course, rice with either a meat or fish stew. I have had some problems with the food as meat and I don't get on well, and this week our disagreements have reached a whole new level. The meat that we are given is not meat it is the bones and grizzle you would find in a butchers bin in England. So meal times have been a struggle. However there are some delicious sweet treats sold on street stalls just outside the orphanage gate. For example dumplings made from rice (though unrecognizably) sitting in coconut milk with coconut shavings.
Oh and i was persuaded to try cockroach, frog, crickets and ants! They didn't taste bad at all but it was a terrible experience psychologically.
At the weekend we stayed with Son, one of the Magna staff looking after us, and his wife, in Phnom Penh. They are both so so generous and really lovely, we stayed with them for two nights. We went to a classical concert on Friday, which was very impressive, and they took us to a gym and pool on Saturday. We were also introduced to some of their dominantly French friends. On Saturday night we ate dinner using a mixture of French, Khmer and English translations which was an entertaining challenge. We returned to the orphanage with high spirits after a very nice break.

The bed bugs are showing no signs of weakness, but I don't really mind. I have grown very fond of GH1 as the Kids are slightly older so I can talk to them a little and the Mas, though they speak no English, are really kind. I have even got used to sleeping practically on the floor, today I did sleep on the floor during my siesta.

Lots to say but the Tuk Tuk is leaving for GH2 soon.
Lots of love