24th July

The normal 7am wake up for school is beginning to seem like a lie in as today was our third consecutive day of an early rise in order to get a 9 hour bus from Siem Reap to Bangkok. We were on the coach by 730 am and had reached the Cambodian border by 1230. We jumped off the coach and got in the queue for customs. Following this the whole group walked about 500m through ‘no man’s land’ and in to our new country. Once in Thailand we waited for our second bus to Bangkok. To say the minibuses were tight-squeezing would be a bit of an understatement however 5 and a half hours later we arrived in Bangkok.

Arriving in Bangkok at 7pm meant that the city was buzzing with atmosphere. The city was lit up and the streets were packed full of stall sellers who were selling all sorts of things from clothes to cooked grasshoppers and spiders. The whole team was eager to eat out in one of the many restaurants that were alive with music. The favourite meal of the evening amongst the team seemed to be Pad Thai. During dinner Cliff and the teachers decided to have some fun by setting each member of the team their own personal challenge. For those amongst you who imagine that these challenges are to be self reflective and meaningful I’m sorry to say that the challenges stretch from going up to another world challenge group and doing a ginger justice rap to doing ballet in the middle of the hostel lobby and of course a typical thing to do in Thailand, eat a scorpion! Whether these personal challenges are meant to be meaningful or just public embarrassment and the teachers own personal enjoyment is still being debated. (Ed. Hmmmm??? Lol)

After dinner we were all very tired after our long day so we made our way back to the hostel in order to get a good night’s sleep and a lie-in in the morning Yeeha!



Bethan Lance

The sun that never rose

23rd July

4am. That’s how early we had to get up on our penultimate day in Cambodia so that we would be at Angkor Wat by sunrise. As we made our way to the temple the clouds in the sky were becoming more and more prominent. After a much needed breakfast we stood prepared to watch the sunrise over the iconic landmark, but it never did. Due to the mass of dense cloud in the sky the sun wasn’t visible and the sky simply became slightly brighter. A huge disappointment after the incredibly early start. (Ed. but we were standing in front of one of the world’s most amazing religious buildings :-))

We then had the opportunity to look around the temple itself. Both the beautifully detailed architecture and the gorgeous views from the top of the building were something to admire and be amazed by. We then proceeded to visit two more temples Bayon and Ta Prohm. The first temple had large faces carved into the rock which were both amazing and a little bit creepy. You felt like you were being stared at the entire time. The last temple we visited was the one where tomb raider was shot. It was amazing with plants and roots of trees breaking through the rock making the temple even more mesmerising.

We then returned to the hostel and relaxed until the evening when we made our way to the night markets. We split off into groups to explore and some even went to see a Cambodian circus. The markets we so pretty with all the light shining and stalls selling beautiful clothes and gifts. Money was spent not only on memories of Cambodia for ourselves but gifts for those back home. Making the most of the time we had left in Cambodia, when we reached the hostel most stayed up to play cards or chat about our time in the country before getting some sleep before we left the next day.



Georgia Stratford

Arrival at Siem Reap - Luxury

22nd July

Today was out last day at Makak Village. After expecting porridge for breakfast we quickly learnt that this wasn't to be the case as Wan had cooked traditional Cambodian curry complete with noodles and chicken - there was no denying that it was a tasty dish but most of the team's (Ed. Not me :-)) appetite had subsided a little from the previous four days of rice and noodles plus the fact that it was six thirty in the morning didn't really help.

We then headed to the school for a final farewell and during our journey discovered that the local children decided to graffiti it with a triangle before the cement had set - this was less aggressive than graffiti back home but was painful for Gini to see :'( (Ed. look up ‘The Youth of Today’ quotation by Socrates) We left the school with a heartfelt goodbye from the headteacher and gave promises of future support to the project - excellently spoken by our leader of the day Georgia W ;).

There had been some heavy rain the night and the road (made out of mud) we had to travel on had some pretty deep potholes - almost doubling the size of Farnham Lane's! (Ed. I’ll take your word for that one ladies) Unbelievable, yes but true. So after a fun yet terrifying drive to Siem Reap we were faced with a dilemma - we were booked into the wrong guest house which was next door. The situation was quickly resolved by Cliff, Sarath (our in country advisor) and our super duper dynamic accommodation team ( woop woop :P) (Ed. I wanted ‘woop woops too :-(). We finally checked in, grabbed some insane fruit shakes and had a quick dip in the pool followed by an hour or so of sunbathing.

Afterwards we headed off to view the sunset over Angkor Wat temple - the largest religious building in the world. Unfortunately after a steep walk up a set of hills and Miss Mac having to use Hatty's cut off trouser bottoms as sleeves we were told "no sunset today" as a result of predicted torrential rain which then greeted us on our way down to our tuk tuk's. After feeling a bit down we were ravenous for dinner and were expecting all our meals to be prepared as we had booked them in advance. Our belly's were eventually satisfied two and a half hours later - the team was not happy. After some complaining (Ed. tactful negotiations) by Annie and Jaime, they managed to get our meal with 40% off which soothed the tense atmosphere. After chatting with another world challenge team staying in the same guest house we headed off to bed for an early 4am wake up to see the sunrise over Ankgor Wat. Despite having a few setbacks in one day the team tried as hard as they could to have an optimistic outlook for the days ahead. (Ed. all sent to challenge us! :-))

Susie Kelly

Sad to be Leaving

Sorry folks...we had a problem with Saturday 20th's blog...not mentioning any names but (Helaina!!! lol) forgot to save the word document in which Ginni had written it.  We'll see if we can get something out later...

Sunday 21st July

Today was our last day in Mkak village, so after having our porridge and condensed milk, which we were all begginng to enjoy... IT WASN'T RICE!!

We gathered the things we would need for the day and started to walk to the school. However, as it was a Sunday we were worried that there were not going to be any children at school, but as they spotted us walking up to school they ran over and followed us with their beaming faces, excited to spend another day with us.

When we got to the school we set up a rounders pitch and taught the children how to play, however, not sure how much they understood of what was actually going on, but they soon got the idea of hitting the ball and running. The main thing was seeing the smiles and the enjoyment they got out of it as it was obviously something they have never played before.

After playing rounders for a good few hours we decided to continue with construction as we also found this very rewarding once we completed a certain stage. We worked as hard today as we had for the whole week today to ensure that all the cement work and the wall we were asked to complete for the new classroom was finished. We were all so determined and wanted to make a difference to our short time which we had stayed in Mkak, and we all know how lucky we are back at home to have things like education given to us on a plate!! (Ed. and parents running around for us??? :-))

After having another filling lunch cooked by Wun, our cook, we headed back again to the school to finish the final bit of the construction. We put the school’s logo and name on the wall, with help from Gini (Ed. our resident artist) engraving (using a nail) it into the wall, it looked so good next to all the other sections of the wall!!

We then packed up all our belongings ready to leave early the next morning. Some of us felt particularly sad to leave the children, but knew we could always come back in the future!

Helaina Thomas

All's Well out in Rural Cambodia

(Ed. (Cliff) Hi Everyone..Well I've just come away from the village where our community project is located to get this blog out to you all...This took a little effort as the village, first off, has no electricity and this 'town' where I am right now is 13 km away.  The journey was actually a little perilous as it is completely along a mud track...and following yesterdays and last nights rain a bit slippery. Just to reasure parents, ALL the girs are doing well and already overcoming fears....mainly related to toilets and food(as you're about to read about :-))...Enjoy and will be back on in two days time when we get to Siem Reap.)

17th July – Buses, rats and squeaky shoes


Today we were woken up at 7, a little early for some peoples liking, then had to pack away all our things before breakfast as it was time to say goodbye to Phnom Penh and the 11 happy backpackers. It was sad to leave such friendly staff and we soon realized although the rooms weren't amazing it would be some of the last luxuries we would have until we are back in more built up areas. So we said goodbye to toilets and hello to squatters.

After a mad rush to our first bus we all piled in, as we were driven to the coach which we would be cooped up in for 6 hours! We all found little things that annoyed us on the journey there like; squeaky toddler shoes, a man’s phone that received a text every two minutes and people shouting down the phone. Our first break came as a surprise as we all had a 15 minute lunch break which gave us the chance to stretch our legs and discover some of the strange food on offer. Sadly we didn't end up trying fried locusts and spiders. Before we got back on the coach Rhiannon got a last goodbye to sanitary living as she found a rat swimming in the pool of water in the squatters.

At our next stop, 4 hours later, we were all in a panic about which stop we actually had to get off at, as most of us thought that we must have gone past it! However we got back on coach and after some reassurance from our Project organizer we carried on our way with one more hour left to go. Typically when it was nearly time to get off the coach it started raining heavily causing a mad dash for cover with our rucksacks when the coach finally stopped. This caused a lot of confusion as we nearly went away with an extra rucksack. But our travelling wasn’t over yet! We now got into another bus to take us to the village; we all looked outside the windows anxiously anticipating what the village was going to be like.

After we arrived at Makak Village we were all shown our room in the homestay, which was hot but cute as we were all staying in one large room and they had given us fans as a welcome present. Unpacking and erecting the mosquito nets seemed to take up the majority of our time and before long it was time for dinner. We all sat down to a delicious meal of rice, chicken, eggs and vegetables which seemed to go down well after a lunch consisting of a nutella sandwich! We all then started to wind down preparing for bed, but before that as a group we conducted a team review, describing our best and worst thing so far. We all laughed listening to each other’s comments. Just before bed, trauma struck, above the door to the outside toilet was a giant spider causing lots of people to scream (Ed. Not me folks...you understand ;-)) and made them unable to enter alone!

We are now are going to sleep waiting to see what tomorrow will bring as we listen to dogs howling.

Its 9.00pm!!!

Emily Scott



18th July - First day on site at the Project  – Rice, Rice and Runs
Today we woke up at 7, after a long, and for some a disturbed sleep. Many were kept awake by the sound of dogs howling, Rhiannon sleep talking and Cliff snoring (ED I never heard a thing ;-)). As we got up we discovered we had an unwelcome visitor, a cat! However Miss Mac happily grabbed it by the neck and chucked it out the windows onto a metal roof, it was not happy.

We then came downstairs for a typical Cambodian breakfast; it was interesting to say the least. Rice porridge, with chicken, river fish, garlic and chives. Some took to the fast shovelling method whilst others gingerly nibbled bits of their spoons...... but for everyone (apart from Cliff) found it 'too rural too soon'. (Ed. ok so I had seconds !!!! lol)

After breakfast some people went for a run through the village whilst others took to another bucket shower. We then were met by Piseth (the project host) who took us around the village. We went to the school and discussed what had to be built over the few days we were at the village (a wall and a part of the building), and then went to look at the organic farm that is being built. Whilst walking around the village the atmosphere is nothing anyone has experienced before. Every child comes to greet you at the entrance of their homes, shouting and waving hello. They are always so happy to see you and always seem so happy, even though they have harsh living conditions. (Ed. The nearest electricity from the village is 12km away)

After our tour we headed back to our accommodation for some lunch, which again was rice! (Ed. get use to it ladies lol ). This time it was delicious with potatoes, more vegetables and curried chicken. After the little amount people ate at breakfast, we were grateful for such a yummy meal.

At 2 o’clock we headed back down to the village to start some of our project work. Some got stuck in with the building whereas others played games with the children. The language barrier was hard at first but with some dramatic actions and numerous demonstrations we played games of duck-duck goose, splat, under over and hide and seek. We also learnt some of their names and were shocked to discover one or two girls were older than some of the team, 17...They looked about 12!

We then left the school and came back to our rooms for the evening. We all had a much needed shower, some went for the bucket shower and some went for the outside tank, both were very cold and refreshing though! Our evening meal was yet again, more rice (we think it may become our staple diet for the next few days (Ed. yup!!!)) but with pork, beef and more vegetables, once again delicious and was a great meal after a great, yet tiring, day.
Millie Fletcher

Friday 18 July - Rice, rice go away come back another day (or not)

This morning we had to wake up early (6.00 am) in order to get to school on time (7.30). For breakfast...yup you guessed it... it was rice again... with egg, hoorah! The addition of an egg cheered everyone up a lot. We all gathered our stuff and briskly walked down the track to school. Obviously news had spread that we were in the village as there were a lot more children at school today than yesterday even though there were no teachers there. Our large world challenge group dispersed into three groups of five or six people to do either teaching, sports or construction- building the school wall.

The lessons consisted of teaching the pupils to count and write numbers up to twelve (this proved difficult!). The construction team helped build the school wall by laying the foundations. The sports team were helping the children to learn new games and to throw and catch between each other. All these tasks made the groups feel as if they are making a real difference to the community, and the work men really appreciated the extra hands from the construction group.
At ten o’clock we all left the school as the children go home for lunch due to the heat. We arrived back shattered and very excited to finally have some communal snacks – crisps, fruit, nuts and biscuits.


Lunch was really good although it was rice and chicken again. For pudding we had sweet rice which is just rice, condensed milk and bananas on top. I’ve never eaten so much rice in my life. After lunch the sky clouded over and it looked like it was going to rain. People who had been doing construction in the morning had really sore shoulders so a few people made a massage circle to try and ease the pain.

At two O’clock six people went off to do some more construction while others chilled, chatted and did some cleaning. At the school the construction people continued to build the wall until we were surrounded by children who were desperate to play any games with us and all the toys we had brought to the school – balls, skipping ropes and rackets.

Then the rain hit! We were stood in the pouring rain loving the feeling of cooling down. We were all so relieved to have some rain so we bought our soap outside and showered in the rain. We all found this so refreshing...what an experience!

We then all anxiously awaited dinner hoping it was not going to be rice again. Guess what... it was rice and chicken this time with the addition of some pineapple...The food is actually really nice and they try hard to meet our western taste. We had a good bonding session where we all played Uno, until it got too competitive. Now we are all in the toilets brushing our teeth and keeping an eye out for the rat we previously found in the toilet.


Sophie Duckworth

Bartering and Royalty - Phnom Penh Highlights

After breakfast this morning we all walked to the market. The market was an amazing experience and we each bought fruit and some of us bought balloon pants (Ed. Baggy pants worn by the locals). The market was very busy and so we had to watch our money belts as Cliff said people can easily steal them and cut them off. (Ed. The girls did well :-))

When we came back from the market, we had lunch which was very tasty; the majority of us had toasties! After lunch, we all took tuk-tuk's to The Royal Palace of Cambodia. The Palace was very beautiful on both the outside and the inside. We were all slightly disappointed that the King didn't come out and see us (Ed. He does actually live there and apparently he fly’s ‘The Royal Flag’ when he’s at home...Perfect if anyone wanted to pop him off and didn’t want to waste time hanging around lol ). Half way through the tour, we spotted some small monkeys. Most of us were excited at seeing Cambodian monkeys apart from Georgia(Ed. and me...smelly horrible things!) who backed away extremely quickly. (Ed. Hattie is right the palace is a truly beautiful place located in the middle of chaos and poverty. The buildings surrounding it are dirty, basic and in need of repair. During the Pol Pot years, the palace was ransacked and many of the royal treasures were stolen, however, what was on display inside the buildings was impressive, including a 40 kg Buddha.)

After a tour around the Palace, we all travelled back in tuk-tuk's to the 11 Happy Backpackers.



Arriving back at the hostel, we all went back up to our rooms and got ready for supper at the hostel (Ed. The food is very good here). After supper, we sat there talking and playing cards. We all ordered tank tops and then went to have showers and get ready to sleep.


(Ed. We’re just about to set off to our project area 70km from Siem Reap, The Makak Village. I’m not sure what the WiFi or internet access will be so we may be quiet for a while...I will try my best to get information out to you but please remember...’No news is good news :-))


Hattie Shaw

The Killing Fields!

Today was our first full day in Phnom Penh. We all met on the roof terrace of our hostel at 9am to have breakfast. Most of us had lemon and sugar pancakes. (Ed. Not me! Lemon on anything is just wrong!) The morning was spent organising and planning for the days and actually for the weeks ahead. Some had to purchase a mobile phone to use in country, some had to research transport, some R & R activities and some had to try and contact our project host.

At 12pm we then travelled in tuk-tuks to the killing fields to learn more about Cambodian’s history. We each had our own headset with a man explaining what happened and what it was like at the time. We all walked around at our own pace. It was an emotional and depressing experience as we saw exactly where they were all buried and some of the skulls of the victims killed were arranged in a memorial building at the site. Clothes that they wore had also been collected and were gathered in a glass box for us to see. We also saw the tree where babies had been killed by being swung by their feet and bashed against it. I think most of us thought the area would be massive with just empty fields; however it turned out to be quite small with lots of trees surrounding each area. This was a worthwhile experience for us all and we all feel closer to the people of Cambodia knowing how they suffered in the hands of Pol Pot...the man that was to blame for everything.

After we had all finished walking around, we went back to the hostel in tuk-tuks and had lunch. By this time it was already 4pm. Whilst waiting for our food, some people played card games whilst others searched for more accommodation places or booked transport.



We were going to go to the markets but it started to chuck it down with rain (apparently there is a short storm every day at around 5pm) (Ed. today’s rain was on and off till 9.00 pm), so we then decided to go out later at 7pm and walk along the river in Phnom Penh to find a restaurant that we would be able to eat in. Before finding a restaurant we got stopped by a few7 year old boys wanting to sell us bracelets, so most of us brought bracelets from them. (Ed. The boys had heard every excuse possible as to why the girls didn’t want to buy bracelets...they were not taking ‘no’ for an answer...Bless them!)



It turned out to be harder than we thought to find a place for all 17 of us to eat, so some people went to a curry restaurant and others to the next door restaurant. Everyone seemed to be absolutely exhausted when we got back to the hostel so we all went straight to bed.

Maddie Barr