One of my favourite cities ... Phnom Pehn ... back for a great cause!

When: May 2015
Kids: Big Sister 11y (no twins, just mommy and Big Sister)
Flights: Hong Kong - Phnom Pehn - Hong Kong on Dragonair
Booked through: tickets on points and hotel booked directly after a Tripadvisor search. Decided on trying a different hotel for our 2nd trip to PP.

Big Sister was turning 11 ... and what do you buy an 11 year old? They have so much already. So instead of presents, it was going to be a mommy and Big Sister trip during a long weekend. Big Sister had to decide on where to go, as long as it wasn't too far. Several ideas were considered but in the end we decided on Phnom Pehn. Not just because we love PP (we do!) but also because we decided to visit our sponsorship child from Cambodian Children's Fund. We started sponsoring a boy (he's now 10 and we'll call him Y for now) 2 years ago when we came back from our second trip to Cambodia (visiting PP, Kampot and Kep). Cambodian Children's Fund is a fantastic charity and well rated to make sure the money we donate is actually spend on the what we want it spend on, in our case Y. I highly recommend sponsoring a child (it has been a great experience for our children as well) or donate to one of the other great initiatives because the options are endless.

The most important part of our visit was meeting Y and his friend (they always allow the child take a friend) and his translator (who also translates for approximately 60 other sponsored children) on Sunday morning. On Monday we visited several CCF locations before flying back home. Also, we had some great "big girls" time together with some great food, lots of swims and relaxation.

Friday
We arrived Saturday afternoon and had arranged a taxi via the hotel (The Plantation Hotel) for US$14. Traffic took forever, it was much busier than what we had previous experienced but I guess a Friday afternoon rush hour is never great! I've reviewed the hotel (and all the restaurants mentioned below) on Tripadvisor. The location is great, lovely pool area, spacious room, nothing super fancy but tastefully decorated, good value overall. Big Sister decided to take a dip in the pool before dinner which we had in the hotel since it was slightly late already and just easier at that point (plus it had air conditioning)!

Saturday
After a nice breakfast, we got a tuk tuk and headed to the Russian Market before it was getting too hot (the market is covered and it does get super hot). It's an OK market, but honestly it's a lot of crap you can buy anywhere in China and even the local stuff is pretty much more of the "same same". Nothing you cannot live without when you've lived in Asia for 7 years already and you don't have tons of space in your apartment anyway. We didn't buy anything, simply walked around (it was pretty hot already), they have a food market as well, it wasn't too busy yet because we were there early so that was definitely an advantage. On the way back the tuk tuk driver dropped us at 178 street where we visited Daughters of Cambodia's Sugar & Spice restaurant for a cool drink (and a great cause). We browsed in the store and had a foot (Big Sister) and neck / shoulder (me) massage. Not the best, but it was relaxing and the girls deserve the opportunity to change their lives around. Did some more shopping before heading to Romdeng restaurant where we had lunch in the garden overlooking the pool (we went to Friends restaurant before and returned for lunch on the Monday, both are worth a visit, and again, you're again making a difference in people's lives by going to these restaurants plus the food is great and fantastic value).

After lunch, we relaxed at the pool for a bit before heading over for a small European style cake shop at Chocolate by The Shop on 240 street and some additional shopping. While 178 street is more art (and not the finest in any shape, way or form), 240 has some more boutique style shops that are worth a visit. Big Sister was desperate to get back in the pool before heading to Eclipse Sky Bar on top of the Phnom Pehn tower which is a whopping 23 floors high (which is really high in PP). Had a drink on the roof top while watching the sun set before our tuk tuk driver dropped us of at Malis restaurant for a great Cambodian dinner.

Sunday
Today was the day to meet Y. We met in the lobby in the hotel and of course the boys were early because they were excited. We had emailed before on what Y wanted to do and it came down to go-kart or bumper cars and eating chicken. Y brought a friend (which is the CCF policy to help the children feel more comfortable) and his translator L who translates for Y and about 60 other children who have sponsors all over the world. He was very shy and quiet and very small for his age, he turned 10 in June but he was absolutely adorable and it was great meeting him in "real life" after all the emails and pictures. On Friday CCF had informed us about some sad news as Y was recently abandoned by his parents. His father left for Thailand to look for a job and his mom ran off with another man. The children (Y and his 12 year old sister) now live with their grandmother although CCF offered to take them in but they preferred to stay together and continue living in their community.

Meeting Y, his friend and translator L

We set off to Kids City Asia where the boys drove the go-karts (Big Sister barely fit) and then they had a good chunk of play time in the indoor playground. Lots of firsts and new impressions, but they seemed to have fun! We then headed to the Central Market which Big Sister and I planned to visit anyway for some shopping for Y and his family. The thing he wanted most was soap so his sister and he could wash themselves. We got a huge bottle of body wash before finding some new shorts and slippers for both boys. I chatted to L about what to get for his sister and grandma, and even though I was happy to spend some more money, they try not to overdo it. She suggested to get some fruits as it's quite a common gift in Cambodia, so we got big oranges and apples which would normally they wouldn't be able to afford at all. Last stop was an early lunch which had to include chicken so the tuk tuk driver dropped us at Lucky Burger, basically a mix of McDonalds and KFC. The boys chose a big chicken meal which Y loved but his friend never had chicken before in his life and wasn't so sure, although he did try. The whole thing must have been quite overwhelming in general so we basically let them do whatever they felt comfortable with. L divided the left over chicken into 2 doggy bags for them to share with their family. Back at the hotel, we gave them the additional gifts we got from Hong Kong (a t-shirt, tooth brushes, a little game and some bar soap for his sister). Instead of birthday gifts Sofie had asked her friends for some school supplies so we asked Y to share those with his friends and sister.

We found out lots of things about Y and his family through his translator. He has a bicycle, attends public school in the morning (7 to 11 am) and classes at CCF (including English) in the afternoon. His sister also attends public school but is not sponsored by CCF like we sponsor Y. He wakes up early at 5 am and he now lives in a small hut close the "infamous" garbage dump in Steung Meanchey (just google and you'll understand the dire need to help these families to change their future). Overall, it gave us a much better understanding on how we can continue to help him, the things he need and most of all to put a real face next to a name.

We got this email after I emailed him we had returned safely in Hong Kong:

Dearest F and S,

I am so glad that you arrive at Hong Kong safe and sound.

My grandmother and sister would like to say thank you so much for the gift. My grandmother likes fruit that we bought and my sister is so excited to have shampoo for her body. I like the game that you brought to  me. My grandmother and my sister said I will look so lovely and cute if I wear the new shoes and shorts. Thanks for everything, F and S!!!

Please send all my love to your twin as well. I am sure they will have a great time at school. I will keep you an update about my study and exam.

You know, I am going to have a day off on 1 of June since it is international and national children day but I do not have any plan to go somewhere. Do S and twin have class on that day?

I send all my love to you and your family. Good luck and good health!!!

With Love,

Y

We spend the afternoon at the pool before returning to FCC for a happy hour and great view of the river. Slightly touristy, but a relaxing place and worth at least a drink! For dinner I chose Domrei Kitchen which was simple, but lovely and super good value.

Monday
Monday started with lots of excitement again as we were picked up a little past 9 am to visit several CCF locations. We climbed in the pick up truck and headed to CCF1, their first location now home to over 80 secondary and university students. A safe place to live, learn and study.

Cambodian Children's Fund Community Centre

Next stop was the Community Centre which gave us a real feel of the scope of things that are needed. One room was a place for the sponsored kids to meet their translator and check whether they had received any emails. The older kids practised their English on us asking us some basic questions while giggling up a storm, but they tried very hard. The Centre provides food for certain kids, a large medical centre where people from the community can come for medical care and medication, a maternity centre for mommy and baby, housing for certain people and ... many class rooms. The kids are seriously adorable, we couldn't stop watching the 3 year old room correctly pointing to all the different body parts while the teacher said them out loud in English. Next up was the nursery and within seconds we had 3 or 4 children literally running at us and attached to our legs. They laughed, jumped and were so excited to have visitors during their play time. An overload of cuteness! In the back were many more (outdoor / half open) class rooms with children attending English classes. Lots of colourful posters, reminders on rules and behaviour and art work just like we find our schools, just not as fancy.

We headed to our last stop which was actually the school that Big Sister had collected money for during the last dress casual at her school. It's a satellite school in a very poor area. We basically had to pass huts and garbage dumps to get there on dirt roads ... an extremely sad sight, but at the same time the school offers education for those children in the community, a life changing opportunity. Parents could drop off their children in the nursery while they were at work and the children would get fed, so no worries about whether or not they would have a meal for the day. The school provides drinking water, something they cannot afford or have easy access to, and a place to wash and shower. Older children were learning English. They also had a CCF Kindergarten class on site, so different initiatives all come together at one place inside this community. The head of the school showed us around and answered questions. Across the dirt path was a small CCF housing project, just small houses, 4 walls (with a window) and a roof on stilts, but a huge improvement over a simple hut or not even that, some planks with a piece of plastic tied over it. Lots of thoughts go through mind standing there, but it goes beyond saying that the money spend here is well spend. The school will buy additional school supplies from the money our school has donated, school supplies that will offer more children a chance to further enhance their education.

Visiting the satellite school 

We spend the afternoon having lunch at Friends, and bought some little gifts in the store next door for the twins and some of Big Sister's friends. Enjoyed our last few hours at the pool while a huge thunderstorm passed by. Traffic on the way back to the airport was horrendous, and it didn't help that I (the most well organised person in the world) for some reason had a departure time of 7.55 pm in my head which was actually 7 pm. Luckily I didn't realize (I would have been stressed out of my mind in the slowest moving traffic ever, it took us 1 hour 15 minutes to get to the airport) until we literally pulled up at departures at 6 pm and 5 minutes later we were at the gate with  20 minutes to spare. Advantage of a small airport, I guess.

Overall, a great long weekend away with just some one on one time with just one child especially since Big Sister is off to secondary school in August and soon I'll be that annoying old mother who only tells her what she cannot do. As for Phnom Pehn, I love that city. It's not super exciting, it's not very touristy (which I love) nor big but it offers great value accommodation, fantastic food, the sweetest people and some interesting but equally sad historical value that should never be forgotten. And even better, because we got to see up close what a great charity Cambodian Children's Fund is and the difference they make in so many people's lives ... including ours!