The Launch

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originally uploaded by suzenewson.

Makara and Leng, 2 of the boys with the photographer for the “Dolphin Men of Kratie Calendah”. Joe has been successful and we have managed to publish it. The launch was a hilarious laugh due to the fact Joe did not inform the boys about the cat walk idea. But we did get a few interesting moves. Most from Joe!

The tourist seem to like it as there are steady small sales and of course the local expat love it because it has our boys in it!

Yip – it’s not like taking the tube to work

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originally uploaded by suzenewson.

This is the Kratie to Chhlong road after the water has receded and we do not need to take the local farmers ferries any more ……. but they still get some money by helping us get the moto’s and push the cars through the mud.

We had 17 deaths about a month ago near chhlong – the road was out because of flooding and the locals over crowded the makeshift ferry’s they use. Basically wooden planks on to canoe’s with a small motor and propeller on it. Most locals can’t swim so they lost them in not very deep water – 7 women were found holding hands in a circle and in one family 2 children and the pregnant mother died. The farmer doing the ferrying is surposed to compensate 2000 dollars per family – but this guy would never make that much in a year – It’s also pure lack of health and safety education. He would’nt of known it would happen and also witnesses say people kept crowding on when people were telling to get off before it left the bank to cross to the other side.

Good Morning Vietnam…etc …etc

Had fantastic time in Vietnam. Obviously holidaying with Vic is far from boring and was 10 days of quality laughs. One that still makes me giggle is Victoria’s dress saga. Victoria fell in love with a funky dress in a strange shop in Hanoi. Although the shop mistress completely ignored me and Vic while we rifled through the clothes we were not deterred and tried a few dresses on. When Vic found the “one” she approached the strangely cool shop keeper. Indeed it was not for sale, in fact nothing in the shop was for sale, even though she’d clearly hocked off some items to some fellow Vietnamese. Mildly baffled we left.

However Vic was not to be put off – after mulling it over for a few days she announces one evening she is going back for the dress! I have visions of Vic bursting into a shop and ripping it from the rack whilst making a spectacular get away and I’m mildly worried. But she tells me she will do it herself and I don’t need to accompany her – I think this is a good idea because it leaves someone to get her out of Jail. She returned a few hours later very proudly with said dress. She related, apart from getting lost down the railway track (still have no idea what she was doing following a railway track that head in a complete opposite direction from the shop) it was all rather simple. She went into the shop, got the dress off the rack, offered about 40 dollars and the cold shop keeper smiled and discounted it to 35 and then 30 dollars without Vic having to say a word. 

And the part that makes me giggle is Victoria’s slight variation of Marilyn Monroe impersonation. She is proudly is wearing the “dress” in the airport and admiring the stiching on the hem – completely oblivious to what she was doing she raised the hem  further and further up  to her eye’s saying how nicely it was sown…… whilst flashing the whole of the airport!

Hoi An was the first stop after one night in Saigon (1hr sleep crammed in from 4am til 5am taxi). Loved Hoi An, it used to be a major port for Chinese, Japenes and European Trade, some fantastic old buildings and quaint streets. Also near there were the Cham ruins from an empire that used to fight with the Ankorian Empire and from what I gather were just as advanced with influences from India and the South Pasific.

Hanoi I wasn’t so impressed with …very busy = too much traffic. We got ripped off by a snot nose smooth talking tour promoter when getting our Delux tour to Halong Bay –It was one of those occasions as soon as we signed the dotted line I realised all the cracks in what had been said….and soon those gaps opened so wide they swallowed us.

Our Delux cruise was a wooden boat like all the other economy tours – with 2 dollar meals ( where was the sea food ) , no lock on our cabin door and it wouldn’t shut unless we locked it ( go figure) and a bed that was completely lumpy. Also we had the honor of being right next to the engine room. Well Vic had the right idea and consumed Alcohol to get her through, I was exhausted and tried to sleep in the charming deluxe cabin. After 2hrs I left feeling Nauseous and with a massive headache – too much petrol fumes. Realising how stupid I was I took all bedding up to sleep out under the star on the top deck…wondering why I had not thought of that before. And 30min later the rain came. So we spent the night with the crew in the dining room – sleeping on the floor. Vic attempted our  cabin again and woke up in the morning with a migraine that lasted strangely 24hrs and lifted about the time we’d got our money back from Snot nose by staging an hour long sit in at the travel agency.

Had a fab night out in Hanoi before heading home. Meet a great French guy living in Hong Kong who was tripping through on small set amount of money and had not taking any credit cards – he’d told his friends what things he must accomplish on that money, we meet him on his last night where he had his hostel booked and bus ticket to airport in morning….so we helped to while away the hours with a crazy Spainish lad and a few funky bars.

Was excellent to come back to Cambodia where warm smiles are a plenty and I can communicate!!!

I am on count down to finishing work. I am conscious I have 6mths to go and a lot to get done so am trying to prioritize….but really worried my colleagues will not be able to give me the time I need. Starting  to teach Partographs in HC every Friday so I need one out of the 7 Midwives available to help me every Friday, i have 16 seesions to do. Takes me til March and I must audit after that…….all the midwives agree that it’s important and want to help but nobody seems to be able to commit  – it’s like pulling teeth!

Wish me luck