Cambodia - the country that impresses me already 🇰🇭

I am truly impressed to be writing this here, welcome to Cambodia 🇰🇭

I never thought I'd be drawn here, and I must honestly admit that I had the most respect for the country and the circumstances before my trip. And I can say this much in advance, it was definitely warranted!

On Monday afternoon, I left the city hustle in Hanoi for the airport and headed to the countryside in Cambodia near the capital Phnom Penh. I traveled with my new friend Grace, with whom I will share my entire journey, as she has the same schedule as I do.

We were picked up by a very nice driver and taken to our accommodation. We are really living in the absolute countryside. It's a large facility set up by a young Cambodian. It serves not only as accommodation for us volunteers but also as a home for him and his family, and there are many different classrooms where children receive English lessons to provide them with a better future.

Jason, the founder, has a really sad past behind him; he grew up in very poor conditions and lost a large part of his family under the rule of the Khmer Rouge in the 1970s. As if that wasn’t enough fate, he was sent from the countryside to the city to work, to secure a small wage for the family. At that time, he was just 14 years old and was practically exploited, as he had to work for less than five dollars a week, sometimes 12 hours a day.

He describes this time as very traumatic, but he drew a lot of hope and strength from it to build a better future for his own family.

With many donations, he founded the Hope Agency - the organization for better education here in Cambodia and has gradually expanded. Cambodia was one of the first volunteer projects of the large organization Plan my Gap Year; since 2010, young people have come here to teach children aged between 4 and 14 (and sometimes older) English.

I would say that this project here has been the most emotionally challenging for me so far, even though the circumstances in Costa Rica really hit me hard. The poverty does not immediately show on the children; they are all very friendly and happy and need a lot of affection.

Today, however, we visited a family at home and brought them the monthly food supply. Jason also founded the so-called “Food Bank” to support families who earn less than three dollars a day and thus cannot provide for themselves. They would simply have to starve if it weren't for Jason and his work.

We were allowed to peek into the wooden hut full of holes and without a floor and listened to their story. The mother of the little girl who goes to the school where we teach ran away in despair a few years ago, leaving her family behind. This hurt the father so deeply that he fell into severe depression and can no longer work. Daily, the over 70-year-old grandfather cooks for the family on a small stove on the dusty floor.

The family sleeps on a large wooden bed in front of the hut, as it becomes too hot inside. They own a small piece of land where they painstakingly grow corn; they have one cow and a few chickens. It smells of fermented food, and the little girl owns nothing more than a few pieces of clothing and a pair of flip-flops.

Last week, thanks to many donations, the organization was able to fulfill her dream of having her own bicycle; moreover, she received all the necessary items for the upcoming English classes here. A pink backpack, which she is very proud of, pencils, and notebooks.

Even though she knows she has almost nothing, she is full of joy and beams from ear to ear. She is very clever, speaks good English already, and is very diligent.

It was hard for everyone to truly see these circumstances, which we know exist all around the world, with our own eyes. The family has great worries, as the roof is not waterproof, and every time it rains, their few possessions get soaking wet.

Additionally, they cannot afford the doctor's visits for the father, and they lack everything necessary, such as hygiene products, blankets, pillows, simply everything.

After the visit with her, it was her first day with us at school. We took her to school by TukTuk, which is about a 20-minute ride; by bike, it takes an hour.

She was totally happy, and what was a really nice moment was that she could name all the things she currently needs, and we promised her we would get them for her over the weekend.

This made her very happy :)

At first, I was so overwhelmed by all the poverty and the many stories brought to me by the children that I considered leaving early. Unfortunately, I did not feel comfortable at all, but this was mainly because one really has to open up and understand that these are not isolated cases. All around the world, there are people who possess so little that it barely suffices to live. And that is why it is important that we (and in this case I) do not close our eyes and turn away, but rather meet the children with open arms and give them a bit of joy each day. By playing with them, teaching them basic English, and embracing them, we give them more back than we can imagine.

I already know that it will be incredibly hard to say goodbye to these children. And I truly hope that this project can continue forever to enable even more children to have a better future.

This has been a very long post from me, but I think it is only fair to let the stories be told.

I haven’t seen much of the culture yet because I have been here in the project, but the weekend will surely be wonderful! I am going to Angkor Wat!!

It’s amazing what all I get to experience.

Maybe we will start a big donation pot next week when more people join us, to have a new and waterproof roof built for the family. It would be nice if everyone could take a moment to think about contributing a few euros.

I will get back to you after the weekend; I am very happy that you are all with me!

Warmest regards from all the love I receive from the children here ❤️

I hug you all tightly!!

Your Paulaaaa