All about our trip to Siem Reap (Jeffrey)

Jeffrey Reporting

Chapter 1: The Hotel

We went to Siem Reap by bus. It was boring. When we arrived to Siem Reap, we have to take a Tuk Tuk to one of dad's friend's house. I was wondering where the 2nd floor is. We were about to stay here, but we decided to stay at a guest house called Ancient Angkor. It has a swimming pool and internet. However, the swimming pool is very salty, and the internet is slow. Our hotel room has cable TV, 2 bedrooms, and a hot shower.

Chapter 2: The Restaurants

We went to the Blue Pumpkin, KFC, Lucky Burger, the Khmer Family Restaurant, The Pizza Company, and etc. At the Blue Pumpkin, they have an ice cream shop, Wi-fi, a lounge, a bakery, and a restaurant. Their logo is the (Ba) sign.  What's really bad about this place is the R-word!

Chapter 3: Angkor Wat

Angkor Wat is one of the 8 wonders of the world. We went there on Wednesday. It is known as the largest religious structure. Inside this wonder, there are stories that are beliefs to people who practice Hinduism, one of the religions. The stories are written in picture form, so that everyone can understand. At the top were towers, but they were closed for renovations. In order to complete your trip to Cambodia, you must go to Angkor Wat. Seriously.

 

Chapter 4: The Angkor National Museum

Going to the Angkor National Museum is required for a trip to Cambodia. It will take you to a journey to the past of Cambodia. You will look at ancient stuff from Ancient Angkor & Bayon. For example: The gallery of 1000 Buddhas. At one part is the Angkor National Museum Mall. It's a small mall.  It's a place to relax after you viewed the Angkor National Museum.

 

Chapter 5: The JPA

JPA stands for Jay Pritzker Academy. This is a brand new school for Khmer Kids. In the JPA, 2 languages are taught. Khmer and English. They bring foreign teachers from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada. The cafeteria is outdoors. So far, they only teach Kinder, 2nd, 4th, 6th, & 8th. The library isn't complete, and basicly, the school is 3/4 complete! Kim, my dad's friend, and also my friend, is the principal of the school.

 Chapter 6: The Floating Village

The Floating Village reminds me of Pacifilog town in the Hoenn Reigon. It was on the Tonle Sap lake! The Floating Village is a town where people live on floating houses and catch fish for food.  Everything was floating. The homes, the schools, the churches, the shops, the gym, even the cell phone tower! Their transportation is a small boat. To visit this place, we have to take a large boat that can go fast! When we came back, we got a plate that had ourselves! I felt surprised! However, we said no.

 

Chapter 7: Beng Melea and others

Beng Melea is the place where you get to experience your inner Indiana Jones. The structure looks abandoned. Lichens and Mosses are growing on the old stones. In this temple, you can experience dark places. Also, the landmines are cleared! Yay! Preah Ko, or Holy Cow, is the place where the temple towers looked unsymmetrical. The temples are about to fall apart, so some people try to fix it. A group of people are making Stucco. Stucco is made up of crushed up bricks, sand, white-sticky sap, and palm sugar. with ants in it! LOL! After we went to Angkor Wat, we rode a balloon! There was a cable attached to it so that the balloon won't fly away. When we had gone up, we saw a good angle of Angkor Wat. I dared myself not to look down. When we got down, we felt proud of ourselves for surviving the balloon ride.

 

Conclusion

I would say...  you must go to the Ancient Ruins before you die! You must visit the Angkor National Museum before you die, because this is my favorite part about the trip! You will learn a lot, like the ancient stuff the ancient ruins have in store for you! For Example: The ancient stories. However, twice to Siem Reap isn't enough for me!

The Best Day Ever (Michael's 10th Birthday)

Michael Reporting

My birthday was on March 28, 2009. I turned 10 years old. My party was at Kean Svay. It was Mom’s birthday party too even though her birthday was the next week. There were tons of friends and family who live in the village. All the kids there were wearing party hats. There was confetti, music, and dancing. Uncle Kosal was the DJ.

I wanted to open my presents, but Mom said wait, so I waited. It was time for us to cut the cake! The kids had sparklers, and when we blew out the candles, they came back on fire again! When we finished, they sprayed silly string on us and made a big birthday mess! One cake was fancy, one cake was plain, and one cake was ruined. Then it was time to eat. I had pizza while the others had noodles.

Then it was time to open my presents. I got a big watch, piggy bank, 3 boxes of chocolate coins, vehicle building set, military vehicle set, 3 dollars, a pirate ship, clothes, Lego Star Wards The Complete Saga (Wii Game), Lego Indiana Jones (Wii Game), and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull DVD.

I felt so happy. It was the best day ever! 

Going to Kdei Ta Koy Primary School

Catherine Reporting

Kdei Ta Koy Primary School is in Vielsbow Village. It is a small school. The 4^th grade classroom I visited It had no a/c or lights, so it had big windows. There were 4 rows of wooden desks that hold 2 people each. It had an old chalk board with a curtain on it so when the teacher writes the answers for the questions, she can cover them up.

The lesson was about the water cycle. It was all in Khmer so I only understood a little big. Since I couldn’t understand, a girl in front of me gave me a picture to color. When the teacher calls out on a row they stood up and read the board in a funny voice. The teacher brought in a bucket full of dirty water and all the students came up to look. Most of the students worked in groups.

Recess time! At recess, there were 3 sections I went to: the garden, the playground, and to the Chinese calendar animals. The playground had little play equipment, like 4 swings, 2 chin-up bars, 1 slide, and some tires. I played on all of them. Then we named all of the animal statues in Khmer, and my favorite one was the “damrey” (elephant).

This school is way different from Scobee (my school in America) because Scobee is big and has like 4 classes for every grade. I like the school in America because it is more easy, but I still like the school in Cambodia.

The End

Shadow Puppets - Jeffrey

Jeffrey Reporting

On Tuesday, we went to make our shadow puppets. Shadow puppets are used in Cambodia and in other Southeast Asian countries. It was kind of easy to me. First, we get a hammer and a wooden circle, so the stage won’t get ruined and metal tools to make the shape. It was hard work. I chose the frog for the shadow puppet. The people at the shadow puppet place had to mark the places, with red marker, what shape to use and where to hammer. It was kind of hard, but I did it. After I’m done, we painted certain places of the shadow puppet. It was easy, but I have to cut it out first, which was tough, because it’s made out of leather.

 After I’m done with my shadow puppet, dad said “Good job, Jeffrey!” The others were not done, so I have to wait. Dad let me borrow his IPod Touch for games. When we were all done, we went home and showed mom our shadow puppets. She felt surprised at this!

Making Shadow Puppets - Michael

Michael Reporting

It was March 10, 2009. We went to a shadow puppet theater called Sovanna Phum. We made shadow puppets.  It was hard work but I had help from the workers. I was making a bird, so I pounded it with a mallet on the black outline on the wooden surface. The puppet is leather, that is, made out of cowhide. When I finished pounding the holes, I painted the outline of my bird. Then the workers put it on a stick and my shadow puppet was finished! 

They have had this theater for 15 years. They still show shows. They have shows every Friday and Saturday. We saw one called the “Story of the Dog.” It was based on a soldier with his brave dog, his wife, his mother, an assassin, and a ghost. It was a good story. After the show they let us go back stage and try the shadow puppets. And there was a store where you could buy and make shadow puppets. Come to Cambodia, and visit Sovanna Phum!

The Most OFFENSIVE Market

Jeffrey Reporting

Note: This is Jeffrey's perspective on this very traditional Cambodian Market (Boueng Trabek Market in Phnom Penh). Its really not that bad, and Jeffrey doesn't realize most fo the food he eats that Mom cooks comes from here. But you can see how a market such as this would be

 such a shock to a young teenager used to markets like HEB, Vons, Ralphs, etc...

In the market we went to on 3-16-09, it was very stinky & offensive. There were pig noses, bad eggs, live fish, live chickens, and butchers and meatpackers showing off! It's like the strangest market ever! I think there should be a law that people 18 and older can only enter these kind of markets!

For shade, they use umbrellas. Then, on the other side is merchandise. Clothing, music CDs, toys that are actually thingies, it's like boring to me! I give this market a 2%! I hate this market! And I bet the U.S.A. will ban those kind of markets in their country! However, this turns upside down at night! It turns into the only fair in Cambodia! However, it's pretty small and pretty cheap. that's all!

Things I like and don't like in Cambodia, and Things I Miss in the U.S.A.

9 Things
by Catherine


There are 9 things I want to tell you guys, new likes, things I dislike and things I miss back in the U.S.A. Here they are.

3 things I like in Cambodia:
1. I like my new friends because they are nice.
2. I like Ken Svay because of my family.
3. I like the games because they are fun.

3 things I dislike in Cambodia:
1. I dislike bugs because they are creepy.
2. I dislike the weather because it is hot.
3. I dislike the outdoor markets because they have creepy stuff.

3 things I miss in the U.S.A.
1. I miss my friends because they are nice.
2. I miss school because I get to do stuff right.
3. I miss quietness at night because my street is noisy.

I wish I can hear from you guys back in the U.S.A. I miss you a lot. See me back in the U.S.A. on July 4. See ya!