Home Stay in the Village
By Sydney Molaver
As we left Phnom Penh and drove into the countryside there were fewer buildings and more and more farmland. There were huge palm trees and rice fields located on the sides of the road. I also noticed less tuk tuks and motorcycles, in addition to cars that are common in the United States. Most of the housing we saw on the side of the road was on stilts. After our fun stops at the market place to try some tarantulas, we continued on the main road for another 45 minutes.
We finally turned onto the dirt road in Kampong Cham and immediately you could see significant differences between the infrastructure. In the city there were large buildings and it was very populated, whereas in the village the houses are on stilts, and very spread apart. We learned this is because of the flooding during the wet season and to keep wild animals away and out of their house. Many people keep animals under the house such as cows and chickens. As we passed some of the rice fields I noticed people harvesting the rice, and many people were walking around the village. We arrived at our house, the one I was staying at was one large room with a smaller bathroom in the back. The floors were made out of a wood which we could hear and see through the cracks. After we put our luggage in our room we took a walking tour in a loop around the village. We saw many different things but something that stood out to me was the school that students and volunteers built from the ground up in about 7 years. This school does not look like one we would see in Connecticut. The living situation is very different as well, we did not see any microwaves, fridges, washing machines, and any other traditional machines we would see at home. Everything was hand washed and cooked over a fire in pots and pans. There were also no garbage trucks here, instead we learned they separate the trash, use the leftovers scraps for the cows and other animals. The separated plastic is burned. We noticed many sounds and smells; for instance every morning we woke to cow bells and animals such as roosters and cows making sounds. I also smelled many farm animals. In one of our home stays we also noticed the grandma sat on her own table and rarely ate with the rest of the family, instead she first made sure the rest of the family, and her husband were fed and satisfied.
Here are some photos of inside our home stay, the bathroom, the outside appearance, and the school.
As we left Phnom Penh and drove into the countryside there were fewer buildings and more and more farmland. There were huge palm trees and rice fields located on the sides of the road. I also noticed less tuk tuks and motorcycles, in addition to cars that are common in the United States. Most of the housing we saw on the side of the road was on stilts. After our fun stops at the market place to try some tarantulas, we continued on the main road for another 45 minutes.
We finally turned onto the dirt road in Kampong Cham and immediately you could see significant differences between the infrastructure. In the city there were large buildings and it was very populated, whereas in the village the houses are on stilts, and very spread apart. We learned this is because of the flooding during the wet season and to keep wild animals away and out of their house. Many people keep animals under the house such as cows and chickens. As we passed some of the rice fields I noticed people harvesting the rice, and many people were walking around the village. We arrived at our house, the one I was staying at was one large room with a smaller bathroom in the back. The floors were made out of a wood which we could hear and see through the cracks. After we put our luggage in our room we took a walking tour in a loop around the village. We saw many different things but something that stood out to me was the school that students and volunteers built from the ground up in about 7 years. This school does not look like one we would see in Connecticut. The living situation is very different as well, we did not see any microwaves, fridges, washing machines, and any other traditional machines we would see at home. Everything was hand washed and cooked over a fire in pots and pans. There were also no garbage trucks here, instead we learned they separate the trash, use the leftovers scraps for the cows and other animals. The separated plastic is burned. We noticed many sounds and smells; for instance every morning we woke to cow bells and animals such as roosters and cows making sounds. I also smelled many farm animals. In one of our home stays we also noticed the grandma sat on her own table and rarely ate with the rest of the family, instead she first made sure the rest of the family, and her husband were fed and satisfied.
Here are some photos of inside our home stay, the bathroom, the outside appearance, and the school.
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