Phnom Penh Rainbow

The quickest route to Charlotte’s school goes through a construction area. They are building a Mall and apartments. On our ride home this afternoon we spotted something in the sky. Don’t worry. I pulled over to take the photos!

Monitoring and Evaluation of Cooperation with NGOs

Last week I attended my first government function since returning to Cambodia. This was a Ministry of Rural Development workshop on Monitoring and Evaluation of Cooperation with NGOs. Both of my primary partners from my first term were government entities – the Prey Veng Provincial Office of Irrigation and the Angkearhdei Primary School. I also…

Catherine saying a few words in Khmer

Hello everyone. Catherine is going to say a few words in Khmer for you. Please look forward to our next post in this series, Charlotte counts to 10 in Khmer.

Mild Cyanide Poisoning

First – let me start with the disclaimer that Catherine is okay. Fortunately ingesting seeds rarely results in acute toxicity. One afternoon last week, I gave the girls each half of a Sugar Apple (also known as a Sweetsop or Custard Apple) as a snack. They’ve eaten these many times without incident but this time,…

Dirty Money

I spotted this at the local grocery shop and thought it was an apt reminder that money is dirty (and not just in Cambodia). Remember to wash your hands after handling it!

Picture Frame Shop

I visited the Mennonite Heritage Center in Harleysville, Pennsylvania before we left North America to find special gifts that speak to the Anabaptist identity. As globalization and consumerism have spread, it’s become harder to bring gifts from North America* that can’t be found here and harking back to older traditions is a way to ensure…

What are you having for Breakfast?

Yesterday, I asked the girls what they were having for breakfast. They were sharing rice and pork, a typical breakfast meal here that I’ll share a bit more about later.

Update on Charlotte’s Heel

I wanted to give you a quick update on Charlotte’s Bike Injury. We had a check-up at the Doctor yesterday and, as you can see, it has been healing well. There’s still some swelling around the ankle and one wound that’s still open. Charlotte’s been quite enthusiastic about physical activities since returning to school despite…

In Support of a Plastic Ban

This afternoon on a road near Charlotte’s school I got a photo that illustrates the need for a single use plastics ban. I think this one speaks for itself.

គុយទាវ | Kuy Teav

Kuy Teav is a Cambodian rice noodle soup similar to but distinct from Vietnamese Phở. It’s a popular breakfast item across Southeast Asia – with local variants like Hủ Tiếu in Viet Nam, Kway Teow in Malaysia, and Kuai Tiao in Thailand. It’s usually made with pork stock. It uses different spices and rice noodles…