Cultural Exchange

• 

We are well into our tour now, having spent our 5th day in Cambodia and the 6th day of the trip overall.

At Green Gecko today we were split into small groups and taught by the very enthusiastic, younger Gecko children. This format is a wonderful way of creating empowerment for the Geckos, and it is very intentional that the first ‘lesson’ interaction is them teaching us. It helps us be humble, recognise our own intentions, and allow the Geckos to engage with us on their terms.

• 

• 

• 

• 

Khmer numbers, writing and martial arts were all explored in ‘round robin’ style at Gecko Central. The main objective of the session was to build leadership skills and confidence in the Gecko children. They took their role very seriously, encouraging (or rather insisting on) perfection from our students and leading with great enthusiasm and persistence.

• 

• 

• 

Lunch was at Sister Srey Cafe, and included a presentation about the work of Tnai Samrap Srey (Days for Girls) in Cambodia, led by two of the Gecko students. Back at home, our tour group spent time sewing and packing menstrual kits, which were then included in our luggage to travel here. Collectively, we brought 100 kits with us, which will be donated through workshops run by Tnai Samrap Srey to educate and empower girls to take ownership of their menstrual health and continue to engage in education and work, when they have their period.

• 

• 

The afternoon consisted of a workshop with founder of the organisation CONCERT, Michael Horton. An expat from England, Michael’s work cultivates ethical and productive practices in NGOs and volunteer organisations, and he had us grappling with some really tricky questions to reflect on regarding our purpose and impact here in Cambodia. Topics discussed included:

• What are the positives and negatives of volunteering in the developing world – both for ourselves and the people we seek to serve?
• How important is cultural exchange and intercultural understanding. What are the benefits of learning about a new culture, and what problems might we encounter?
• When we see children and adults, such as landmine victims begging on the street, should we be giving them money or working with organisations that develop sustainable long-term approaches?

We also talked about our role in enlisting people to support our efforts and how to develop and use influence. Michael’s insights garnered through 15 years of working with NGOs in Siem Reap was invaluable.

• 

• 

• 

• 

A little spare time this afternoon saw some students enjoying the pool deck, some resting and some taking another chance to visit the Made in Cambodia artisan market. The ambience here is stunning, and included are some photos of some of the creative repurposing of plastic products. The second photo shows that you know you are in South East Asia when motorbikes line the streetside as far as the eye can see!

• 

• 

We travelled to dinner in tuk-tuks, which gave us an insight into the busy nightlife of Siem Reap’s streets. We notice the interesting difference in the way Cambodians live when we walk or ride in the tuk-tuks.

Today, Jess and Millie volunteered to share their thoughts:

Seeing the Geckos and having them teach us today was a really empowering experience. We immersed ourselves in the Khmer culture and language. The Geckos were really enthusiastic in teaching us Khmer (writing out names), counting (up to 10) and the Khmer martial art, bokator . 
We really enjoyed the bokator and learning everything from the geckos today and look forward to teaching them our lessons in art and craft, STEM and logic tomorrow.
– Jess and Millie