February 8-11, 2012

Wednesday, Feb.8
Brooke is building a replica of the Castillo de San Marco fort in St. Augustine, Florida for school.  She is studying American History.

Bruce left work early and drove me to the high school to see Jordan's bus leave for the airport.  Here are all the kids getting out of school.  I think there are three or four different schools here.  I know there's a British preschool and a middle school, and then Jordan's American high school.

I think these are buses for the preschool.

Finally!  We can see Jordan coming with her pink suitcase.  The kids aren't allowed to wear jeans or t-shirts to school, but they've changed into them for the trip.

Here is Jordan and Danielle.

Here is Mrs. Vallejo checking the students in.

Last-minute adjustment.

Here come their buses - I love the curtains with tassels hanging in the front windows.

Look at the gun on that guard!

Time to get on the bus.

Those of us who were taking pictures got shooed away by the guard.

There are 14 kids and 2 teachers in Jordan's group, but there are a couple of other groups going to different countries.  Their flight leaves Dammam this evening at 6:45, they change planes in Bahrain, and arrive at Bangkok at 7:30am, and wait there for six hours before they fly to Phnom Penh.  I bet they'll be tired!  Here is where she flew:

Here are some pictures back on camp outside the housing area.  I think the rock formations are interesting.

Frequently, jets fly overhead.  Here are two flying in formation.

Brooke is determined to build another swing set.  Now she is trying to build one in our front yard.

We just got a call from Jordan who has been stuck in a line at the Dammam airport for the last 2-1/2 hours.  She said the computers went down and everyone had to squeeze into one line.  Because there are 40 kids on her plane, they'll hold it for the school group.

Thursday, Feb. 9
It's partly cloudy today -- we don't get clouds here very often, and about 66 degrees at noon -- a beautiful day in the desert.

We just received this e-mail from Jordan's escorting teachers:

Well, after a hectic departure from Dammam airport due to the Saudi system not functioning, all three habitat groups made their connecting flights in Bahrain.  It was a very smooth and relatively easy flight to Bangkok.  After saying goodbye to the HFH-Bangkok crew, we are now relaxing and eating breakfast in the airport, awaiting our Phnom Penh departure in about 4 hours.  The kids have been great and it had been fun getting to know them better already.  Brian and Liz

We got another e-mail a little later in the day:

We have all arrived safely at our hotel, the Goldiana, in Phnom Penh :)  Though we endured quite a long day of travel, everyone is in good spirits and the group is showing some signs of cohesion and affability.  Upon leaving Bangkok, we discovered that two pieces of luggage had been left in Bahrain.  We had checked our luggage as a group, leaving us to play suitcase lottery with our guess as to who would be the unfortunate soul without their belongings for a few days.  As luck seems to be firmly on our side, it was two of our donation boxes that didn't make it.  Whew!  We are set to have dinner and orientation in about 10 minutes, and then I'm sure that all are ready for an early 'lights-out' in anticipation of our first work day tomorrow.   More to come (from the kiddies, we hope), Brian and Liz

Friday, Feb.10

Here is another e-mail we just received from the kids in Cambodia.  I guess Jordan helped write this one:

Hey moms and dads, it's two of the "kiddies" here to sum up our day today!First of all, we woke up really early (yay.) and ate breakfast at the hotel lobby. We got to meet the supervisors from Habitat for Humanity, and they introduced us to a few of the workers, as well as the homeowners; also, we learned a few Cambodian words that would let us at least say hi and thank you to the people at the site. There was just over half an hour of riding in a bus (that had Wi-fi) to get to the work site, where our day actually started.The teachers split us up into two groups, 7 kids and a teacher at each work site, and we got started.  Site number one had a foundation wall already, so most of the job was filling it up with sand. It was much harder and took much more time than you may think. We took a few breaks in between, and even though it was hard, it was mostly the constant repetition that got to us. The work was tedious but fun, and after a while, we all got used to the whole heavy labor thing. After lunch, the guys from site two joined up because their shipment of sand was very, very late.Site number two came to a house that still had no concrete supporting the foundation. Our first job was to mix up the concrete we were using, which is basically just gravel, sand, and water. Then, we would fill up buckets and move it over to the house to fill it up. When we finished, we were supposed to fill it up with sand, but as was mentioned before, the sand guys aren't very good with time. There also happened to be an 800 pound tree trunk in a hole leaning up against the building. Of course, we had to move it, and that was... rough, to say the least. After lunch we decided to go to site one, because there was actually nothing else we could do.The entire time, the people who were going to live in the houses we were building worked side by side with us. Appreciation showed in their eyes, and it was clear that they really were grateful for our help, even though they couldn't really express it in language. The thing is, they actually lived in a 4 meter by 4 meter tent with a straw roof, a bed of bricks, and used hammocks to protect themselves from the constant rain. It was a very humbling experience.  Oh, and it was sooooooo hot! The work was dirty, and the shower afterward was absolutely amazing! Don't be too mad when you see the clothes, by the way...We'll try to update you everyday, so don't bombard us with questions!-Suliman and Jordan

and another e-mail...

We've had an amazing day getting to help 2 families in Cambodia, getting to know each other and realizing that manual labor is really, really hard!Chum Reip Lea (goodbye), Liz

I can see Jordan on the right in the white t-shirt.

Saturday, Feb. 11

Here is the e-mail we received from Cambodia today:

Hello Parents,                We got up early in the morning again and we got on buses to get to the worksites. We thought that we would form our groups once we got there, but it turned out that we got stuck with the people we rode the buses with. It was really humid and even hotter than yesterday,   but everyone worked hard and we got a lot done. While we were working on house 2, Angie, Bilal, and Maha got to lay bricks and they had a lot of fun while everyone else slaved shoveling sand for hours. But it was ok, because on one of our breaks, Jordan caught a baby chicken and we all got to hold it and pet it and it was so cute and fluffy and adorable. In house 1 we mixed cement and finished the bases of the house. Besides the work, everyone was messing around with the dogs and the chickens, and we even learned some new words in Khmer from Gangster Raymond, a Habitat coordinator.                We’ve been trying a lot of new foods like dragon fruit, mangosteen, and rambutan, and Jordan drank a coconut. Tonight we’re going to go to a night market and spend a lot of your money, so thanks, mom and dad. Don’t worry, we’ll buy you presents. Maybe. Love, Daniel(le)AKA Danielle and Daniel

Here is another e-mail from the teacher in Cambodia:

We have had a great 2nd day at the worksite. The group is motivated, hard-working and generous. We are on the ride back to the hotel and most are asleep in the van as hard work in the sun and sore muscles make for tired children.A few more students will send the days reflections, I just wanted to pass on some pictures.

I had a little adventure this evening.  I took a shopping bus to the mall all by myself!  I met some "mums" for dinner and then called a taxi all by myself to come and take me home!  Whew!

Bruce had one of his football games scheduled, so Brooke got to babysit and cook dinner for Reese.

Since I took the shopping bus, I had to get there 2 hours early, so I did a little shopping first.  I knew that I would have to lug the items all over the mall, so I tried to keep it light, except for the 8kg bag (17.6 lb) of dog food I knew I needed.  Here we are at Fuddrucker's for dinner... oh, was it good...a nice American meal!  I noticed some big hamburgers and steak fries at the other tables!  I'll have to bring my family back here.  

At one point a western lady walked in wearing pants, but she had on a long black sweater (open) that covered her rear and she was with her husband.  Still, I watched every women in the place watch her walk in and sit down.  I asked my friends why that wasn't okay, and they told me that the Mutawa will tell her to cover up.  They said they've been approached by them before to cover their hair, but they just ignore them.

Another interesting thing (I wish I could have taken a picture!) was when a lady sat at the table next to us with a niqab covering her face (and mouth) and when her food arrived, she had to sort of sneak it underneath the cloth.  It made me wonder if she's embarrassed to eat in public, or if it's just something she does and accepts.

Patricia and Sharyn are from Australia, and Cene' is from Oklahoma.  I had SUCH a nice time being out with like-minded women and getting away on my own for a while.  These ladies were all so nice and fun to be with.  They do this every month!

After we ate, we walked around the mall a bit.  We went to Starbuck's to look at their mugs, which is where I had stopped earlier to get a hot tea when I was on my own and all the shops were closing for prayer.  I quickly ran in and asked if I was too late to get a drink.  They sold me one, but I looked around and only saw men, so I wasn't sure where a woman is supposed to sit and drink.  I went to the outer-lying chairs and sat there where I could watch everyone walk by.  But my friends showed me the hidden room where the women are supposed to buy their drinks.  I kept seeing women go in that direction, but I couldn't see where they were disappearing.  No wonder everyone that walked by me gave me a funny look!

Then we went to this little pet shop so Patricia could buy some pet food.  She has 5 kids and all kinds of animals!  Here they had bunnies in skirts...

...and colored chicks...

...and turtles!

...and fish.

Then we went to this fancy candy store called Patchi.  The chocolates are from Lebanon.

This is a CD holder!

I was really nervous to call my own taxi and try to find him outside the mall, but it was no big deal.  I just called the company taxi and he took down my badge number.  He called me when he arrived 15 minutes early to tell me that he would wait downstairs until I was ready.  As I descended down the escalator, he met me, took my heavy bags from me, and wouldn't even let me carry them into the house!   My cab fare was $8 (not quite as cheap as I had hoped.)  He was a nice man from Bangladesh who has worked here for ten years, has 3 brothers also driving taxis here, and has a family living in Bangladesh whom he gets to visit every two years!  I don't know if he planned it, but I was counting out my tip as he was speaking, and of course, I doubled the tip when I realized that he only gets to see his family every two years!

When Bruce and I arrived home, we couldn't BELIEVE how clean the kitchen was (even after Brooke cooked stir fry!)  I couldn't even find a grain of rice on the counter!  Wow, was I impressed.

Thanks for checking us out!

- Pattie -