Sunday morning, Sue had arranged for us to meet some of her friends for brunch in Siem Reap about 40 minutes away. On our way, we stopped to pick up some stuff to add to the drawing area in the library. Great store. Brunch was interesting. Sue's friends include Expats who were artist, musician, jewelry artist & one who also helps local kids. We also stopped at her friend's shop, The Muffin Man. Delicious treats! Last stop was for groceries…also a well stocked store. We loaded the cart—for $45! After we unloaded the groceries, we took bananas to the boys who were working hard in the garden. Each boy will be given a plot to plant. Sue got some plywood & Rog showed them how to cut out sections to put their names on it. Some boys were already planting seeds in seedling trays & others were hoeing & still others mixing up compost. Roger and I have spent time weeding & tilling parts of the garden to help out some. I picture a lush garden in about a month! Three of the boys had attended a mushroom growing class yesterday and were inspired to start using their newly learned knowledge. They'd cleaned out the chicken coop & drew up a list of needs. Sue told then she'd load them the $$ but they would need to pay her back. The profits then would be split 4 ways-3 boys & herself. That got them working harder!
At 4, the 11 boys who live here, a couple extras & Rog jumped in the motorcycle flatbed cart & Sue, Monk & I got in a tuk tuk and we all headed for the lake through the cloud of dust on the road. Our hair was orange by the time we got there. When we got to a deep part of a river, we hired a boat. 17 excited people boarded and the boat headed upstream. Before long, we were passing a ton of houses built on 15-20 ft stilts. Small fishing boats were unloading their catch. Traps, nets, buckets of fish, kids, laundry, small fires and trash were everywhere. Imagine living here?? The steps alone would do me in! We barely managed to pass through the narrow area not crowded with fishing boats. After about 30 minutes, the river opened wide and there was the Tonlesap Lake. No end in site! The boys were so excited. They were snapping pictures constantly—mostly of themselves. Most had not been on a boat or seen a lake. The boat stopped a ways out and we sat and watched the beautiful sunset. Then turned around and retraced our route…all the way home. The road dust covered us but the happiness & smiles shone through. It was a well spent $70 treat for the boys & us!
