My Experience in Cambodia

Written By Bradley

We may just be a small team of teenage travellers in the grand scheme of things, but I never expected how much our two weeks in Cambodia could make a difference in the lives of others.

To say my Cambodia trip was one of the best experiences of my life doesn’t cut it, it was eye-opening and left me with many memories that I’ll keep for the rest of my life.

From the vibrant chaos of the streets in Phenom Penn and Siem Reap to the quiet strength of rural villages, I don’t think any of my fellow travellers and I expected to be so fortunate to experience the resilience and prevenance of the Cambodian people.

Fundraising for the Journey

Our journeys didn’t start the day of packing, the week before the journey or even at Brisbane airport, but with the fundraising we did to get ourselves to Cambodia.

Personally, I took on various jobs, including delivering fliers, cleaning and styling houses for selling, landscaping, washing cars, being a chauffeur, and bartending / waiting at my neighbour’s birthday parties. In the end I raised around $4000 Aussie dollars which reached my fundraising goals.

Arriving in Cambodia – Phenom Penn

Even though we didn’t get a whole lot of sleep on the flight to Phenom Penn, once we landed we could not contain our excitement!

We were immediately thrust into activities with two local schools where we played games together. It was here we discovered that we had fortunately arrived in the New Year, and that there was to be many new year celebrations taking place during our stay. Later we went to markets and sampled the local cuisine, which I must say was amazing!

We also visited the sites of The Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum and the Choeung Ek Genocidal Centre (The Killing Fields). These were haunting reminders of Cambodia’s past under the Khmer Rouge but also stood as markers to symbolize the perseverance and progress of the Cambodia since those times.

Camp Beng Pae

Leaving Phenom Penn, we made our way to camp Beng Pae. We quickly settled into camp and took a tour around the local village and received a water blessing by the local monks which was a first for everybody!

Just near the camp, we finished laying the foundations to a future English school and built some of the structural pillars to support the yet to be made walls and roof.  We also made the internal structures to wells which are given out to the local people so that they have access to drinking water.

Even as Aussies who handled the heat perfectly, it was hard work, but for us that just made our work more rewarding. Seeing that you and friends have just laid the foundations to a school is a sense of accomplishment and euphoria you can’t describe with words.

We also had the chance to play some soccer with the local team, and safe to say, they were much, much better than us!

Oh, and a quick tip, watch for scorpions when you walk around the camp at night if it has rained!

Exploring Siem Reap

After three days of work at camp Beng Pae we set our sights on the next city we would visit, Siem Reap! After dropping our belongings at the hotel, we went to a village where everything was on stilts as everywhere floods during the monsoon season. We were lucky enough to go out onto lake Tonle Sap where we explored to floating trade posts. We then went into Siem Reap to eat dinner at the Red Piano and then participated in New Years festivities.

After an early wake up, we then visited Angkor Wat and got to see the sunrise over the temples. It was a fabulous work of engineering and architecture, with immaculate hand-made engravings that have lasted thousands of years

Camp Beng Mealea

We were immediately immersed in activities as we received another monk blessing and then walked through the square on our way to camp.

We only had two days at camp Beng Mealea. On the first day we made water storage pots for the locals, and we were even able to give two away to a local that came by to collect some. I think it’s safe to say that we all enjoyed mixing the clay with our feet, even if it did feel a bit weird.

For the second day we finished painting the entrance wall to the local school that our year 11 counterparts had started doing on the first day. This was very fun as we got to express our creativity and have a good laugh along the way when someone would randomly decide to decorate one of us instead of the wall.

Final days in Cambodia

After a nine-hour long bus ride back to Phenom Penn and one more night in a hotel, we reluctantly had to wish Cambodia farewell. It had been one of the best things we had ever done, and no one was going to forget the memories we made here.

Looking back, I hope I get another opportunity to go back and do something like that journey again. Seeing a country persevere through some of the worst circumstances and recover to become a beautiful and resilient country was inspirational, and to be a part of that recovery is something my fellow travellers and I can never forget.