Day 8 - Changi Airport (again!)

Sitting here in Changi Airport, we have a bit of time to reflect on the week that has passed. We would like to congratulate Cambodia Team 2011 on what has been a tough but rewarding time in Cambodia.
We are very proud of all of your efforts and believe you achieved what you set out to achieve. You are an amazing group of students and it was an honour to join you on this incredible journey over the last 9 days. Enjoy the last leg of the flight home when we will return you to your real mums and dad.
Kol HaKavod - Chazak Ve Amatz

The pleasure has been ours

Adina (mum) and Braham (dad)

A Final Comment from the 2011 Team

My Sister went on this trip 2 years ago. When she got back she continually told me about how amazing it was and that i had to do it. Only now do i truely understand why she thought it was amazing. To build a classroom almost from scratch is something i never thought i would be able to do but now sitting here i know that i have made a difference to the lives to 100's of school children in one of the most impoverished regions in the world. It has been a really eye opening experience and one that i will keep with me for the rest of my life. - Adam

Cambodia was an experience I will never forget - I had such an amazing time - Ruby H

I feel that i have helped the people of Cambodia through my community service. It was an amazing experience. I loved it- Tara S

Cambodia has been the experience of a life time. I loved every second of the trip and I know that I will never forget any of the amazing things that have happened. There is only one thing that I could think of to sum up the trip and that is... 5,3,4... that was absolutely sensational! - Shari

The feeling I get by helping others through their hardships is indescribable, has made me realize how lucky we are to have all the things we take for granted and put things into perspective. - Gaby M

Words cannot Describe how amazing it was to help Cambodian families in need - Romy

It was very interesting to spend time in a country where its culture and environment is drastically different to that of Australia. It was an amazing feeling to help families in poverty, and especially to hand a very pregnant woman a toy for her future child - Mia

Seeing families with so little is heartbreaking therefore, knowing that I could change such amazing peoples lives filled me with so much joy. Cambodia is an experience I will always treasure, It was an incredible way to experience community service and I can definitely say I have given it my all. I love cambodia! -Tara. K.

This trip has been such an rewarding experience as we have had the pleasure in helping such less fortunate families. Seeing the way people live was educating and it made me realize how lucky I am for the life I am able to live. -Ruby.L.

The reason I chose to come to Cambodia was to help unfortunate people and get an experience of a life time, this all happened within 9 days. There are a lot of people who cant even have a piece of bread for lunch and I am very fortunate to be living in a country where we don't have to worry about where our next meal is coming from. I have had a great time and I enjoyed spending time with my friends and the whole group. The next years group will have an amazing time and I encourage the lower years to experience this trip because they will never forget it. - Jessica

Coming to Cambodia was an enormous eye-opener for me. Everybody says that it's oh so important to give tzadka but I thought that I should take charity to another level by accompanying the money we raised to the houses we are building.

Travelling to a country, whose population was almost completely wiped and seeing a bustling, energetic nation with the happiest people I have seen anyhere was truly unbeliveable. This country's optimism and felicity should spread to the other nations of the world, and hopefully the world would be a better place.

As Henry Wadsworth Longfellow says “The life of a man consists not in seeing visions and in dreaming dreams, but in active charity and in willing service”.

Signing out Ben

Coming to Cambodia is truly one of the best experiences of my life! seeing how people with so little so happy and excited is truly inspiring! whilst learning about the Pol Pot regime we learnt how similar the Pol Pot regime was to world war 2 in the way that one man took over and ruined an entire generation. from travelling to cambodia i have learnt so much and it as really enriched my life. - Alex

This trip has been an amazing experience for me. I have loved being in Cambodia with my friends, throughout this trip. I have learnt a great deal as to why we actually have come to built these houses for these families who are in desperate need of them. I am so glad that I have had this opportunity to help these people. As well as have an experience of a lifetime. - Ash

Eight days, hundreds of laughter, thousands of memories. We have broken the stereotype placed on our generation, that we are lazy, careless, and unaware of anything but ourselves. This trip has opened our eyes to the harsh reality of people who are just like us, that live so differently. In eight simple, hard, hot days, we have changed as a group of people, physically and mentally, and it has just gone way too fast. I'll never forget all the people we have met, the things we have seen, and how just a small group of generous people can make such a large contribution and alteration to someone's lifestyle. I know now that we have accomplished everything that we have set out to do and more. I'll never ever again complain of the life we lead in good ol' Melbourne, and I know that I will definitely come back to Cambodia hopefully very shortly. - Montana

These eight days have been such a great experience for me, everyday changed my life in a different way and all i am happy they did. The weather was so hot and we got so sweaty but it was all worth it. When i saw all the unfortunate children my heart sank and i wanted to help all of them. i will never forget any of the people and especially children that i met. This was my second time in cambodia and i loved it even more then the first time because each time i went they were such different experiences. hopefully i will be back in cambodia soon! - Nat

Unbeliavable is the only adjective which could fit this experience in Cambodia. We have really done everything here. We have had so much fun here but on the other side of the spectrum we have done a lot of hard work. This experience will be truly treasured and I have many memories from here of which I will never ever forget. I am very happy that I have been provided with these opportunities to help. - Jay

I can't believe this journey has alredy come to its end. This has by far the best experience of my life.l My favourite 3 things on this trip has been the project of building the houses, the bargening in the markets and the disco on a party boat. I didn't want this to end so soon. -Doron

We began as a group of Australians who have spent time in an attempt to help some less fortunate human beings. We did not have a full understanding of anything we were about to do and now that we have come to the end of this extraordinary experience, we can feel a sense of fulfilment and success, as well as a wider understanding of the world we live in outside perfect Melbourne. -Josh (c)

This trip has been truly life changing. Learning about and witnessing first hand the way in which the people of Cambodia live has been an eye opening experience and has made me incredibly grateful for my good fortune. I am so happy that we have been able to help the people of Cambodia in so many ways and I will forever cherish the incredible memories of this trip. - Gideon

It is curently 3:50 am in Melbourne. I am very tired! All I can say is wow, what an experience! (We were told to write 2 sentences, I wrote 3) - Elijah

My sister went on this trip last year. I heard how amazing this trip is and every since then i have been waiting for this trip. It has deffinately exceeded my exprtation. I have had the most amazing time and deffinately reccomed it to others.It is a memory i will always remember and it also helped me relise how lucky we are living in Melbourne. - Brandon

Day 7 - Phnom Penh

Today we had our first Cambodia trip sleep in! When we finally woke up at 9am we prepared for our Saturday morning shule service. The sun cooked our bodies on the walk to shule and we then prayed beautifully with the Rabbi who was very excited with the minyan we were able to provide. After we indulged in a gorgeous and traditional shabbat lunch, we returned to the hotel where we spent the afternoon lounging poolside. At 6.30pm we ate a very relaxed rooftop meal which was followed by a private "party boat" ride on the river. The bass was kickin' as we all partied for our last night on our Cambodian journey. The realization that our adventure was nearly complete was hard but we drowned the sorrows in fantastic ice creams from Blue Pumpkin. Oh, what a night.

Jay, Doron and Josh

Day 6 - Phnom Penh

With yet another early start, we were off to the country side to the location of the house building project. In record time the team completed four houses for families in need. We put this success down to the training at Bunnings and the school room building earlier this week. Students even commented on how easy it is to hammer in nails now that they are so experienced. As a reward we went to the Russian Market to do our best to boost the local economy - we shopped like crazy people and are now back in the hotel getting ready for Shabbat.

Stay tuned for more updates after Shabbat - shabbat shalom from Cambodia

Adina and Braham

Day 5 - Phnom Penh

Hey everyone:)

After waking up after what seemed like not enough sleep, we quickly ate our breakfast, packed up our rooms, loaded our suitcases onto the bus, and climbed on for what seemed like a lifetime of driving. Two rest stops and a million "are we there yets" later, we arrived at the Tabitha Foundation in Phnom Penh. Although we were all exhausted, we were intrigued by what Janne (the founder of the tabitha foundation) had to tell us. She explained to us all about the Pol Pot Regime, and what had happened to Cambodia when he was in power. Janne was extremely unhappy about how the rest of the world was refusing action against the extreme sufferings that the innocent Cambodians were experiencing at the hands of Pol Pot, so in 1975 she moved from Canada to Cambodia, and never returned home. She has so much passion for her new home, and she is so determined to make a better life for those who suffered in the Pol Pot Regime. After she had explained the history of Cambodia, the real reason for our trip hit all of us. We aren't just here for a holiday, to sit by the pool for 8 days and then go home. This trip is for us to help repair this community for the incredible people that live here. Janne then gave us a briefing of what we are to expect tomorrow when we build the 4 houses. She informed us of all the rules we have to be sure to follow tomorrow. Janne made it very clear to us, that we must be willing to put in 110% throughout the entire day, and we must smile and be happy the entire day, so that the families we are building the houses for know that we are there out of choice, and that we want to help them.

After Janne spoke to us, we left Tabitha and made our way to S-21. S-21 was a ordinary high school until pol pot came into power. It was then turned into a prison, and was used to torture the innocent Cambodian people, who to pol pot and his followers, were not worthy of living in his "great" country. S-21 is now a museum, although all of its original structures are still in place. It was a very confronting experience for most of us, and it really hit some of us quite hard, because it reminded us of the Holocaust, which we all feel a strong connection too. We were able to actually walk into the cells that had once held prisoners. There was a whole row of rooms that was completely lined with pictures of all the people that had once been in the prison. The majority of the people who were forced to stay in this prison were innocent people who simply didn't fit into Pol Pot's definition of perfect. We then went to the killing fields, which was as confronting as S-21. When you walk into the killing fields, the first thing you see is a massive temple type of structure that holds every single skull they managed to excavate. Even though we were shocked by what we saw, we all agreed that it was such an interesting way to honour and remember those who perished.

After a long and emotional day, we finally arrived at our new hotel where we all hurriedly got settled into our rooms, and then went down for dinner, cooked by our new chef, Ken, who cooked the most amazing spring rolls we have ever had! We can definetly say that we have had an extremely eventful trip so far. How many other past Cambodia teams can say that they had two passport scares? Thankfully, after lots of searching Romy found her passport, and we all began to breathe again.

We're off to bed now, to get our rest because tomorrow is the big day! Tomorrow we will build the 4 much needed houses!

Shoutout to our siblings back in the hood, Ashleigh, Jarrod, Alix and Sophie. We miss you homies!

-Tara Kiven and Ruby Harris xo

Day 4 Battambang

Another tiring day comes to a close, and what message we take from that is to appreciate all that we have because some are not as lucky.

We woke up bright and early for a 7:30 depature. Already feeling the heat of the Cambodian sunwe headed toward CHO (Child Hope Orphanage), turns out it wasn't an orphanage as expected but and Organization that assists the less fortunate in learning basic English, life and computer skills and converational language. After an introduction with the director who outlined the intentions and goals of the organization and quick tour around the class rooms, we were off to work. It begain as chaos (organized chaos of course) but after a good half hour of hammered fingers and wood splinters we begun to get the hang of things. Were not saying we are professionals (well Adam thinks he is) but we can definately start DIY jobs at home. Most of the walls were up when the real fun started, PAINTING! White shirts became brown and clean skin became incredibly dirty, well thats the whole fun of it, right? At last our masterpiece was completed, brown walls with colourful windows looked back at us, our tradie skills were definitely up to scratch!

We were then whisked away in tuk tuks (Gaby a bit hesitant due to hurting her leg on the first night on the exhaust pipe of a motor cycle) to some of childrens homes to meet their families and take in their living conditions. This was truely eye opening due to experiéncing how poverty sticken this third country really is. Just sitting in their houses or what is classified a house in Cambodia (two rooms often shared between 5 kids and parents). We all had a greater appreciation for all we have back at home.


The day was not over yet, as a goodbye dance from the children was still to take place. Our personal "ïf your happy and you know it clap your hands" most of us still have it stuck in our heads! Then to conclude our day at CHO we presented the director with soccer balls and a pump kindly donated by the Reagan Milstein foundation and over 100 soccer tops from Maccabi Soccer to the children in most need. Our duties were fufilled and must we say it was so rewarding!

Sightseeing was still on the to-do list for today so we visited the bamboo train tracks, we personally thought it was more of a ride. Seriously these things were going down hill at a very fast pace, I was scared for my life!

To end a memorable and most challanging day we have yet experianced here in Cambodia we had dinner at a vegan and kosher restaraunt. We didnt hold back, it was pretty much all you can eat, Adam demolished 4 tofu burgers, along with a large drink and a bowl of fried rice, thats what you call a meal, well more a hearty meal.

Goodbye for now, Gaby, Adam and Romy.

Day 3 Siem Reap - Battambang

On day 3 of our Cambodia trip, we travelled from Siem Reap to Battambang, a four hour bus trip! Luckily, to break up the monotony we stopped over at the Floating Villages and had a two hour river cruise with beautiful views of the river and its floating houses, school and hospital. We also visited the floating crocodile farm, a tourist destination where we saw not only crocodiles, but snakes, birds and fish (food for the crocodiles!).

After our wonderful river cruise, we hopped back on the bus and after a three hour drive finally arrived at our hotel in Battambang. After settling in at our hotel, we had a tour of the city, our first destination being the "Mercy House of Soft Drinks"-the only vegan restaraunt in Battambang. Here we spent a great deal of time kashering their kitchen and prepared our ingredients for our dinner. After choosing our meals, we headed to the local produce market, where we were amazed to see huge bunches of bananas for only $1 a kilo! After filling our bags with Battambang's finest fruits and catching whiffs of some "interesting" odours, we originally planned on going back to the restaurant, but on the way back we crossed the bridge and caught sight of the aerobics and dancing taking place in Battambang's park. A spontaneous decision resulted in an hour of Cambodian style "Zumba" and a few rounds of the Cambodian shuttlecock kicking game.

After burning those few extra calories, we headd back to the "Mercy House of Soft Drinks''. There we were treated to an empty retaurant and delicious kosher Cambodian style food. We then returned to our hotel and after journal writing (and blogging!) we retreated to our rooms to get some needed rest for day four of our trip.

By Ben & Gideon.

Day 2 - Siem Reap

Hey everyone :)


Today was a very busy day in the life of our Cambodia team. Firstly, we headed towards the Elephant Rides, only to find out that our plans required alteration, due to a morning rush of Japenese tourists, thus they didn't have quite enough elephants for all of us. We then decided to visit the "Jungle Temple", famous for a number of reasons, but most of us knew it as it was the location where they filmed Tomb Raider. Unfortunately, we weren't allowed to enter it, as it is a place of idol worship, however it was still beautiful to admire from afar. We then caught up with the wandering elephants at Angkor Wat, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, and it was definitely not hard to see why! The ancient ruins were riveting, and just by being outside of it you were able to feel and experience the culture and history that is the basis for this country. After many photo taking, we finally met with the elephants. A number of us had the pleasure of feeding them with bananas the size of one's pinky, which will forever be a fun and memorable moment in our minds. Finally, after much waiting, we boarded the beautiful elephants in groups of threes, enjoying the sightseeing, and waving to the seemingly fascinated locals.
Our next stop was the Remote school, a very poor school in the countryside, and our first community project. The children were all very excited to see us, and were even more delighted when they were given delicious lollipops. Some of us remained outside with them to play classic games such as: Duck duck Goose, Simon Says, Hokey Pokey, and a vast amount of AFL footy, while the others were led to a classroom where we taught them basic English words with the help from picture books, constructed by Grade 2 at FKI. We played and taught for a long while, until it was time for the children to return to their houses on their bicycles. Before they left, we gave them the gift of AFL footy jumpers, for them to wear as sport uniforms and sporting occasions. It was then time for the Scopus team to buckle down and do some solid work. In partners, we were to plant two mango trees (24 in total). One thing we have learnt from this paticular experience is that planting a couple of trees is sure a lot harder than it sounds. We hacked away at the ground, absorbing the sun's raging heat and getting on our knees to do the best planting job possible. It was hard, it was rough and boy was it hot, but we did it with a smile on our face. It was all worth it in the end when some kids who had stayed at school rewarded us with pretty water lilies.
We collapsed into the seats of our bus, and drove to the Rural hospital, armed with presents of blankets, stuff toys, crutches and baby wraps. The doctor, staff and patient were delighted, and so was a patient who was given baby blankets, toys and wraps just as she was about to go through labor.
Tired, exhausted, we drove back to the hotel. Some of us shopped at the supermarket in search of necessary supplies (in other words, strange lollies), while others hopped into the pool for a long deserved swim. We then had an office themed dinner, which was delicious, especially when it included a Cambodian specialty curry called "Amok", vegetables wrapped in banana leaf baskets.
Best board meeting EVER!!!Tonight it was time for some serious shopping at the night market followed by some very unusual foot therapy courtesy of "Dr. Fish", which involves sitting on the edge of a giant fish pool with your feet submerged and getting nibbled clean by hundreds of small fish.
A short walk back to the hotel and time only for journal writing before packing up for our next move tomorrow to the city of Battambang.


Today's blog was brought to you by Elijah and Montana

First day is finally over and we have all had a taste of Cambodia both culturally and literally. The theme for dinner tonight was "Royal Banquet" and the fact that dinner even had a theme lets you know how amazing the team has already been. They have helped each other with their luggage, shared nush and funny stories and when it came to dinner tonight, Alex and Dylan decided that everyone should have a rolay themed name card so that we could start to sit next to different people. Doron tried his hand at table decoration and took on the role of apprentice chef to help prepare the mushroom spring rolls that were a part of our first Cambodian meal experience.
We spent part of today at the Siem Reap Artisans' colony where our lovely guide explained the work being done to help those injurred by the Pol Pot regime could be helped to learn a skill that would help them provide a livelihood for them and their families. The work being done inspired our team to sart shopping and some beautiful gifts have been bought for family back home.
After dinner we had the pleasure of a tuk-tuk ride aroung town before we sat down to write in our journals and arrange the things we needed for our first service project tomorrow.
Stay tuned for our next blog that will be brought to you by some our team members.

Goodnight - finally

Adina and Braham

Singapore Airport

After an eventful departure from Tullamarine, we all made it safe and sound to Singapore airport. Other passengers approached us to praise the wonderful behaviour of our students throughout the flight and the flight crew were so impressed with our project in Cambodia that they gave us three gift bags filled with toys and caps for the children in the school in Siem Reap. Ready for the next flight to Siem Reap.....

Welcome Cambodia Team 2011

This is the first post in our new blog for the Mt Scopus College Cambodia Team 2011.
So far we have sold giant fredos, sizzled sausages, walked 1000 steps and guessed M&Ms on our way to raising enough money for the community and service projects we have arranged in Cambodia.
We have also developed our woodworking skills in a training session at Bunnings Box Hill.

We can't wait to make use of our skills and the funds we have raised - stay tuned for more news