Jam packed!
Saturday morning I went to the Silk Farm. It is about 10 km outside Siem Reap city down National Road 6, which is also the road to the airport. I went by tuk tuk, which was wild. Imagine sitting in a covered cart pulled by a motorbike (with the speed of a Vespa) along the M25 or US Route I-95. It was exactly like that. But I wasn’t the slowest thing on the road. We passed adults on bicycles, children going home from school on bicycles, or children walking. Some of them were clearly no older than 6. Imagine we Westerners sending our kids to walk to and from school along the highway….but I was clearly the only one concerned.
The silk farm was fascinating. Cambodian silk, which feels slightly heavier and less slippery than what I’m used to, comes from worms that eat a completely different leaf than Chinese silk, for example. It keeps you just as cool even though it feels heavier, though. The techniques used today are still the ancient ones.

worms eating leaves

cocoons boiled to get their silk

raw vs spun silk

a room full of looms

The shop was a little too nice. Yes, I did buy myself something……

Then on Sunday morning I went to a local playing field to watch the Anjali House team play in the finals of the 15 and under league of local kids. There is an organisation here and elsewhere called Globalteer that places volunteers in NGO’s like Anjali, and also supports local initiatives. Several years ago, one Australian with a big heart decided the local kids needed a way to play on real teams and in a competitive (though not too competitive) environment. Globalteer has been funding the program for the past few years, which means hiring the field, paying for strips if the kids need it, buying the trophies and ribbons etc. Standing out in an open field watching the kids play in over 40 degrees C was pretty exhausting. Actually playing the game was mind-boggling. But the kids are great. And they play barefoot on dirt. Many of the teams have soccer boots for the kids, but not all, so no one wears them. Again, I don’t know how they do it. The Anjali team lost but, as they say, a good time was had by all.  And note the Khmer version of the hot dog stand……

I’ll write more soon. Hope all is well wherever you are.