Hard workers, more strange food, embarrassing moment

Hard Workers

All the Khmer are hard workers - many work 7 days/week, most work 6 days/week. They have to, just to make a living. I talked to a colleague about his normal day. He told me he starts by studying English from 0530 to 0630 when he goes to New Hope from 0700 to 1130 (normal Khmer lunchtime). Home for lunch and a nap. 1430 - 1645 back at New Hope. 1700 - 1800 teaching English to children. 1800 - 1900 teaching English to adult beginners. Then the rest of the day is his own! Saturday and Sunday mornings he teaches “newspapers” - he reads the papers with a class of English-language students and explains them as required. Meanwhile he is working on a Master’s degree in English and wants to sit the tests for the Phnom Penh Language Institute (the best in Cambodia). If he succeeds he will have to travel to Phnom Penh every Friday night for the weekend (for 2 years) to learn TEFL - Teaching English as a Foreign Language.

Another colleague told me that he has been working at New Hope for 4 years. Prior to that he worked at the Temple Bar in Pub Street for 10 hours/day, 7 days/week for 2 years. He had 3 days off per year. If he was sick he was allowed to go upstairs and rest for an hour. He was paid US$2 per shift. 

More Strange Food

I ate fermented fish which is called 'Cambodian cheese' and comes as a sauce in a small bowl as a dip. It definitely had a smell of cheese - quite strong - not really to my taste but considered a delicacy locally. It was mixed with chilies and other unidentified stuff. One dipped pieces of very rare-cooked beef into it. The beef was excellent. One of the unidentified ingredients put into the ‘cheese’ dip turned out to be deep-fried, red ants. These tasted quite bitter but not unpleasant. 

Embarrassing Moment

As I walked past the medical centre the receptionist behind the desk asked me why I was limping. I told him about being out running, stubbing my toe, falling over and how much it hurt. Then I remembered this chap was a paraplegic in a wheel-chair. I felt very foolish.